If you wonder how your generous donations to the Food Bank help good people in our community, we wish we could take you to Carson to meet Mario, his team, and the children they serve at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Carson. 

Prior to the pandemic, the Carson clubhouse welcomed more than 90 members each day to their after-school program. It was a safe haven where kids could have fun, eat a meal offered by the Food Bank, do homework and play games until their parents could get them after work. 

With school campuses closed, the Boys & Girls Clubs of Carson quickly changed their service model to serve kids through online programs. Unfortunately, on an average weekday now, the Carson clubhouse can only serve 34 children and safely maintain social distancing.

Each child is given a health screening every morning at check-in. They then go into their respective day pods of up to 12 children, where they must stay all day. The children are given a good breakfast provided by the Food Bank to get them ready to learn, and then they attend school remotely at the club with staff members on hand to help them all day. They eat lunch and an afternoon snack with their pod, also provided by the Food Bank, and finish their schoolwork so they can participate in other activities organized by club staff before being picked up by their parents.

We don’t have to tell you that low-income parents have been hit especially hard by the pandemic, especially working mothers. They need our help. All across the city, your tax-deductible donations help provide the healthy food that essential programs like the Boys & Girls Clubs of Carson give to the children in their care.