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Nourish Our Keiki

Hunger deprives our keiki of more than just food. It’s a simple fact: a child’s chance for a bright tomorrow starts with getting enough food to eat today.

In Hawaiʻi, 1 in 4 keiki may not know where they will get their next meal. For more than 70,000 keiki in Hawaiʻi, getting the energy they need to learn and grow can be a daily challenge. Feeding keiki who are facing hunger is about more than simply giving them food. It’s about providing nourishment, wellness and strength. That’s why Hawaiʻi Foodbank has developed Food 4 Keiki – a group of programs that aims to provide nutritious food to improve our keiki’s health and well-being.

These programs include our School Pantry initiative and Feeding Our Future, a summer lunch program.

Food 4 Keiki School Pantry Program

The negative effects of hunger on academic performance have been well documented for years. Well-nourished, food-secure students have higher rates for cognitive activity, school attendance and academic achievements. Providing growing minds and bodies with well-balanced foundations naturally leads to higher education, qualifications, capacity, experience, and a greater learning potential.

To help, Hawaiʻi Foodbank launched the Food 4 Keiki School Pantry program. The program serves as a critical food resource for young students, their siblings and their families. The School Pantries provide after-school snacks for young students, as well as additional family food bags to take home. Bags are filled with canned proteins, canned meals, dry goods, snacks and more.

Volunteer distributing school pantry supplies to a young participant in the Food for Keiki program in Hawaii.

Food 4 Keiki School Pantry

Program Development on O‘ahu and Kaua‘i

Program Development on Oʻahu and Kauaʻi

Since the opening of the first School Pantry on Oʻahu in May 2018, our School Pantry program expanded to 37 sites on O‘ahu and Kaua‘i in 2022. The program distributed nearly 220,000 pounds of food to more than 26,000 students and their families throughout the 2021-2022 school year.

School Pantry Times and Locations

Food 4 Keiki
School Pantries

Oʻahu
  • ʻAiea Elementary School
  • Hoa ‘Āina O Mākaha
  • Kaʻala Elementary School
  • Kahuku Elementary School
  • Kalihi Elementary School
  • Kamaile Academy
  • Kīpapa Elementary School
  • Linapuni Elementary School
  • Mākaha Elementary School
  • Māʻili Elementary School
  • Nānāikapono Elementary School
  • Olomana School
  • Princess Kaʻiulani Elementary School
  • Wahiawa Elementary School
  • Wai‘anae Elementary School
  • Waipahu Elementary School
Kauaʻi
  • ʻEleʻele Elementary School
  • Kalāheo Elementary School
  • Kanuikapono Charter School
  • Kapaʻa Elementary School
  • Kapaʻa High School
  • Kapaʻa Middle School
  • Kauaʻi High School
  • Kekaha Elementary School
  • King Kaumaualiʻi Elementary School
  • Kōloa Elementary School
  • Nānāikapono Elementary School
  • Waimea Canyon Middle School
  • Waimea High School

Feeding Our Future – Summer Lunch Program

For most kids, summer is the best part of the year. But, for thousands of keiki across Hawaiʻi, summer means no more lunch. When school is out, these keiki lose their most reliable, consistent source of food. But, that doesn’t mean they have to go hungry.

Feeding Our Future is a summer lunch program that helps provide nourishment to students who may normally rely on school-provided meals during the school year. Hot lunches are distributed by our food partner agencies, including Catholic Charities Hawaiʻi, Institute for Human Services, Princess Ka‘iulani Elementary, Mutual Housing Association of Hawai‘i, and the Boys & Girls Club of Hawaii.

A happy young boy in Hawaii with a nutritious meal provided by the Food for Keiki initiative.

Questions About Food 4 Keiki?

For more information on Food 4 Keiki and its programs, please contact Laura Zysman, director of keiki nutrition, at laura@hawaiifoodbank.org or 808-954-7869.

Interested in starting a School Pantry in your area?

Hawaiʻi Foodbank works with schools interested in hosting their own School Pantry and offers consultation regarding space and equipment. Hawaiʻi Foodbank staff also works with the school’s existing nonprofit partners and helps build the community network to support the supply and management of this program.

If interested, please email laura@hawaiifoodbank.org or call 808-954-7885.

This institution is an equal opportunity provider.

For more information, please read the complete USDA/DES Non-Discrimination Statement

Federal Poverty Guidelines

Household Size
200% Monthly Gross Income (BBCE Household)
130% Monthly Gross Income (Regular Household)
100% Monthly Net Income
1
$2,606
$1,694
$1,303
2
$3,510
$2,282
$1,755
3
$4,416
$2,870
$2,208
4
$5,320
$3,458
$2,660
5
$6,226
$4,047
$3,113
6
$7,130
$4,635
$3,565
7
$8,036
$5,223
$4,018
8
$8,940
$5,811
$4,470
9
$9,846
$6,400
$4,923
10
$10,752
$6,989
$5,376
11
$11,658
$7,578
$5,829
12
$12,564
$8,167
$6,282
13
$13,470
$8,756
$6,735
14
$14,376
$9,345
$7,188
15
$15,282
$9,934
$7,641
16
$906
$589
$453

Note: 200% BBCE Monthly Gross Income (MGI) is based on 100% SNAP Federal Poverty Level (FPL)
BBCE – Broad-based Categorical Eligibility

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Federal Poverty Guidelines

Household Size
200% Monthly Gross Income
(BBCE Household)
130% Monthly Gross Income
(Regular Household)
100% Monthly Net Income
1
$2,606
$1,694
$1,303
2
$3,510
$2,282
$1,755
3
$4,416
$2,870
$2,208
4
$5,320
$3,458
$2,660
5
$6,226
$4,047
$3,113
6
$7,130
$4,635
$3,565
7
$8,036
$5,223
$4,018
8
$8,940
$5,811
$4,470
9
$9,846
$6,400
$4,923
10
$10,752
$6,989
$5,376
11
$11,658
$7,578
$5,829
12
$12,564
$8,167
$6,282
13
$13,470
$8,756
$6,735
14
$14,376
$9,345
$7,188
15
$15,282
$9,934
$7,641
16
$906
$589
$453

Note: 200% BBCE Monthly Gross Income (MGI) is based on 100% SNAP Federal Poverty Level (FPL)
BBCE – Broad-based Categorical Eligibility