Milwaukee mother raises $10K in donations to combat food insecurity for students at La Escuela Fratney Elementary
MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- In Milwaukee County, one out of every four kids, or 25%, faces food insecurity.
Now, Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) mother Amanda Seppanen is fighting to bring that number down to zero.
In the fall, she began fundraising to help create food bags for students at La Escuela Fratney Elementary, where her child attends.
Since then, she's garnered about $10,000 dollars and distributed 2,000 food bags packed with protein, pasta, canned veggies, and snacks.
"We really just wanted to be a part of the solution and think about ways we can support any future efforts," Seppanen told CBS 58's Ellie Nakamoto-White.
Each bag is packed in the elementary school's halls thanks to volunteers.
"We're not going to, as a community, wait around on other people to solve hunger in children for us," Seppanen said.
On Thursday, Dec. 18, she held a round table discussion with several Wisconsin politicians to highlight how food insecurity impacts students, while encouraging them to be a part of the solution.
"We're not going to, as a community, wait around on other people to solve hunger in children for us," Seppanen said. "We're aware that the need is out there and it's going to require a lot of people to show up and take action to influence the problem."
Organizers said they hope to continue raising money to help more kids and eventually expand to other MPS schools.
"We know that what we're doing is something but it's also not enough," Seppanen said. "We believe we can be part of the solutions and that school communities are well positioned to support families in their time of need."
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