Denver elementary school feeds dozens of families for Thanksgiving holiday

Staff members at a Denver elementary school sent dozens of families home with boxes full of food on Friday.

Volunteers at McMeen Elementary School packed up 70 boxes, including plenty of Thanksgiving staples.

Jean Boylan, the Community Liaison at McMeen Elementary, said the boxes they packed help fight food insecurity among the students' families.

"Next week, families are off all week, so children are not going to have a hot lunch and a hot breakfast every day. So that's meals at home, the families have to figure out how to fill," she explained.

According to Feeding America, over 17,000 children in Denver face food insecurity, comprising 13% of the total number of children in the state who struggle with it. They said 23% of these children are likely ineligible for federal nutrition programs, as their parents make above 185% of the poverty level.

The food in McMeen Elementary's family boxes came from Food Bank of the Rockies and was paid for by the nonprofit "Food For Thought."