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L to R: LNR club president Eyad Salloum, guest speaker Jennifer Hughes of CISNT, and Rotarian David Seaman. In keeping with the Rotary motto of “Service above self,” club member David Seaman kicked off the first program of 2024 with an overview of Lewisville Noon Rotary’s involvement in the Lewisville ISD food pantry program in partnership with Communities in Schools North Texas (CISNT). “When you look at the numbers of how many kids…take advantage of the program, along with drop ins, it’s about 45 percent,” Seaman said, adding that upwards of 70 percent of students at some campuses rely on the nutrition hub at their school. “You wouldn’t think that many kids are food insecure,” he added, explaining that the Lewisville Noon club helps stand in the gap for thousands of students at nine LISD campuses by stocking the food pantries. Seaman also has been a mentor for nearly a decade to students in Lewisville ISD who are served by CISNT. “Some of these kids really need somebody in their life that’s stable, that can care for them, and that can give them hope,” he said before introducing Jennifer Hughes, CISNT Director of Volunteers, to speak about the nonprofit's mentoring program.  Hughes joined the CISNT team in 2003 and first served as a Site Coordinator at DeLay Middle School for 17 years before transitioning to her current role. “Our mission is to surround kids with a community of support, empowering them to stay in school and achieve in life,” she explained. This is made possible in large part through the commitment of volunteers and Site Coordinators, who provide supportive guidance and counseling. During her time as a Site Coordinator, Hughes implemented one of the first large scale mentoring programs for CISNT. “We’ve had volunteers who started with a student in third grade all the way through high school, and now they are mentoring” other young students, she said. The majority of the students they serve are economically disadvantaged, and thanks to the services offered through Communities in School, 99 percent go on to graduate high school. Although the nonprofit has a range of volunteer opportunities, from a once weekly commitment to once a month, about 2/3 of volunteers nationwide did not return after the COVID lockdowns of 2020. But the need has only increased in recent years, with the North Texas organization adding more schools and even more students needing support. Hughes encouraged Rotarians to volunteer as individual mentors, in the monthly leadership groups, as academic coaches, reading buddies, or by delivering boxes to different campuses as part of the Food 4 Kids initiative. All meetings for CISNT’s school-based mentoring and tutoring program are held during school hours and on a school campus under the supervision of a CIS Site Coordinator. To learn more about Communities in Schools North Texas mission and programs or to get involved, visit www.CISNT.org/volunteer/. After this week's LNR meeting, David Seaman also will be heading to Sam's Club to shop for the LISD food pantries. Volunteers are needed to help load supplies at the store, which generally takes less than an hour. If you'd like to lend a hand, please reach out to David at the noon meeting. |
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