federal program called Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act revitalizes GA HS Football Team

[one...two...tree 2,762]

As reported by CBS News, one of Georgia's newly crowned champions made a quantum leap in performance in 2011, and its coach has little doubt that better nutrition -- mostly in the form of simple access to more food -- was a big part of the improvement.

"We're probably like most small towns in America right now -- you know, we're struggling," Burke County football coach Eric Parker told CBS. "So, bringing food home and putting it on the table for a lot of our people, you know, that's a big deal.

"We had kids who literally by Tuesday had to be removed from practice because of the intensity and the amount of energy they were having to expend."

There was a reason for that: For many of Parker's athletes, the only meals they would eat all day were school-subsidized breakfasts and lunches. After Parker raised the issue with Burke County school nutritionist Donna Martin, the nutritionist discovered the school could apply for a federal program called the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act.

With that federal funding, Burke County suddenly could feed 500 lower income students dinner for just $3 per meal. No sooner had the in-school dinners started than the team's performance began to turn around on the field.

"A lot of people -- they was hungry, tired, and sleepy sometimes," Burke County defensive lineman Jessie Bush told CBS of the team before many of its members began receiving dinners at school, too. "We started getting better [with the additional food]. You didn't hear nobody coming out and saying they were tired or hungry."

The rest, as they say, is history. Burke County rolled to a 14-1 overall record and, eventually, a memorable 28-14 victory in the Georgia Class AAA state championship game against Peach County (Ga.) High.

"They just imposed their will on us," Peach County coach Chad Campbell told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution after Burke County's title win. "They made the plays they had to, and we just didn't make enough of them tonight."

Without doubt, a big part of that was vastly improved nutrition.

"I'm not going to cut the nutrition program and what it did for us short at all," Parker said. "I thought it was a big part of our success."

http://rivals.yahoo.com/highschool/blog/prep_rally/post/Georgia-school-overcomes-hunger-to-claim-state-t?urn=highschool-wp10283

[Obama 2012 1,714]

cradle to grave...

The liberals rejoice.

The founders roll in their graves.

[Susita 175]

I don't see how feeding hungry children could be a bad thing. I don't know, but I was raised with values and feel that we have a moral obligation, especially to the children.

I hate the attitude. As if it's somehow a child's fault that they have no food.

[Obama 2012 1,714]

I don't see how feeding hungry children could be a bad thing. I don't know, but I was raised with values and feel that we have a moral obligation, especially to the children.

I hate the attitude. As if it's somehow a child's fault that they have no food.

It's the parents fault and they shouldn't be breeding if they can't afford to feed their kids.

It may not be the child's fault, but at the same time the child doesn't need to know that government is taking care of them either. That's a very dangerous precedent to set. Community is one thing, government is a complete other.

[Susita 175]

It's the parents fault and they shouldn't be breeding if they can't afford to feed their kids.

It may not be the child's fault, but at the same time the child doesn't need to know that government is taking care of them either. That's a very dangerous precedent to set. Community is one thing, government is a complete other.

To reply to your first statement, there are many honest working parents who have the means to provide for their children and then something catastrophic happens. For example, many people lost their jobs of 10-30+ years during the economic crisis. Other parents develop life debilitating and terminal illnesses (cancer, etc.) leaving one parent. I'm just saying. Not every hungry child is the product of an irresponsible parent. (Although I do acknowledge that many, in fact, are).

To reply to your second statement, many of these children come from poor communities. Even in the case of the ones who don't, right now people just don't have money lying around to be able to donate. Every year I help with the food drives at my childrens' school & boy scout pack, however, this is for Thanksgiving and Christmas. What happens the rest of the year? Who feeds these kids?

To be very honest, I don't have a problem with my tax dollars going to help feed hungry children. There are a lot of other questionable things that my tax dollars help fund that I'd rather not see done, but feeding hungry children is OK with me. I honestly don't care how responsible/irresponsible their parents are, no child should go hungry in this country. PERIOD.

Merry Christmas