Heading Back to School with Healthy Eating #Dole4Kids
School is just around the corner and we are doing a lot of shopping for our kids in preparation for their return to school. I was excited to pay it forward with my friends and family to the kids in our community, thanks to Dole and Champions for Kids. I remember the first day of school when I was a kid. I was nervous and excited at the same time, but I never remember being worried about having enough food to eat. What a blessing that was! However, there are many children out there that don’t have enough food to eat on the first day of school and I wanted to help eliminate some of that. I wanted to help build a better world for kids!
The first thing I did was head to our local Walmart for some healthy snacks. Our kids enjoy eating Dole Fruit Bowls and I knew I wanted to donate those to our local food pantry. I found a huge variety of Dole Fruit Bowls at our local Walmart and they were only $2.00 each. What a great deal!!! They had Pineapple Tidbits, Diced Peaches, Diced Pears, Mandarin Oranges, Mixed Fruit, Cherry Mixed Fruit, and more. I really wanted to donate Dole Squish ‘Ems (I’ve heard lots about them), but couldn’t seem to locate them this time around. Be sure to check out my Google+ Story to learn more about my shopping trip.
For our donations, I chose our local Food Pantry in Nipomo. I have friends who have had times in their lives where they had to go to the local Food Pantry to pick up staples and healthy foods for their families, which often included children. I also had a time in my life where I received help from the community when it came to my kids starting school and needing food to eat. I wanted to help pay it forward and decrease the amount of children that would be without healthy snacks this school year. What an amazing feeling to know we are helping others!
I also wanted to get my family and friends involved, so I phoned and emailed various moms in my community (both from play groups, Bunco groups and other Mom groups). I collected a variety of Dole Fruit Bowls from all of them! I am so thankful to have family and friends that have the same desire to give back to the community and work towards ending child hunger.
Do you want to help too? It’s simple! Gather your family, friends, and co-workers to participate in a “Back to School Snacks” Project. Ask each person to bring nutritious non-perishable snacks for kids. You might even consider hosting a contest to see who can collect the most items to donate! The next step is to give the snacks you collect to a local school nurse, teacher, social workers, or food pantry to help children in your community enjoy their first days back to school. You can double your impact by reporting your project at Champions for Kids during the month of August 2013. During the month of August, Dole will make a matching donation of up to 1,000 Dole Squish’ems through Champions for Kids to help children in need!
Oh the Dole fruit containers are perfect to donate to the local food bank! They are shelf stable, but also give a bit of fun and sweet to a persons diet. we love these DOLE fruit cups. And they really brighten my kid’s faces when I pull them out. So I think it is fantastic that you are sharing such a gift to others who are in need. Just think of all those little kids who are in dire situations getting a smile on their face because they have a healthy sweet treat thanks to your donation. I love it!
Amber – I totally agree with you. I remember the fruit cups from when I was a kid and am so glad our own kids like them and we are able to share with others. What a blessing.
It feels so great to give back, I hadn’t thought about the timing of a new school year and families needing to stretch their budget even farther.
Michelle – I totally agree with you. It is always an awesome experience to give back to the community, especially when it’s something that is good for them. 🙂
I love these fruit bowls. They are so convenient. What a great donation idea!
Mariah – I love them too. I agree it’s definitely a great donation idea. It’s non-perishable and easy to store too! 🙂
We love these, so perfect for school lunches and road trips!
Tammi – I totally agree. I love how many different flavors they have too!
the squish ’ems are hard to find here too but we’ve brought them to our local food bank. i feel like they travel better- and easier.
we loooooooove the oranges in our house. we call them orange smiles
Brett – I searched two stores, but was unable to find the Squish’ems. I found other brand’s versions, but really wanted the Dole ones. I am so happy we had a huge variety to choose from to take to the Food Bank and that my friends were willing to donate as well. 🙂
The Back To School Snacks project is such a great idea…glad to know about it! We are big fans of packing healthy lunch snacks instead of candy!
My son loves the Dole oranges. I love the idea of donating them, we will have to bring some to our church.
What a great idea..and quality product to give to those in need!
Love the idea! Giving back always makes my heart warm up.
Dole Mandarin Oranges are so good… I craved them during my pregnancy and had lots of salads with them on top.
My kidlets love these!
What a great cause! We donate food to our local food pantry as well. They also have a homeless women and children’s shelter connected. I love the idea of donating healthy after school snacks, that’s a great idea. I know my kids love the Dole fruit packs as well!
I am certainly a Dole fan… I have always crazy loved all fruits ever since I was a little girl, to me they seemed like nature’s candy! Yummy yum yum, hard to believe something so naturally sweet and delicious is good for you. YAY.