Help Us Nourish and Empower Underserved Youth

As the interns walk into the garden, we put them straight to work. From pulling stubborn weeds to spreading mulching across the beds, we see them doing hard work but can’t foresee if their stomachs are empty. Yet, what remains unseen is the emptiness they carry inside—not of energy, but of nourishment. 

One intern pauses, whipping the sweat on his forehead and feeling his stomach growl. He can’t help but think back to this morning when he stood in front of an empty fridge. With no good options, he bagged the only things available: a bag of chips and soda, which is barely enough to sustain him through the laborious day. As fatigue begins to take hold, JD announces that the plums on our tree are ripe. He also displayed a loaf of bread, ham, and cheese on the picnic table to make a sandwich. Interns hungry hands moved quickly, filling their stomachs with wholesome, nutritious fuel. This is an often overlooked truth: many people are food insecure – whether they are aware or not. 

This issue casts a shadow that extends beyond the immediate struggle for nourishment because it can profoundly affect an intern’s ability to thrive in a demanding environment. Interns in food-insecure households face chronic challenges, such as insufficient energy, stemming from inconsistent access to balanced and nutritious meals. A Living Library’s (A.L.L.) main objective is to raise awareness to this issue and serve as a catalyst for change. Beyond teaching youth how to grow crops, A.L.L. wants to provide healthy food options for interns. During the scorching summer months, access to sports drinks and fresh fruits would combat dehydration. In the colder winter months, offering warm soups and teas would provide comfort. However, the cost of providing wholesome meals and snacks to a large group of interns creates challenges. For a nonprofit where grants simply do not cover meal costs and where a snack or a meal could make a huge difference, interns face little or no food as their reality. 

A.L.L.  realizes that nourishing our interns, with healthy meals and snacks, directly supports their ability to work and think effectively. Hunger is easily recognized but hardly resolved in our communities. Our Interns leave their homes in the morning. They finish two to three hours after their school day ends, which means they might have one school meal in their bellies all day. Addressing interns’ nutritional needs ensures their well-being while fostering environments where they thrive. Providing healthy meals and snacks is more than just sustenance–it’s life and a reflection of our commitment to equity and, hopefully, the solution to food injustice. Help Us Help Them!

From a caring intern who is also a Supervisor,
Alina Nitedthunyakij