JUNIOR LEAGUE OF ST PAUL INC

For 95 years, the Junior League of Saint Paul (JLSP) has improved the Saint Paul community through Members working together to identify unmet needs, forging effective coalitions and working for change, all on a volunteer basis. No other non-profit works quite the way that Junior Leagues do. Acting with courage and commitment, JLSP is proud to be among the first organizations to consistently identify and work to address the community's biggest challenges.

Hunger: A gnawing feeling in the stomach. Light-headedness. Dizziness. Headaches. Lethargy or Weakness. Inability to concentrate. A craving for food. Pain. All of these symptoms are associated with hunger. Often, individuals can end the temporary experience of hunger. But many children in Saint Paul don’t have that choice. They do not always know where their next meal is coming from. This condition is called “food insecurity.”

Research shows that hungry children have poorer mental and overall health, miss more days of school, suffer greater rates of learning and behavioral disorders and are less prepared to learn when they are in school. JLSP's current issue area, “Healthy Bodies, Healthy Brains,” seeks to eradicate these life-changing side effects by first eliminating lost meals and subsequently seeking to close the achievement gap in schools.

The Junior League of Saint Paul believes that all children should have access to appropriate food and nutrition programs for securing a food supply that promotes physical, cognitive and social development. To address food insecurity, JLSP has partnered with HungerFree MN in the movement to close the missing meals gap for Minnesotans, particularly for children.

JLSP is also launching “Backpack Buddies,” a program designed to bridge the gap between Friday and Monday when food may not be available for children whose primary source of nutrition is the school cafeteria. JLSP has adopted the fifty first graders at east Saint Paul’s John A. Johnson Elementary, where 98% of the students receive free or reduced-price lunches. Working in partnership with local businesses and Second Harvest Heartland, JLSP collects and purchases nutritious food, and then packs and delivers bags with kid-friendly, non-perishable meals and snacks.