MACON, Ga. — Bibb County ended its summer feeding program on June 30th with the end of summer school, which prompted The Mentor's Project of Bibb County to tackle the issue one summer meal at a time.
They've helped the county feed kids in the summer since 2020, when the pandemic hit. The Mentor's Project provided 25,000 meals in 2020 alone. This summer, they are excited for what's to come.
James Freeman has volunteered for over five years with the organization. He and the team are gearing up for a special project.
"To me, it's highly important that our children get what they need and that they're not suffering," said Freeman.
On June 30th, Bibb county ended its summer feeding program for the year with the end of summer school, but the need for feeding remained.
"Seeing the relief, the gratitude, on the parents who know their kids are being taken care of," Freeman said. "They know there are other people in the community that care about their kids and what happens to them. It's invaluable to see that."
They saw that gratitude from parents during the height of the pandemic two years ago but initially thought their extension of the feeding program was a short-term project.
"When the school district summer feeding ended. we picked up with what we thought would be for one month," June O'Neal, the Executive Director of Mentor's Project for Bibb County, said. "We fed children for nine weeks, and it was peanut butter and jelly because that's all I could round up."
That original month grew into a project now set up and funded to ensure kids are fed for three years.
"You got to walk the talk. You can't talk about food insecurities and food deserts and not do anything about it," said O'Neal.
The organization expects to give out 10,000 meals in July alone. They've provided between 30 and 40,000 meals over the last three years.
Mentor's Project Website:
https://www.mentorsprojectbibb.org/
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