As the Executive Director and Founder of Child Hunger Outreach Partners (CHOP), Dani works diligently to ensure that no child goes hungry. After her daughter had an eye-opening experience in sixth grade, Dani decided to open an outreach program to help children who are food insecure. CHOP serves hungry children through backpack programs, school pantries, pop-up pantries and summer feeding programs. To Dani, working at CHOP means listening to people share their story and giving them a compassionate hand.

“Working at the food pantry keeps me both grounded and driven to do more,” says Dani. “While handing out food, people want to share their story. We aren’t just offering food, we’re offering an ear, compassion, and hope.”

Through her work and interactions with families and children in need, Dani has come to recognize that hunger is not selective. She realizes that she could easily need help one day.

“This is the best kind of work, because every day we are directly impacting thousands of real-life people like us, knowing that someday that may very well be us needing assistance.”

After opening a pantry at a local school, Dani received a phone call from the principal who wanted to share with her the story of a student who had come into the pantry. Upon seeing the food and realizing that it was for them, the student was “overcome knowing that they would be able to not only have access to free food daily for themselves,  but be able to take items to share with their younger siblings at home.” Dani says this experience was a fire that led to her wanting to move CHOP into more schools as quickly as possible.

“From then on, we have made it our mission to expand into schools as quickly as possible and provide as much food as possible.”

Dani says that she is so appreciative of the partnership CHOP has with the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank. “They work so hard to source food, which means I never have to worry if I’ll be able to properly serve my clients,” comments Dani. “We would not be able to do a fraction of what we do without this partnership.” In addition, Dani says that she has been thoroughly impressed by the healthy options that the food bank offers.

“I can definitely say that the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank works so hard to source a great variety of food and it is obvious,” says Dani. “We never have to worry that we won’t have access to a wide selection of items, and more importantly as a children’s program, nutritious items that will fit easily into a weekend bag.”

CHOP’s mission has been and continues to be focused on an unending determination to cease child hunger. Perhaps this is best represented in their motto, “The answer is always yes, because on the other side of no is a hungry child.”

The Summer Food Service Program, a federally-funded, state-administered program, allows the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank to partner with churches, community organizations and public parks to provide free, nutritious meals and snacks to children during the summer months. Last summer at the height of the pandemic, the majority of summer sites closed and the Food Bank and it’s partners found alternative avenues to make sure all children and families had access to nutritious food. This summer, as summer sites are reopening, the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank will sponsor more than 60 summer feeding sites, serving on average 2,900 children each week.

Feeding America reported 84% of households served by the community of Food Banks who partner with Feeding America have said they had to buy the cheapest food – instead of healthy food – just so they can put meals on the table. You can give the next generation a brighter future by taking action today.

How can you lend a helping hand?

  • Support our efforts by donating today.
  • Host your own Virtual Food Drive and help many more of your neighbors in need by raising funds for the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank. Every dollar counts!
  • Give the gift of time by volunteering. Volunteerism is critical to the core mission of the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank and our partner agencies.

 

 

Photo in story taken prior to 2020