KSHB 41 reporter Marlon Martinez covers Platte and Clay counties in Missouri. Share your story idea with Marlon.
In schools, pantries, and mobile food distributions across Clay and Platte counties, thousands of Northland families rely on the work of Feed Northland Kids and its community partners to make sure families don’t go hungry.
“There are kids all over our community with needs in every single school and every single neighborhood and community, said Gwen O'Brien executive director for Feed Northland Kids.
The group provides about 16,000 community food kits each year, serving 1,500 to 1,800 families every month. But O’Brien says access to healthy food remains a challenge, especially outside major towns.
“I think it's bigger than we often think it is. So when you get out into the rural communities, they're even farther away from maybe the grocery stores that have access to a lot of fresh produce and a lot of fresh meat. And so it's just really important that we're getting those families the access to those fresh foods," said O'Brien.
The Northland Health Alliance, which recently completed its Community Health Assessment, found the same challenge.
“Two out of five Northlanders do not live close to a grocery store with healthy foods,” said Emily Funderman with the alliance. “Access to healthy foods was a top priority in our last cycle three years ago, and it remains a top priority today.”
The Alliance works with nonprofits, health departments, hospitals, and food networks like Harvesters to organize free food drives and connect residents with available services.
“It's important because it's not just something where we said, hey, we want to focus on this. This is what we're passionate about. It's important because that's what the community told us was important," said Funderman.
Funderman believes progress is possible if community leaders stay focused.
“As long as we have leadership and organizations that come together to prioritize food access, we can make strides,” she said.
Visit their website to read the full report.
__
