If you could do one thing that would improve a child’s self-esteem, help facilitate better behavior, and increase his or her learning potential, wouldn’t you do it? It’s easy. Just make sure that the child is not hungry. According to Feeding America, 1 in 6 children in the U.S. worry about when they’ll have their next meal.

This is the eighth year that Merrell and Mast General Store are partnering with our community food agencies in support of Food for Kids. They realize how important it is to give a child a good foundation to grow, to learn, and to just be a kid. From October 26th through November 8th, Merrell Footwear will make a donation to fill a backpack with weekend food for each pair of shoes purchased.

Our food partners - The Hunger and Health Coalition in the High Country; MANNA FoodBank in Asheville, Waynesville, and Hendersonville; Second Harvest FoodBank Northwest NC in Winston-Salem; Loaves & Fishes in Greenville; Second Harvest of East Tennessee in Knoxville; and Harvest Hope in Columbia - are all working hard to provide backpacks filled with easy-to-fix foods for kids to take home over the weekend.

The agencies work with schools and teachers to discreetly determine which children need help. Each weekend during the school year, they are given weekend food that may also help feed sisters and brothers, and perhaps the rest of their families.  Teachers report better participation, self-esteem, and behavior as a result of the Food for Kids program.

"Merrell's involvement has helped to provide thousands of weekend meals,” said Lisa Cooper, President of Mast General Store. “We are proud to have vendor partners that take an interest in helping us address food access needs in our communities. Merrell believes in the importance of giving a child a good foundation to grow, learn, and just be a kid.”

We are thankful for Merrell’s help in all of our communities. Here's one more amazing stat: Last year, through our Food for Kids partnership with Merrell, we were able to provide 4,024 weekend meal packs for children in our communities! In addition to donations made for shoes purchased, each location is also collecting change for our food partners during this time. On average, $1 can provide 3 nutritious meals.

Follow this link to view Mast Store's collection of Merrell Footwear.