At Lincoln Middle School, supporting students begins with understanding their full story. Academics, attendance, and behavior are important, but so are the challenges students carry with them long before the school day begins. Over the past several months, teachers and staff noticed a a challenge kept surfacing. Food insecurity was becoming a daily reality for many households in the school community.
The idea for a food pantry began during an eighth grade community meeting, a weekly gathering where teachers pause from lesson planning to focus on the whole child. These meetings allow staff to share what they notice, what students may need, and how the school can support them more fully. Teachers spoke about students mentioning empty refrigerators, parents waiting for delayed benefits, and the growing stress that came with recent changes to food stamp requirements.
“Our teachers are constantly looking at the full picture of each child,” said Social Worker Jamie Showers. “They see the strengths our students bring into the building, but they also see what weighs them down. When food began coming up again and again, staff did not ignore it. They asked what we could do to help remove this barrier so students and families could feel supported.”
Community School Director Lakisha Lukes heard the same concerns. Families told her their budgets were stretched thin. Others shared that their food stamps had been reduced or cut off. Some were newly unable to qualify. These shifts left many households scrambling to afford groceries, especially as winter approached.
“In moments like these, community schools lean into what families are experiencing right now,” Luke said. “Food access was changing, and families were feeling it. We knew it was time to act.”
The idea quickly grew into something real. In only two weeks, with the help of staff, partners, and the school community, the Lincoln Food Pantry took shape. The team reached out to families and asked exactly what they needed. They distributed a request form that allowed families to list household size, preferred pickup days, and specific items. They wanted to avoid filling shelves with items that would not be used. They wanted everything offered to be meaningful.
As the forms came back, the need became clear. The first distribution served 100 household members. The number surprised even those who helped build the pantry.
“There are moments in this work that stay with you,” Showers said. “I sat at my desk filling orders and I cried. To see 100 household members represented in our first distribution showed how deeply families needed this support. It also showed what can happen when a school comes together around a common goal.”
The pantry is open to any Lincoln Middle School family that identifies a need. There are no income requirements, no verification steps, and no screening process. A family simply needs a student enrolled at Lincoln. Teachers may also share the request form with families they know are struggling.
Students have responded with honesty. Many have stepped into the space and asked questions, chosen items, or shared what they need at home.
“One student told us her grandmother was planning to buy her a winter coat but no longer could. She came after school and picked out a coat that fit her, and she wore it proudly the next day,” Luke shared. “Another student asked for laundry detergent. Middle schoolers usually avoid asking for something like that because it reveals adult responsibilities at home. We told her to come right in. We filled a bag with detergent and other essentials. She left smiling.”
These moments highlight why the pantry is more than a distribution site. It has become a place where students feel safe asking for help without judgment. It helps reinforce a message staff repeat often. When you work in a school, you care for the child and the family. You care for the full story, not just the school day version.
The pantry also reflects the heart of the community school model. Community schools are built on partnership, trust, and shared responsibility. Lukes sees this every day.
“Partnerships are the foundation of everything we do,” she said. “Crispus Attucks CommunitY Center has supported our Fantastic Friday breakfasts for students and families. La Academia shares surplus items from their own programs. Staff have donated food, toiletries, clothing, and gift cards. People in the community see what Lincoln is doing and they want to be part of it. That support is what makes this sustainable.”
Fantastic Friday events, which bring families into the building for a celebratory breakfast and positive recognition of students, are a key example of how community partners step in when funding is uncertain. Local businesses have donated food items, sponsored gatherings, and helped ensure students and families feel welcomed and valued.
The pantry will also open its doors during family teacher conferences. Families will be able to walk through, fill a bag, select coats or toiletries, and take home what they need without barriers or hesitation.
Even with the early success, the Lincoln team hopes to keep the pantry growing. Donations are being accepted on an ongoing basis so the school can sustain support long after benefits are restored for some families.
“We want this pantry to last,” Showers said. “People have been ‘venmoing‘ us. They have been sending gift cards. They drop off food, toiletries, and hygiene products every week. I keep a detailed spreadsheet of every donation and every purchase because we know we need to stretch every dollar and honor every contribution. If we can continue supporting families in this way, we will.”
Shelf stable foods, toiletries, hygiene products, gift cards to grocery stores, and monetary donations are all welcome. Items can be brought directly to Lincoln Middle School during the school day.
For Lukes and Showers, the pantry represents what community looks like when people show up for one another.
“People say it takes a village. Here, it is more than a saying. It is how we operate,” Showers said. “When families reach out, we want them to know that someone will answer. We want them to know they are seen.”
Lincoln Middle School’s food pantry stands as a powerful example of what can happen when a school listens deeply, collaborates with intention, and acts with compassion. It’s care put into action, built by teachers, staff, families, and partners who believe no child should worry about having enough to eat.
If you would like to support the pantry, please contact Lincoln Middle School or drop off donations during regular school hours. If you’d like to make a monetary donation, venmo Jamie Showers, school social worker.
