100 Cars for Good charity highlight: The Children’s Lunchbox

This month, I’m excited to be highlighting five unique charitable organizations that are making a difference in their community. Each charity was also the recipient of a new car to aid in their mission, courtesy of Toyota’s 100 Cars for Good program. (Know a charity that could use a car? You can vote for them at Toyota’s 100 Cars for Good Facebook App.

Today, I’m talking with The Children’s Lunchbox.

Tell me about what your charity does, and who it serves?
The Children’s Lunchbox serves meals to hungry kids in Anchorage, Alaska. We predominately serve children in neighborhoods that are poor and under-served.

How was the charity founded and why was it important to the founder?
The Children’s Lunchbox was founded in 1998 and the founder thought it was important to serve children an early morning snack to prepare them for their day in one of the poorest areas of Anchorage.

What are some accomplishments you would like to share from the past few years? What are some goals you have for the future?
The Children’s Lunchbox will serve over 300,000 meals this year to children in need of nutritious meals in safe community environments.

We presently deliver weekend meals to five Title 1 elementary schools in Anchorage and our goal to is to increase to 20 schools served within four years.

Which Toyota car did you choose? On a typical day, how do you use it?
The Children’s Lunchbox chose a Toyota Highlander. We use it typically to transport food between sites.

How has winning the Toyota Cars for Good impacted your organization? Can you share a story of how the car has made a difference?
The Children’s Lunchbox Toyota Highlander has been a great addition to our nonprofit and has allowed us to feed more children with our funds. Because we did not have to purchase a new vehicle which we needed, we could instead fund another school program that we provide meals for.