Hanford contractor helps make sure Tri-City schoolchildren don’t go hungry on weekends

Hanford contractor Bechtel National has donated $23,500 to Second Harvest to feed hungry children in the Tri-Cities.

The donation made on Thursday is added to Bechtel’s contributions totaling almost $50,000 over the past three years for childhood hunger programs in the local area..

One in five children in the Tri-Cities area does not have access to enough healthy food and may not know where they will get their next meal.

Bechtel donations support Second Harvest’s “Bite2Go” backpack program and local school pantries.

Bite2Go weekend food kits are sent home with 750 students in 17 area schools each week. Kits include meals and snacks in a mix of easy-to-open, nonperishable, single-servings that don’t require cooking.

Teachers, counselors and administrative staff identify the students in need and provide weekly meal kits of nonperishable food and drink for over a weekend.

Bechtel also supports five Second Harvest pantries at schools that serve elementary through college-age students.