Children's Breakfast Program: Shaka's Story

I moved from Compton to South LA about 13 years ago and I have been coming to the Salvation Army for 7 years now. About a year ago, I went through a rough time when I lost my daughter. She passed away and it was a very difficult time for me.

The Salvation Army has been instrumental in helping me get things in order. I am able to bring my kids and benefit from the many programs the center offers. The breakfast program is a necessity. The items help a lot. It also helps that the food is shelf stable so I do not need a refrigerator. I keep the food in a plastic bin since we are homeless.

The food is healthy and goes fast. The kids love making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Everything in the food bag, they eat. The cereal and juice go fast. The nuts and dried fruit are healthy and I encourage them to eat. When I am able to use a kitchen, I make pancakes for my daughters. It’s one of my daughters’ favorite breakfast items. It also helps that I do not have to add eggs or milk, only water to the pancake mix.

I can save anywhere from $25-$50 dollars per month. It really helps to know that my children will have a healthy breakfast with the help of the Food Bank. If it were not for the breakfast program, the children wouldn’t get such a healthy breakfast. This month we received plums. The kids loved them and they are perfect for summer. The Salvation Army is my village, they are helping me raise my kids with the different programs, including the breakfast program.

I would like to tell Albertson’s and EIF that I appreciate them for helping me feed my children. It’s a tremendous help. I don’t stress out about what they will have for breakfast with the program. It’s hard and I don’t think people understand the struggles we are trying to overcome. I am grateful for the people here at the Salvation Army and that Albertson’s understand and are helping us.