I Was 7 and Saw a Man Begging for Food, So I Decided to Do Something About Hunger

When I was 7 years old, I saw a man on the street corner holding a sign reading "Need a Meal." I asked my parents what this meant, and I couldn't fathom how there were people in my own community who didn't have enough food to eat. Seeing a problem that needed to be addressed, I decided to do something about it. I gathered my friends from school, and together we founded FROGs, or Friends Reaching Our Goals. We decided to collect donations for the local food bank through lemonade stands and yard sales.Nine years later, I'm 16 years old and the chief executive of FROGs. We are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that has provided over 900,000 meals for the hungry in our community. Our mission is to inspire, empower and mobilize kids to make positive change in communities.FROGs has dramatically changed since the comparatively primitive lemonade stands. Our projects have expanded and focus on current issues in Fort Worth. A few years ago, we became aware of the plight of food deserts, areas in which healthy produce is unavailable, in our urban environment. Many kids in East Fort Worth had no access to fresh, affordable produce, which was distressing. FROGs knew that we had to intervene and introduce these kids to a healthier, more productive dietary lifestyle. Thus, the FROGs Dinner Club was created.  Continue reading...