“Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for mankind, for he satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things.” – Psalm 107:8-9

One of our favorite things is getting to share the impact that FMSC meals have on kids around the world.
This update features an adorable boy named Kid from the Philippines.

When we first told you his story, he was getting strong and just beginning to stand, thanks to the consistent meals of MannaPack Rice he received from FMSC’s food partner, International Care Ministries (ICM).

We are thrilled to tell you that after one year on MannaPack Rice, Kid has gained 19 pounds and has grown several inches taller!

His skin looks healthier, his arms have developed muscle and his legs are strong enough to support him. He now stands, walks and runs around—he is a very playful, active boy!

“FMSC MannaPacks gave Kid the breakthrough he urgently needed.” –ICM

With the simple addition of MannaPack meals, the family is now healthy.

The money they used to spend on medicine is now available to buy food. Kid’s parents Myrel and Roger have recently moved into a new home and are working hard to ensure their children are always fed.

“We are really thankful. If it wasn’t for you, Kid would still be malnourished. MannaPack played a huge role in helping Kid and us as well. His health is restored. We will do our best to make sure Kid will never go back to being malnourished again.” – Myrel and Roger

Praise the Lord! This is the reason we do this work.

Your hands packed the food that nourished Kid’s body.

Your donations paid for the meals and enabled them to be shipped to the Philippines. Your support makes this process incredible. You should be smiling huge right now, because we definitely are!

Keep growing, Kid!

ORIGINAL STORY

Kid sits listlessly in his mother Myrel’s arms.

His tiny ribcage protrudes from his chest. His frail, spindly arms and legs are unable to support him.

In their scanty seaside home located in a slum community of Zamboanga del Norte, Philippines, Myrel and her husband Roger work raggedly.

They do everything they can to support Kid and his 16-year-old brother, Wilmer. But their very best efforts are not enough.

Roger risks his health and safety every day—his work is located far away in a gold mine, where he barely earns $10 per month. This wage is insufficient to feed and provide for their family.

They cannot afford to send their older son to school, and their baby boy, Kid, is malnourished and struggling.

Though Myrel plants vegetables and gathers shellfish for work, she is unable to make enough money to purchase basic necessities and watches helplessly as her children go to bed hungry, day after day.

FMSC’s partner International Care Ministries (ICM) discovered the family and quickly referred them to ICM’s Home-Based Feeding program—a nutrition and feeding initiative for malnourished children.

The family began receiving FMSC MannaPack meals. Suddenly, they had hope.

As a result of the feeding program, Kid has vastly improved. His skin looks healthier, his arms have developed muscle and his legs are strong enough to support him—he is now able to stand and walk!

The MannaPack meals provide the nutrition he needs to sustain his body, grow stronger and laugh and play with other kids. What a miracle!

“I am happy because I get full with the MannaPack and also I am happy for my brother that is now healthy and able to walk,” said Wilmer.

Because of you, Kid stands! Your passion for those in need enables children just like Kid to gain the strength and opportunity to rise above starvation and gain a bright and beautiful future!

The fight is real. No child should starve. No parent should have to watch helplessly as their child slowly fades away. There are many other children in the same situation around the world, starving and without resources.

Your kind-hearted, generous giving restores the lives of children like Kid, helps our long-term partners like ICM sustain their already established feeding programs, and enables FMSC to continue to provide aid in the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan.

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.