TAMIU Hosts Feed My Starving Children MobilePack Feb. 24-25
At least 6,200 children die each day from hunger related causes according to UNICEF and Texas A&M International University (TAMIU) wants to bring awareness to this worldwide problem.
That’s why TAMIU will host over 500 volunteers who will gather to pack more than 108,000 specially formulated, disaster relief meals during the Feed My Starving Children (FMSC) MobilePack Friday - Saturday, Feb. 24-25 in the Student Center Rotunda. Meal packing will take place on Friday from 6-8 p.m. and on Saturday from 8 a.m. – 8 p.m.
To register to volunteer or donate, visit: goo.gl/psA7yd
A YouTube video on a MobilePack experience can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ech5XOryipM
For detailed information about the event, contact Dr. Marcela Uribe, Learning Resources Coordinator, at 326.3135, email marcela.uribe@tamiu.edu or visit offices located in the Senator Judith Zaffirini Student Success Center, room 223C. University office hours are 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. Monday-Friday.
Sponsored by the CHANCE student organization and spearheaded by the TAMIU College of Education and Service Learning-Center, the event, consisting of 2-hour volunteer shifts, is the first of its kind at the University and will gather volunteers from TAMIU and the community who will hand pack nutritious meals that will be donated to FMSC food partners around the world where kids are fed.
Founded in 1987, FMSC is a faith-based non-profit organization providing nutritionally complete meals specifically formulated for malnourished children worldwide regardless of their nationality or faith.
Dr. James O’Meara, TAMIU College of Education dean, said that the College is proud to support a meal-packing event of this magnitude at the University to bring awareness to the problem of world child hunger and starvation.
“The College of Education is supporting this event as we believe that providing access to essential nutritional requirements represents an important first step to address inequalities and promote readiness for primary education,” he said.
Dr. Tonya Huber, TAMIU professor of Education and FMSC MobilePack TAMIU leader, explained one in four children become developmentally stunted due to malnutrition.
According to UNICEF, poor nutrition in the first 1,000 days of a child’s life can also lead to stunted growth, which is irreversible and associated with impaired cognitive ability and reduced school and work performance.
Dr. Huber said volunteers are urged to sign up and participate in the FMSC MobilePack TAMIU event. Children 5 and above are also encouraged to participate as volunteers but must be accompanied by an adult. For safety reasons, children under the age of 5 are not allowed in the packing area, she said.
“You can volunteer to pack life-changing, disaster relief dehydrated meals of vitamins, veggies, soy and rice to end stunting and starvation for children struggling in 70 nations,” Huber said, “Every day, at least 6,200 children die from starvation. You can make a difference. Donate, register and volunteer.”
Volunteers must wear closed-toed shoes and should come in clean comfortable clothes without jewelry, Huber explained.
In the past, packed FMSC meals have been sent to nearly 70 countries including Haiti, Sudan, Jamaica, Bolivia, Dominican Republic, Tanzania, Lesotho, Liberia, Ghana, Guatemala, Malawi, Cambodia, Nicaragua, Sri Lanka, India, Indonesia, Cameroon, Niger, Colombia, El Salvador as well as to Hurricane Katrina victims in Louisiana, Mississippi and others, according to FMSC.