On Friday March 6, 2015 Conscious Alliance launched our pilot Backpack Program as part of our initiative to “Bring Nutrition Home”. We have partnered with Justin’s, Plum Organics, Polar Bottle, and SUJA Juice to provide all of the students of Isna Wica Owaya (Loneman School) on Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota with a backpack full of nutritious, easy to prepare foods every Friday for the rest of the school year.

            All of the students at Loneman School qualify for and receive free or reduced breakfast and lunches. Feeding America is an organization that operates more than 200 food banks nationwide has identified the weekend as a time that children are most at risk for missing meals or not receiving meals that are rich in vitamins and protein. Loneman School Vice Principal, Alicia Stolley, told Conscious Alliance that a student approached her asking for food because the student did not have access to any food over the weekend. The staff at the school rallied and sent the student home with all the snack food they could the following weekend.  When Conscious Alliance approached the school with the idea to partner  and creating this program she was more than excited and shared that anecdote to illustrate the dire need for food that students experience at her school on a weekly basis.

 

            The first week of the program was a success for both the organization and the students. As we move forward to week two of the program we wanted to take a minute to let everyone know what we have been hard at work on, and that we are continuing to seek donations or partnerships from other natural product companies.