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frankfortstation.com news
the frankfort station | December 13, 2018 | 3
Frankfort feeds hungry across the world
Megan Schuller
Assistant Editor
The basement of Camp
Manitoqua was filled to capacity
with assembly lines
that lined the room, all
manned by volunteers of all
ages who measured, packaged,
sealed and labeled individual
meal packets.
These Frankfort-area locals
are ultimately feeding
children in poverty-stricken
areas across the world — one
packaged meal at a time.
The fourth annual food
packaging event raised
enough money to send
108,000 nutritional meals to
children in Haiti and Peru.
Jeff and Kari Kemerer
started this event several
years ago after realizing that
there are limited volunteer
opportunities that invite all
ages to participate.
“Most soup kitchens say
that children have to be 12
or older and this was really
something we wanted
our kids to experience even
though they were young,”
Kari Kemerer said. “After
that we thought that we
should start one in our own
community.”
The couple partnered with
Kids Around The World to
create the annual tradition.
Money is raised to purchase
the ingredients from Kids
Around The World, and the
meals are then packaged and
sent out to poverty-stricken
areas throughout the world.
“We wanted our kids to
learn that there’s more to this
then Frankfort,” Jeff Kemerer
said. “Many kids around
the world don’t have the
same opportunities as they
do.”
In the event's first year, the
couple raised their goal of
$10,000. As the event grew
and gained more sponsorship
they raised nearly $27,000
Dan Nagle, of Frankfort, pours grains into a bin that the
next group of volunteers will measure out to proportionally
fill each meal bag.
and surpassed their goal this
year of $25,000.
“I do this because I enjoy
packing food for people
around the world starving
from hunger,” 12-year-old
Ben Nagle, of Frankfort, said
as he gently placed the sealed
bags into a box. “The lesson
I’ve learned from this is that
helping others in need helps
you feel good.”
More than 430 volunteers
spent the day packaging a
mixture of grains and ingredients
to create a fully nutritious
meal for a child.
“There is a lot of support
from the community,” Kari
Kemerer said. “People want
to give back but often don’t
know where to start. Each
packet they packed has the
nutrition to let someone
thrive, where that was likely
one of their only meals for
the day.”
Jeff Kemerer said the
event is an opportunity for
everyone to be involved in
giving back because there
is a role for every person in
the assembly line. The event
invited community members
of all ages, sports teams, Boy
and Girl Scout troops and
families to take one-hour
shifts packing the food.
“I volunteer because It’s a
Frankfort residents Ben Nagle (left), 12, and Owen Bay, 6, work together at the end
of the assembly line to pack food into a box during a Dec. 1 food packaging event at
Camp Manitoqua. Photos by Megan Schuller/22nd Century Media
At the tail end of the packing assembly line, Frankfort residents Lila Kemerer (left), 10, and
Sophia White, 9, finish packaging the meal bags by sealing and labeling them.
great cause, and I enjoy it because
It makes me feel that I
can help those less fortunate
in the world,” Aleka Cernery,
31 of Oak Lawn said as she
helped package and seal the
meal bags.
According to Andrew
Martin, director of OneMeal
from Kids Around the World,
during the past four years, a
quarter of a million meals
have been packaged though
this annual event.
“It’s an amazing opportunity
for people in the community
to do something
locally that has a global impact,”
Martin said. “Volunteering
for one hour can feed
thousands of children. It’s
something anyone can do.”
Martin said this annual
packing events is one of
many that he helps oversee.
He has watched a single day
of volunteering make a lifechanging
impact on children
across the world by supplying
them with a nutritious
meal.
“I like working with communities
like Frankfort, who
are willing to participate and
come together,” Martin said.
Chicagoland-based Griffin
Foods also annually sponsors
the even, and has committed
to sponsoring the packaging
events for the next three
years.
“Our purpose is to blend
care and creativity to nourish
the world,” Frankfort resident
and Griffin Foods employee
Greg Metschke said.
“We truly believe in doing
our part to make the world a
better place for the next generation.”
Volunteering for some was
a way to make a difference,
but for others like 24-yearold
Crown Point, Indiana
resident Dominique Bass,
it was a reminder to just be
grateful.
“It reminds us how lucky
we are to have what we
have,” Bass said.