Patch Gives Back: Editors Volunteer at Feed My Starving Children

I think it’s fair to say nobody looks very good wearing a hairnet. But, what is also equally true is that just about everyone looks - and feels - better when their stomach is full.

For a few hours Tuesday afternoon seven Patch editors donned hairnets in order to give back and help starving children in Djibouti, Africa.

Patch believes in giving back and encourages employees to Give 5. This week is our Give 5 week, an opportunity to pick a day to volunteer at a nonprofit. On July 23, seven Patch editors volunteered at Feed My Starving Children.

We donned our hairnets and set to work with groups of summer camp participants and volunteer groups, helping to pack meals for children in need of food around the world. There were 64 people in attendance during our two-hour packing session and we packed 65 boxes of food.

The Patch editors had different roles during the two-hour volunteer event, some worked in the warehouse, others packed food or distributed ingredients.

Feed My Starving Children distributes the packaged meals around the world to those in need. They send food packages that include vitamins, dehydrated vegetables, soy and rice. When cooked with water the meal provides much needed vitamins and protein to starving children.

To date, the organization has provided about 600,000 million meals to children in need.

The Patch editors were at a table packing food specifically for children in Djibouti, but other countries were also represented.

The volunteers during our shift at Feed My Starving Children packed 65 boxes of food, which translates to 14,040 meals to feed 39 children for a year. Donors pay it forward, by providing funds, which pay for the meals. The meals packed were valued at $3,080.

Find out more about Feed My Starving Children.