(STORY IMAGE:KHQ.COM)
CHENEY, Wash. -A Cheney High School teacher wants to make sure that no child goes hungry.
Monte Syrie started Project Feed Forward about a year and a half ago. He first started bringing in utensils for students who needed them, and then brought in food too.
“I noticed wow the food disappears really quickly when I have food. So I decided you know what? I'm going to have food for them on a regular basis,” he says.
So, he started keeping food in a closet in his classroom for his students whether they forgot their lunch, need a snack, or can’t afford it.
“I think all kids have needs, so no questions asked,” he says.
Students word on notecards what the project means to them. One wrote that the food provides a “sense of security,” and another wrote that the food keeps them “energized for the rest of the day.
Syrie then reached out to the community about this.
“The response was overwhelming,” Syrie says.
Other teachers, school board members, and local stores pitched in to fill this need. All that’s required of the students in return is to sign a thank you. Syrie takes a picture of all the thank you’s and posts it to show the community they appreciate their help.
Syrie just hopes that his students take away a lesson of compassion.
“There are people struggling out there and I think if we can be empathetic and compassionate about that then all the better,” Syrie says.
If you would like to contribute, Syrie says the easiest way, if you’re close, is to drop it off at the front desk of the high school.