Nearly 2/3rds of Rockbridge county residents are considered to be food insecure. This is due to many factors but mainly because most of our country is considered a food desert. A food desert can be described best as an extremely urban or rural area where access to clean, nutritious, and quality food is hard to find. 

In the case of Rockbridge, most of our county is rural. It is easy to forget that ROCO is more than just Lexington and Buena Vista. The county lines extend all the way from Goshen in the north and Glasgow in the south. 

In between these towns are cities, like Lexington, which hold more options for groceries and food but transportation can be an issue. It is a ten plus mile drive for many of these small communities to reach a real grocery store and that just isn’t feasible for everybody, for people in these areas, where the majority of the community is below the poverty median income line. A poverty line can be described as the minimum amount of income for a household or individual to live a comfortable life. 

Counselor Hillary Camden helps with programs in which students combat hunger and food insecurity. She expressed how important food was to a student’s well being. 

“Having access to food helps support students’ health, learning, and development.  Students who are hungry have trouble focusing on academics.” said Camden

There are many programs at RCHS which help with student hunger, all of which are free to use. One of these programs is a student led organization called the Food for Thought, which is a food pantry. 

Senior Sarah Brown is an intern with Food For Thought and is instrumental to its operation. 

“We offer everyday meals and end of the month drive throughs for food. But combined with this we also offer hygiene products, clothes, and formal attire for school dances.” said Brown. Fliers can be found all around the school with QR codes about how to get in touch with these programs.