HOUSE MEMORIAL 41

49th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2009

INTRODUCED BY

Sheryl Williams Stapleton

A MEMORIAL

CONGRATULATING WILSON MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENTS ON THEIR CAMPAIGN TO HELP SOLVE LOCAL- AND SCHOOL-BASED HUNGER PROBLEMS.

     WHEREAS, Wilson middle school students are concerned about their classmates in the Albuquerque public school district who often go hungry; and

     WHEREAS, Wilson middle school students began to study hunger issues in 2008; and

     WHEREAS, Wilson middle school students began to promote the Elev8 New Mexico-sponsored crock-pot project to feed students at their school; and

     WHEREAS, Wilson middle school students who participated in Elev8 New Mexico activities, such as crock-pot cooking, before and after school, used learning strategies that helped build math, literacy and other skills; and

     WHEREAS, Wilson middle school students who participated in Elev8 New Mexico activities, such as crock-pot cooking, learned to prepare a nutritious, home-cooked meal for their younger brothers and sisters and other family members; and

     WHEREAS, Wilson middle school students began to collect canned goods for families in their community in November 2008; and

     WHEREAS, Wilson middle school students have provided rice, beans and other dried goods to students and families in their community; and

     WHEREAS, in 2008, Wilson middle school students sold over three thousand dollars ($3,000) worth of anti-hunger buttons to raise money for food for families in their community; and

     WHEREAS, in November 2008, Wilson middle school students provided fifty-six baskets that contained complete Thanksgiving dinners to families in their community; and

     WHEREAS, over eighty percent of Wilson middle school students qualify for free or reduced-price meals; and

     WHEREAS, Wilson middle school students collected petition signatures from four hundred thirty students asking Albuquerque public schools to provide free lunches to all Wilson middle school students through provision two of the national school lunch program; and

     WHEREAS, Wilson middle school students have testified to the Albuquerque public school board to allow schools that qualify over sixty-five percent of their students for free or reduced-price meals to provide free lunches to all students, thus providing hot nutritious meals to more students; and

     WHEREAS, Wilson middle school students have testified to the Albuquerque public school board to match data with the human services department to identify students who receive food stamps and who could be directly certified for free meals more often than the current once per year, thus providing free meals to more students;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that it hereby congratulate Wilson middle school students for their successful and ongoing campaign to help solve local- and school-based hunger problems and to end hunger in their community; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the principal of Wilson middle school, to the members of the Albuquerque public school board and to the board of directors of Elev8 New Mexico.

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