From Student to School Pantry Star: Miss Helen Keith

“My name is Helen Keith. I have been part of this community for about 60 years, pretty much my entire life. I was a student here, and now I am a member of the PTO and the food pantry coordinator for Belmont Elementary.”

Located in northwest Baltimore, Belmont Elementary School’s pantry is a resource for more than 180 students, most of whom interact with Miss Helen at some point. The majority of the families with students attending Belmont receive public assistance or qualify for free meals at school.

The pantry is one of almost 200 sites statewide that are part of the Maryland Food Bank’s School Pantry Program. It’s especially important to have the pantry available, because the neighborhood does not have a nearby convenient grocery store.

On the wall just inside the school’s entrance on North Ellamont Street, a large banner proudly proclaims the title of “America’s Healthiest Schools Awardee,” fittingly placed near the space where students eat meals, and families can access nutritious foods.

When asked how the school was able to achieve such a prestigious award, Miss Helen beamed with pride.

“We make it our business to offer fresh fruits and vegetables,” she noted. “Kids get them in the cafeteria to eat, but they can always take some home. We want them to have the option of getting more fruit, more vegetables–even if it is low sugar fruit cups for the weekends,” Miss Helen noted.

While she is proud of her school’s ability to provide fresh produce, she is equally frustrated by the extra efforts required to fight against the powerful influences of social media and local advertising on elementary school-age kids.

“We live in an age of songs and commercials and influencers, so we have to break the mindset where kids see the latest snack food on TikTok, which every corner store sells, and push for them to desire something better,” Helen shared.

The pantry tries to avoid food and snacks with high sugar, fat, or salt, offering granola bars instead of candy, whole grain goldfish crackers versus trendy chips.

And Miss Helen has been around long enough to learn a few tips and tricks to get people to think about what they are eating.

“You give them the choices that matter. You start out by saying, ‘OK, well, I know you don’t want to eat just instant ramen noodles, so let’s get some cut up apples,’ or ‘let’s get some tangerines,’” she said.

But sometimes Miss Helen has to go further than a simple substitution suggestion for some children.

“One time, I left tangerines out on the table in here and walked away. I came back later and the whole tangerine bag was gone except for one. So sometimes, they just don’t want you to see them…”

But what about when that’s not enough?

“We had a student one time throw oranges, because it was easier for him to show us negativity than to admit he had a genuine need,” she shared.

Miss Helen had seen the child and mother come to the pantry religiously, and recalls the student being emotional each time. Thankfully, her experience helped the student get to a more comfortable place.

“He was angry because he was hungry at home. It took a while, but we kept talking and got him to understand that his friends were coming to the pantry as well – and he never threw another orange (or anything else) at us!”

Seemingly, no matter the boundary that society or the kids themselves put up, Miss Helen finds a way:

“Because of their home situation, a child may come to school at 10:30 and tell me they didn’t eat breakfast. It’s our job to make sure they get something to eat!”

She also described some kids who prefer not to eat school lunch, and their parents pack a lunch that they “happen” to leave in the car.

“I get that stigma, so we’re going to find something else for them – it may be ravioli, or macaroni and cheese, with fruit and vegetables, of course, but at least we know they are eating,” she said.

School Pantry coordinators have the superpower to change lives. At Belmont Elementary School, Miss Helen has been a rock in her community, helping hundreds of families make sure they have access healthy food.