There are currently only two "community" schools in Hillsborough County, so as the Resource Teacher at Brandon High, Lauren Leto had to blaze a few trails to support her students. And one of the first things she found when she began talking to families in the community was that their most basic needs weren't being met. Before the conversation could start about raising the school's grade or overall test scores, students and families needed access to consistent, healthy meals, and to feel like they could count on someone to listen to and care for them. On today's episode we talk with Mrs. Leto and one of her student helpers, Pierre, about the impact these resources have had on their school's community, and how something as simple as a food pantry can change lives for the better.

Learn more about our Feeding Minds program by following @FeedingTampaBay on social media today!

In Phil Lee's own words, Florida Blue is a "health solutions company" -- not just an insurance provider. On today's episode he explains what it means to focus on preventive healthcare, rather than trying to address issues once they've already started, and how having access to healthy food is such a key component in that endeavor. In the past four years alone, Florida Blue has provided over 180 million meals to residents across the state. And they plan to continue that mission through close partnership with Feeding Tampa Bay, and building infrastructure that can better connect people with the food they need not just to survive, but to thrive.

See more of the magic made possible through our partnerships by following @FeedingTampaBay on social media, and visiting our website to get involved firsthand!

For YEARS our caring friends over at ABC Action News have been helping us raise awareness about the struggles, needs, successes and humanity of our neighbors around Tampa Bay. And on today's episode we have two of the crew's grade-A journalists, Sean Daly and Jillian Ramos, joining us to talk about our upcoming Pack the Pantries campaign, as well as the effect that media has in creating a better community. Tune in for laughs and learning, and check out our past episode featuring Sean Daly at the link right here!

Also follow @FeedingTampaBay on your favorite social media platform to see how you can easily get involved in the fight against hunger in our region and beyond.