“Wealth is not to feed our egos,
But to feed the hungry and to help people help themselves.”
-Andrew Carnegie
This summer 2018, The Lunchbox Movement launched, delivering lunchboxes filled with love to the children participating in Team Walker in Jersey City (Team Walker is a summer camp whose mission is to “improve the quality of life for the children of Jersey City”).
Across the country, about 30 million children receive free or reduced lunch every school day through the National School Lunch Program. Unfortunately, during summer vacation, many go without lunch—including while attending summer camp.
When the children of Wear the Cape and kidkind foundation Founder Leigh Ann Errico learned of hungry bellies at Team Walker’s camp, they immediately stepped up and created The Lunchbox Movement to help. The partnership with Team Walker was made possible by Board Member Dianne Jacobs.
The Errico children, with assistance from their mom and volunteers, called local stores to request food and monetary donations in order to create and fill reusable lunchboxes—donated by kidkind foundation—with a nutritious lunch and snacks. These lunchboxes not only fed the bellies of Team Walker campers, but also their hearts; the Errico children wrote the reminder that “It’s cool to be kind” by hand and placed them in every child’s lunchbox.
Filling the lunchboxes was a group effort. The Errico children, along with other Cape Kids, spent countless hours of their summer vacation packing the lunchboxes, all while giggling, singing, dancing, and having a blast. “It’s fun to help others!” exclaimed Charlotte Errico, age 8 and a rising third grader.
Thanks to the many donations from local merchants (see donor list below),The Lunchbox Movement was able to fill lunchboxes with bagels, granola bars, waters, juice boxes, fruit snacks, apples, bananas, and cookies. There was such a bounty generously provided by our donor partners that kidkind foundation was able to pack extra foods, so that the campers of Team Walker would have snacks to nourish them in the afternoon, as well as to take home and eat when hungry.
Along with delicious lunches, kidkind foundation donated our children’s book, It’s Good To Be Kind, written by Lauren DuBois Rosemond, a story about sharing kindness in a special way. Click Here to purchase a copy.
We are incredibly grateful to all who donated to The Lunchbox Movement:
- Burger King (Gillette, NJ): Juice boxes
- Kings (Gillette, NJ): $50 gift card
- Costco (Bridgewater, NJ): $25 gift card
- Shoprite (Stirling, NJ): $25 gift card
- Costco (East Hanover, NJ): $25 gift card
- BJs (Linden, NJ): $25 gift card
- Acme (Warren, NJ): Napkins, water bottles, granola bars, fruit snacks, juice boxes
- Stop and Shop (Watchung, NJ): Bagels, butter, resealable plastic bags, cookies, apples, bananas
“It is heartwarming and meaningful to see children focused on giving and serving others in need,” stated Leigh Ann Errico, Founder and CEO of Wear the Cape and the kidkind foundation.“Summer is about fun and making memories for many, but we need to help our children understand that not all people are so fortunate to enjoy the season, carefree. It’s our job to show kids how to see beyond their own realities and step away from their worlds in order to tap into having compassion for others.”
The kidkind foundation is humbled and grateful for the community support that made the first undertaking of The Lunchbox Movement possible. We look forward to continuing and expanding these valued partnerships in the future!
Please email leighann@wearthcapekids.com to donate or to nominate an organization that is in need of help from The Lunchbox Movement.