By Donna LeMar

Science instructor, Pacelli Middle School

On Thursday, Oct. 5, Pacelli Catholic Middle School students went to Eagan, Minnesota, to help the Feed My Starving Children organization in its mission to feed the world’s hungriest children.

Pacelli Catholic Schools believe learning extends beyond the classroom. It is part of our mission to serve others as part of our Catholic Identity.  Pacelli’s mission and the mission of Feed My Starving Children have been an integral part of the learning experience for nearly 60 students each of the past 12 years.  Along with a dozen hard-working adult chaperones, we were able to pack more meals than we ever have before.

Feed My Starving Children is a non-profit Christian organization committed to feeding God’s starving children. It has a presence in 70 countries worldwide where members ship nutritionally-complete meals that have been created for malnourished children.

FMSC works from private donations using volunteers to hand-pack the meals which are then donated to food partners around the world who distribute the food to the neediest of God’s children. Ninety percent of all donated funds are used specifically to purchase the food needed to create the meals.  Ninety-nine percent of the meal shipments have been successfully distributed to the children who need them.

Pacelli Middle School student Manuel Contreras, right, works to fill pouches at the Feed My Starving Children packing line last week in Eagan.

This year, because of the catastrophic hurricanes that battered the Caribbean, FMSC is concentrating its efforts on those countries. Along with their partners, food is being distributed to the most needy, here in the United States and to our close neighbors like Haiti and the Dominican Republic.

Pacelli students do fundraising in order to help pay for some of the supplies of food used up during our packing session. While we are at FMSC, most of the students are on the packing line adding rice, soy, vegetables, and powdered vitamins into plastic pouches which are then sealed by an adult volunteer.  Other students and adults work to keep the supplies on the lines full or help in the warehouse by sealing the boxes of food and organizing the pallets for shipment.

Pacelli students, with the help of a small group of adults from a local business, were able to pack 144 boxes of pouched food. That adds up to 5,184 pouches or 31,104 meals. That is enough food to feed 83 children for an entire year. At the end of the packing session this year, we heard stories from children who are grateful for the meals. Many of those children were on the brink of starvation when Feed My Starving Children arrived.

The success stories help our students understand just how important the food is to real children who have the same dreams as they do. It helps our students appreciate the food, clothing, and shelter they have here in Austin. We look forward to serving others with FMSC for many years to come.

If you are interested in learning more about Pacelli Catholic Schools visit our website at www.pacellischools.org, email admin@pacellischools.org or call 507-437-3278.