LAKELAND, Fla. — With grocery prices still high, more parents are turning to their children’s school for help.
At Crystal Lake Elementary in Lakeland, the need for food assistance is growing. School leaders said more families are reaching out as the cost of groceries continues to climb.
WATCH: Polk County families rely on elementary food pantry as grocery costs rise
Georgiana Thompson, whose son is in the fourth grade, told Tampa Bay 28 reporter Rebecca Petit that Crystal Lake’s new food pantry has been a lifeline.
"It feels real good, especially when you are in need and don't have it. It feels real good to know I can go somewhere and get that support,” Thompson said.
In 2020, the school began a monthly mobile food distribution for families in the community in partnership with Feeding Tampa Bay. But the demand remained steady.
"There still was that food insecurity. So, we had a small emergency food pantry that we would be able to assist families with, but we knew we needed to do more,” said Andrea Hagan, Director of Community Partnership Schools.
Feeding Tampa Bay helped Crystal Lake Elementary open a marketplace pantry last November, giving parents access to groceries and helping relieve the stress of putting meals on the table.
“We’ve been able to see families coming through weekly and they’re able to shop. They’re able to pick out food that they like. They're able to have a sense of dignity and personal choice within the foods that we have here,” said Hagan.
The program does more than just fill pantries it helps create stability for students. Hagan said as long as families continue to need help, they plan to keep the food pantry going.
“We all need a hand up or help at some point in time. Some of us have families we can turn to. Some of us don’t. Our food pantry is here in the community that our families; that their students attend our school can turn to. And they know that help is going to be there," Hagan said.
Making sure hundreds of parents leave each week with one less thing to worry about.
“My family comes to this pantry so we can get the food that we want and need,” said third grader Liliana Rogers.
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