Michelle Young Angulo on Ending Weekend Hunger, One Backpack at a Time

At the February 18 luncheon, the Rotary Club of San Antonio welcomed Michelle Young Angulo, Executive Director of Snack Pak 4 Kids San Antonio, who shared how Snack Pak 4 Kids is working to eliminate weekend hunger for children across Bexar County.

Angulo moved to San Antonio in 1998, where her involvement with Snack Pak 4 Kids began as a parent volunteer in 2014. Inspired by the program’s impact, she earned a degree in Community Health from University of Texas at San and rose from operations coordinator to executive director in 2021—bringing both professional expertise and deep personal commitment to the mission.

Weekend Hunger: A Hidden but Urgent Need

Angulo explained that food insecurity is often misunderstood—not as constant hunger, but as uncertainty about where the next meal will come from. That uncertainty is most acute on weekends and school breaks, when children lose access to free and reduced breakfast and lunch programs.

Research consistently shows that hunger affects focus, behavior, attendance, and long-term outcomes. In Bexar County, Angulo noted, food insecurity impacts large swaths of the community, particularly in inner-city neighborhoods. “When children are hungry, they cannot learn,” she said. “Our mission is to remove hunger as a barrier so kids can succeed in school and beyond.”

How Snack Pak 4 Kids Works—with Dignity and Consistency

Snack Pak 4 Kids provides discreet, weekend snack packs to students identified by teachers as benefiting from extra support. Because the program is 100% privately funded, educators can quickly enroll students without red tape. Once enrolled, a child receives a snack pack every weekend throughout the school year—reliability that Angulo emphasized is critical for children whose lives may otherwise lack consistency.

Each pack is intentionally designed with quality, nutrition, and dignity in mind, focusing on protein, calories, and shelf-stable items that children are proud to receive. “If you hand a child something they value, it tells them they are valuable,” Angulo said. She shared a moving story of a child who once said, “I never thought I was good enough fora Gatorade,” underscoring how small details can powerfully affirm a child’s sense of worth.

Community Partnership and Lasting Impact

Angulo credited the program’s success to volunteers and partners—especially Rotary—who pack, deliver, and fund the snack packs. What began as a program serving 40 to 50 students at one campus now reaches more than 4,000 children every weekend across 54 schools.

Teacher feedback, she shared, shows improvements not only in behavior and attendance, but also in confidence, belonging, and emotional well-being. She closed with a story of a second grader who saved snacks for weeks so he could share them with classmates—a reminder that when basic needs are met, children are free to connect, give, and thrive.

“That’s our why,” Angulo concluded. “We want every child in our community to reach their full potential, and we don’t want hunger to stand in the way.”

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