Partner Agency Spotlight: Imagine Schools at East Mesa
When school’s out for summer break, many Arizona children lose access to a reliable source of food—free or reduced-price school meals and snacks. As a result, families face extra worry about increased spending on food and other essential items to keep kids fed and healthy during the hot summer months.
Imagine Schools at East Mesa runs a little bit differently than our other 14 partner schools. In partnership with United Food Bank, Imagine Schools at East Mesa continues to operate their monthly food distributions throughout the summer, providing emergency food bags, fresh produce, protein, and other goods to families. On average, they serve over 75 families each month. They also provide a summer meal program, serving free hot breakfasts and lunches to kids under 18 Mondays through Fridays!
Sign explaining what each family gets to take home at Imagine East’s Food Distribution this June
Imagine School’s food distributions are run by their “Giving Gang.” The Giving Gang was started by a beloved teacher, the late Kristen Skiles, in order to serve their families and local communities beyond the classroom. Food, clothing, toiletries, school supplies, and more are given to those who request help by completing an order form on their website. “She was the best. We try to honor her legacy by continuing to run these distributions as best as we possibly can and continuing our duties as members of the Giving Gang” said Dr. Melynda Hache, principal of Imagine Schools at East Mesa. There is also now a scholarship fund in Kristen’s honor; “The Kristin Skiles’ Scholarship Fund was created to help the school continue to live out her mission.”
The late Kristen Skiles, founder of the ‘Giving Gang,’ preparing bags of clothes for students who need it
“What we do here is so important. These food distributions are essential to our families and other community members who come every month. We have teachers who come to get supplemental food for the month. It really helps people to stretch their budgets and alleviate some of the stress they are experiencing right now,” said Dr. Hache.
Antonia, a teacher at Imagine Schools at East Mesa, attends the monthly distributions to supplement her groceries. “It is so nice that we get to do this every month. I know how much it helps our kids and families, but it also really helps me. I am a single person living alone/ With the prices of groceries and everything increasing, I feel less stressed at the grocery store knowing that I have some supplemental food at home from these distributions.”
Imagine Schools at East Mesa served nearly 2,000 free breakfasts and lunches during the Summer of 2022 and plan to do around the same this year. Of the 11 Imagine Schools of Arizona participating in free summer congregate meals, they served over 31,000 meals to Arizona children in 2022. Dr. Hache pointed out that “With the return to the traditional NSLP and SBP programs, some of our schools have more than $8,000 in outstanding lunch debts. There is a clear need for free breakfast and lunches to all children in Arizona. We do our best, but we need change now.”
“We couldn’t help our community without United Food Bank. You have been amazing to work with and help our students, families, staff and larger community in more ways than one. Thank you for all you do to keep our communities fed,” shared Dr. Hache.
Join United Food Bank in our Summer of a Million Meals campaign! Our goal is to raise funds to help provide over 1,000,000 meals to our neighbors in need this summer. Summer of a Million Meals is geared towards supporting kids and families, like those who participate in Imagine School’s monthly distributions. If you would like to help support Arizona children experiencing food insecurity, please donate at AZmillionmeals.org today! For every dollar you donate, United Food Bank can help provide five meals. Together, we feed Arizona.
Written by Sarah Bathe
