Ep 24: ANSWERING A GROWING NEED: Teenagers Step into Action Helping Kids in Need
From its mission to end childhood hunger to its recent drive for school supplies, one local nonprofit is growing its services to meet the needs of the Tampa Bay community. In this podcast, Saran Fazan talks with Vicki Anzalone, CEO and founder of the nonprofit Where Love Grows, student volunteers Cole Mangan, Carter Dill, and Tyler Girsch, and parent Dr. Laura Dill about food insecurity in Tampa Bay, the impact of COVID-19, and how the community can come together to help children and families.
The Tampa Bay area has one of the highest rates of childhood hunger in the United States. Vicki Anzalone founded Where Love Grows in 2012 to address the immediate needs of hungry children while implementing a long-term positive impact for the community. Since their first event at a local Boys and Girls Club, Where Love Grows has served over 19,000 hot, evening meals and taught more than 1,000 students in cooking classes.
Where Love Grows is proud to partner with Potter Elementary School. Located in East Tampa, Potter Elementary is a Title 1 school with approximately 600 students from pre-school to 5th grade. The school participates in the Hillsborough County Community School Pilot Program, with the long-term goal of becoming "one stop shop" for the community for mental and health services, a food pantry with a clothing closet, GED courses, parent and family workshops, and more. In 2019, Where Love Grows began offering weekly cooking classes to students and families at Potter Elementary.
When COVID-19 halted the nonprofit’s in-person programs, Where Love Grows knew it had to adapt quickly. They began offering virtual cooking classes and transformed their family dinner nights into boxed meals for pick-up. But, as the pandemic continued, food insecurity increased beyond any 2020 projections and more needs were revealed in the community. Where Love Grows was committed to do more as well.
That’s when friends Cole Mangan, Carter Dill, and Tyler Girsch stepped in with a new idea for Where Love Grows called the Potter Elementary COVID Project.
Cole is a long-time volunteer for the nonprofit, beginning the summer before he entered 7th grade. Then a student at the Academy of the Holy Names, Cole worked with school administration to invite Vicki to speak about Where Love Grows’ mission to his 7th grade class, helping to foster a partnership that continues today. With the help of Cole and his classmates, Academy of the Holy Names has coordinated Easter Egg hunts, provided Christmas gifts, and donated several thousand pounds of pantry items to families in need. Cole’s dedication to the cause inspired Where Love Grows to create his role of WLG Youth Ambassador two years ago. He is now preparing to enter his junior year at Jesuit High School in Tampa.
An honor student, varsity football player, and varsity hockey player, Tyler is a rising junior at Plant High School in Tampa, Florida. He also was introduced to Where Love Grows while in 7th grade at the Academy of the Holy Names and is now a youth ambassador for the nonprofit, helping with family meal nights and cooking classes. In addition, Tyler has organized Easter Egg hunts for food insecure kindergartners as well as Christmas gift drives for the Boys and Girls Club.
Like his friends, Carter, who is a rising junior at Jesuit High School, believes that giving back is a necessity. As a fifth grader at the Academy of the Holy Names, he started an annual event for pediatric cancer research, which has raised approximately $100,000 and continues to this day. Carter also volunteered pre-COVID at a nearby assisted living facility, helping to raise money for the purchase of a piano and playing music for residents. Introduced to Where Love Grows by Cole and Tyler, he is now working alongside them on their project to help local children have a successful school year.
Due to new CDC recommended guidelines, each student at Potter Elementary needs individual school supplies, including eating utensils, that are just not in the budget. As part of Where Love Grows’ Potter Elementary COVID Project, Cole, Carter, and Tyler are currently collecting these supplies, which will be presented to students in personalized plastic bins for safety.
“We always say that Where Love Grows our mission is to end hunger for children and families, but our purpose is to make love grow. We’ve seen it first-hand, the boys have seen it, and that’s really what’s contagious. If you spread that through your giving heart or the generosity that you feel, and it could be physically volunteering, serving meals with us or cleaning up after the cooking classes, so it’s not always a monetary gift…But there’s a piece of you, your heart expands when you see the joy that we’re able to spread with the things that we do. And it’s a mutual love. I will tell you, the individuals, the children and families that we serve, we feel like they serve us, because we build these relationships that are priceless. And that’s really what’s allowing us to step out of our comfort zone and do something with school supplies. And we want this to be a long-term project as well,” Vicki explains.
If you’d like to donate supplies, here is Where Love Grows’ Amazon Wishlist: www.Amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/1FH3SCKDWUEG6?ref_=wl_share
Learn more about Where Love Grows: www.WhereLoveGrows.org
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