Jennifer Gardner 

Angleton Junior High School, Angleton ISD

When the COVID pandemic caused schools to close, Angleton ISD staff knew that they had to do something to feed students. One of their managers, Jennifer Gardner, came forward wanting to help. They decided to start small and grow as needed. They opened up one curbside feeding site and sent three buses out into the community. By the time they ended, they had two curbside pick-up locations and five buses that made over 50 stops total!

They fed hundreds of thousands of meals. This would not have been possible without Jennifer's help. She ordered the food, moved inventory around to decrease food loss, problem-solved issues, and kept the staff sane. Jennifer is the reason they were able to make sure so many students had food to eat.

Angleton ISD is a very large district as far as mileage goes. Many students do not have the means to come into town to pick up meals. The student population is over 72% economically disadvantaged and food insecure. There are many areas in the community that are food deserts.

Without their feeding program and Jennifer's work, students would have been hungry. Her tireless work to feed those students is what makes Jennifer a Tyson K-12 Hunger Hero.