Newsroom
Lawton Students Raise More Than $14,000
Jan. 5, 2010
Lawton, Okla. – Showing their holiday spirit during Lawton's third annual Rock-A-Thon, nearly 30 elementary, middle, and high schools in Lawton raised more than $14,000, which will sponsor 70 children in the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma's Food 4 Kids program.
"Lawton Public School students and staff opened their hearts and worked hard to raise funds for Lawton Food 4 Kids," said Dr. Linda Dzialo, deputy superintendent of the Lawton Public Schools. "Our young people are generous. They understand the joy of giving. Because of their generosity, chronically hungry children in our community will have nutritious weekend food."
Children identified as chronically hungry by school personnel receive a backpack filled with nutritious, kid-friendly food to take home on weekends and holidays. Before receiving help from the program, many children had little or nothing to eat between school lunch on Friday and school breakfast on Monday.
Last school year, 539 children in 24 elementary schools in Lawton benefited from Food 4 Kids.
Jonathan Crider, a sophomore at nearby Central High School, organized the event, which was sponsored by EZ-Go Foods. Crider has raised more than $65,000 for the Food 4 Kids backpack program in Lawton.
Learning Tree Academy raised the most funds and received a $250 gift card from EZ-GO Foods. Eddie Austin from John Adams Elementary and Vivian Shipley from Sullivan Village Elementary collected the most individual donations. Each received a $100 EZ-GO gift card.
"More than 20 percent of Comanche County children live in poverty," said Rodney Bivens, executive director of the Regional Food Bank. "One child going hungry is one too many. I want to thank Lawton Public School students, parents, staff and sponsors for helping us fight childhood hunger."
Donations for the Regional Food Bank's Food 4 Kids program in Lawton can mailed to: Food 4 Kids – Lawton, P.O. BOX 522, Lawton, OK 73505. Checks made out to the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma should have Food 4 Kids-Lawton in the memo line.
For more information about the Regional Food Bank, please call 405.972.1111.
