Ridgewood Girl Scout is keeping food drive fresh

Last summer, as a group of Passaic campers complained about their food, Ridgewood Girl Scout Hayley Punjabi looked guiltily at her healthful, filling meal.The Girl Scout-led summer camp in Passaic, which Punjabi interned at, provided free state lunches for low-income children. In terms of their quality, Punjabi saw the lunches as “very mediocre.”

“It was really sad, and this is like 15 minutes from Ridgewood, New Jersey,” Punjabi said. “I would bring a nice salad and a whole food lunch, and I would just feel so bad.”

The campers were some of “the nicest girls I’ve ever met,” the Ridgewood High School (RHS) senior recalled, so it hurt her to hear them commenting about their food – saying things like “it’s the same thing every day” and “I’m hungry.”

Now, Punjabi is doing something about it.

In an attempt to get filling, healthy food to low-income people, she has organized special food drives for the clients of Social Services Association of Ridgewood and Vicinity (SSA). The first drive is taking place tomorrow, Sept. 9 and the second one will be Tuesday, Sept. 16, according to Punjabi. Instead of calling for the typical salt-and-fat-heavy non-perishable goods, Punjabi is asking only for fresh fruits and vegetables.

Both drives will take place at the Ridgewood train station headquarters of the SSA from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/community-news/girl-scout-is-keeping-food-drive-fresh-1.1083318#sthash.R8E3pBeM.dpuf