Edconnect dec 2016

Connecting Brevard Public Schools to its Community • Volume V, Issue 3, December 2016 Brevard County’s Caring Covers BPS Students, Families with Love
is the season of giving and Brevard County is over owing with givers. Over 3,300 non-pro ts are registered with tax exempt status and oftentimes Brevard Public Schools’ students and families are the recipients of this county’s largesse. Three programs
that directly support BPS are the Children’s Hunger Project and two homegrown BPS programs, Food 4 Thought and Giving from the Heart.
The Children’s Hunger Project (CHP) supplies 1,600 meals per week for home consumption to students at 37 schools throughout the county. Teachers and school sta identify students who may be in need of food over the weekend and CHP delivers packages that are light enough for students to carry and nutritionally sound.
Riviera Elementary in Palm Bay turned its weekly distribution of the meals into a fun and happy backpack club. “Teachers see and hear a sense of happiness and relief in children as they leave to attend backpack club. Many teachers, over time, will see a change in our CHP children on Mondays as a result of their participation in the program,” said Linda Piccolella, retired Riviera principal.
Another positive activity generated by the CHP is the packing events. Groups from around the county gather at the CHP o ces in Cocoa
(generously donated by Cocoa Hyundai) to pack and shrink wrap the trays of food. “People like to touch the meal that helps a kid who may not have all the advantages,” said Keith Gee, CHP executive director. Recently Harris Corp. gathered its employees for a massive packing event in conjunction with the United Way.
pounds of food and was sent to 33 outlets throughout Brevard.
The Sharing Center of Central Brevard was one of the outlets to bene t from BPS’ generosity. “(We) exist solely because of the kindness and generosity of others. Our mission to provide emergency basic needs assistance has nearly doubled in the last decade. In fact in 2015-16 we serviced a record number of people through our programs,” said David Brubaker, president / CEO. “One time, a young boy asked us if we could provide him a box of Cheerio’s. That day he was in luck and we had one to give. The young child started jumping for joy as if it was a new bike on his birthday, but in the end it was just a box of cereal. Those are the joys we see each and every day.”
Another organization is appreciative of the food drive. Mike Murphy of Rockledge’s St. Mary’s Helping Hands said, “If anyone is su ering in our community we are all responsible
to do what we can to relieve the
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December 2016 edConnect
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“The Harris packing event involved some of the most enthusiastic and goal driven group of professionals I have experienced,” Piccolella said. “Each of the three packing teams included a CEO who joined them in the work and the celebration of their accomplishments.”
Powerful outcomes are possible when large organizations team up to help students in need. “We could end childhood hunger in Brevard County,” Gee said. “We have the resources in Brevard County to do that.”
BPS itself holds a food drive in the fall to help ll the shelves of local food pantries and shelters. The 2016 drive gathered approximately 45,000
su ering. (This is a) great lesson of charity and community involvement for the students.”
Another giving back program that originates at BPS is Giving from the Heart. This program
is run by secret Santa-types at the district o ce. Colleagues submit employees’ names to a committee and families are chosen to bene t from fundraising
Enroll online today at
HFindividual.org
continued on pg 2
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