JENISON, Mich. — A new canopy project broke ground outside Hand2Hand's building in Jenison, designed to help the organization reach up to 15,000 West Michigan students with weekend meals.
"With the new canopy, is reaching a lot of families here in West Michigan, up to 15,000 students that we plan to serve here out of this location. Then as we work with some of our community partners and helping them resource food through our store, we're able to reach even more families there," Executive Director of Hand2Hand Jodi Joseph said.
The covered structure will create a dry, safe area for community partners to pick up food distributions, making the process faster and weather-proof year-round. Joseph emphasized that safety remains a top priority during food distribution operations.
"We care about their safety and we want to make sure there's an area where they can pull in, we can load their vehicles, and they can get into their communities to deliver the food," Joseph said.
Currently, Hand2Hand serves close to 10,000 students weekly with bags of food that make a difference for entire families. The organization focuses on addressing food insecurity among students, which directly impacts their ability to learn and succeed in school.
Dave Feenstra, a Hand2Hand volunteer with decades of experience in education, has witnessed firsthand how food security affects students and their families.
"One of the boys was so happy to get this bag of food because he said, 'My dad gets hungry too,'" Feenstra said.
For Feenstra, the project represents more than just infrastructure improvements. He sees it as addressing a fundamental need that affects students' academic performance and behavior.
"Kids that have a lack of food security, it affects their behavior, their attention. This is a basic level that has to be met for us to engage kids at higher levels. Food is the primary element to make that happen,," Feenstra said.
While there's no exact timeline for completion, Joseph hopes the canopy project will be finished by next year.
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