Milk 4 Many

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Milk 4 Many is a program that reduces cafeteria waste at James Williams Elementary by collecting unwanted milk, juice, carrots, apples and other perishables products and donating them to a local food pantry.  JWE is excited to announce it has completed its second year of this program.  

With Milk 4 Many, unwanted/unopened milk, juice, carrots, apples and perishables items are collected when children dispose of their food at the end of their lunch period.  The program’s primary objective is to reduce waste.  Students are encouraged to eat their food.  However if they choose not to, they are able to place their unwanted/unopened items in the coolers rather than the trash cans. These items are delivered on a daily basis to Katy Christian Ministries (KCM), a local food bank, by parent volunteers.  

Linda Sheffield created the Milk 4 Many Program in the Katy Independent School District in 2010 at West Memorial Elementary and West Memorial Junior High. Since then, Milk 4 Many has been implemented in the following schools in the Katy area: Griffin, Alexander, Stephens, Fielder, Katy Elementary, Cinco Ranch Junior High and Seven Lakes High School.

Williams Elementary has contributed over 5,000 milks to the local food pantry since the inception of the program in the fall of 2012.  This figure does not even include all of the unopened juices and other food items that were donated instead of going into the trash!  Milk 4 Many would not have been possible without the wonderful parent volunteers who collected and drove the milk to KCM.   This program has proven to be both a fantastic lesson in recycling and a contribution to the community.

 JWE Milk 4 Many Collection Log, March, 2014