Strike Hunger

St. John Bosco started his priesthood working in prisons, not schools. However, as he went from prison to prison, he was astounded by the number of young boys in the cells. He wondered if ministering to them in prison was the best solution. After prayer, he realized the solution was to minister to them before they even entered the system. As he looked around Italy, he saw boys that were without food, without work, and without God. He slowly began his movement to start oratories (schools) where the boys could be fed physically, mentally, and spiritually.

St. John Bosco saw a problem and came up with a solution to address the cause (hunger) and not one of  the symptoms (boys in prison). I think about all the problems in our world today and the solutions offered to solve them. Perhaps we are looking at symptoms and not the root cause. Statistics show that one out of five children in America go hungry everyday; that means 16 million children.  I don't know about you, but when I am hungry, I become angry. I am sure the term "hangry" has been used once or twice to describe my mood!

This month as part of Catholic Schools Week, our students are going to help fight hunger, by partnering with the organization Feeding Children Everywhere. In February, our students will prepare and package meals that will go to hungry children all over the world. Our goal is to package 30,000 meals. Each meal costs $.25, so we are asking students to deposit any spare change into receptacles placed throughout the school. I think making meals and using change for change is a great way to show our students how to Be Like Bosco and "Serve with a Smile." 

Here is a video we showed our students to kick off the event at school:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwIuOVJAn-0