Building Hope Where It’s Needed Most
We’re proud to announce the launch of Rise & Dine Weekends — a new initiative by Yellow Hope Foundation designed to ensure that no child in California’s East Bay goes hungry when school cafeterias close for the weekend.
The program will begin serving families in Fremont, Union City, Newark, and Hayward, working in partnership with local schools, food banks, and community organizations.
Our goal is simple yet powerful: to make sure every child in our community returns to school on Monday nourished, focused, and ready to learn.
The Weekend Hunger Gap
Even in regions as vibrant and diverse as the East Bay, food insecurity remains a serious and often unseen issue.
According to Alameda County’s 2024 Community Health Assessment, approximately 11% of children in the county experience food insecurity each year. In districts like Fremont Unified, more than 70% of students qualify for free or reduced-price meals, a lifeline, that often ends on Friday afternoon.
The Alameda County Community Food Bank (ACCFB) reports that 1 in 4 county residents faces the risk of hunger at some point each year. Families living paycheck to paycheck are particularly vulnerable to sudden costs, rent, transportation, childcare, that push food out of reach.
When schools close for the weekend, many children lose their most reliable source of nutrition. Teachers and food bank partners often see the effects firsthand: students who arrive on Monday hungry, tired, and less able to focus.
How Rise & Dine Weekends Helps
Rise & Dine Weekends bridges that 48-hour gap by providing nutritious, shelf-stable meal kits to families every Friday. These kits are designed with:
- Nutrition & Accessibility: kid-friendly foods that are healthy, simple, and easy to prepare.
- Cultural Responsiveness: meals that reflect the diversity of East Bay families.
- Dignity: distribution through schools and trusted community partners, so families receive help discreetly and respectfully.
Families will be able to pick up their meal kits at designated school or community sites each Saturday ensuring convenience, safety, and community connection.
“Our mission is to make sure that hunger doesn’t take the weekend off - not in Fremont, not in Hayward, not in our community,”
- The Yellow Hope Foundation Team
Local Collaboration
This effort builds on existing community strength. Yellow Hope Foundation is working closely with:
- Local school districts in Fremont, Newark, Union City, and Hayward
- The Alameda County Community Food Bank (ACCFB)
- Local grocery partners and volunteers who help source, pack, and distribute kits
The program’s design reflects what we’ve heard from families and educators: simple access, healthy food, and trust matter most.
Each kit will include items like breakfast oatmeal, pasta, soups, rice, canned proteins, fruit cups, and snacks - all shelf-stable, safe, and ready to use.
A Community Solution to a Community Problem
Weekend hunger doesn’t just affect nutrition, it affects learning, attendance, and well-being.
Research from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that students who eat breakfast and maintain consistent nutrition have higher test scores, better attendance, and improved classroom behavior.
By filling the weekend gap, Rise & Dine Weekends strengthens the connection between health, learning, and community resilience.
What’s Next
The East Bay program will serve as the foundation for expanding Rise & Dine Weekends to additional regions across the state and beyond.
Our focus for the first phase is building local partnerships, evaluating logistics, and measuring early outcomes including family participation, volunteer capacity, and community feedback.
We believe in starting local, learning fast, and growing responsibly, so that the impact is sustainable and meaningful for every community we serve.
Join Us
This work is only possible through the support of people who believe in a shared responsibility to care for our neighbors.
If you’re a school, volunteer, or local business interested in helping us build a hunger-free weekend for East Bay kids, we’d love to hear from you.
💛 Learn more at yellowhope.org/riseanddine
📬 Contact us: info@yellowhope.org
Together, we rise. Together, we dine.
🍎 Launching Rise & Dine Weekends in California’s East Bay