TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) -- — At the start of their 2022-23 school year, more than 35,000 students in Tucson Unified School District qualified for free and reduced price meals on campus.
To help address the gaps in food security affecting communities nationwide, national nonprofit GENYOUth asked Arizona's Super Bowl Host Committee and a major, multinational food and beverage company, to invest in a resource that gives meal access to school districts in the Grand Canyon State.
Thursday morning, the PepsiCo Foundation joined school district leaders and nonprofit executives in unveiling that investment that's part of the Mission 57: End Student Hunger campaign.
Before he came to the event at John B. Wright Elementary School, PepsiCo Foundation president C.D. Glin talked to KGUN 9. Glin said it is no coincidence Mission 57 bears the same number as the upcoming NFL championship game happening inside State Farm Stadium.
Glin said PepsiCo's contribution to the project is a long-term investment in kids' health and success through school. With its partners and sponsors, the project wants to set up 57 'Grab and Go' meal stations and packages for Arizona schools whose students may be more vulnerable to food insecurity.
Glin said the key for this project will be renewing the investment well after the Super Bowl, the NFL and fans end their visit to Arizona.
"It's not lost on us," Glin said, "that we have thousands of employees whose family members, those in their extended families, may be suffering from food insecurity. So when we show up for communities, the value proposition is clear."
As for the new grab-and-go stations, Glin said they should serve as an option for students who may not want to wait in long lines inside the cafeteria to eat their first meal of the day.
"There's a stigma felt sometimes by students who rely on free or reduced price school meals," Glin said. "Having these grab-and-go carts, having this equipment that's available that meets students where they are (as) they're getting off the bus...there's no stigma. There's no long lines. It's about access, and that access is going to increase participation."
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José Zozaya is an anchor and reporter for KGUN 9. Before arriving in southern Arizona, José worked in Omaha, Nebraska where he covered issues ranging from local, state and federal elections, to toxic chemical spills, and community programs impacting immigrant families. Share your story ideas and important issues with José by emailing jose.zozaya@kgun9.com or by connecting on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.