CHEYENNE, Wyo. — Around 86,000 Wyoming residents are food insecure. That’s according to First Lady Jennie Gordon, who has been hard at work coordinating with donors and agricultural producers statewide to address hunger in Wyoming. One program may have a solution: distribute high-quality, local beef to Wyoming youth.

Gordon held a conference at the Governor’s Residence on Tuesday to discuss the widespread problem of food insecurity in Wyoming. The First Lady, who runs the Wyoming Hunger Initiative, praised the contributions of organization partners and ranchers who have generously donated sources of protein to Gordon’s nutrition program “Beef for Backpacks,” which coordinates with weekend food programs statewide to distribute locally sourced protein to youth.

“We don’t reinvent the wheel. We highlight the work of these local organizations and provide support for continued success,” Gordon said.

The nonprofit food network Feeding America says one out of seven people in Wyoming face food insecurity. This statistic is more dire for children, however, as one in five kids are food insecure. Feeding America defines food insecurity as when “people don’t have enough to eat and don’t know where their next meal will come from.”

In 2019, Jennie Gordon launched the Wyoming Hunger Initiative within the Wyoming Governors Residence Foundation. The nonprofit organization aims to end hunger in the Cowboy State. Gordon has since launched its “Beef for Backpacks” program in partnership with the Wyoming Stock Growers Association, Wyoming Beef Council and 307 Meat Company. Following a pilot program in 2020, “Beef for Backpacks” launched statewide in 2023, Gordon said. Nearly 5,500 children are served beef sticks as part of the food bag programs each week. Wyoming students received more than 270,000 beef sticks during the 2023-24 school year.

The Cheyenne-baed weekend food program Friday Food Bag Foundation participates with the Wyoming Hunger Initiative’s beef program. The foundation serves 1,350 bags to youth at LCSD1 and LCSD2 schools weekly. Residents can help the program through volunteering, sponsoring, donating or increasing awareness. To contact the program, click here.

“Weekend food bag programs provide meals for students, some of whom receive most of their meals in school and may not have enough resources when they get home for those long 48 hours before they return to school,” the First Lady of Wyoming said. “Good quality protein is essential for healthy growth and development of our youngsters.”

The First Lady recognizes that although protein is an essential source of healthy nutrition, it is notoriously expensive. Local hunger relief organizations also have a difficult time procuring healthy sources of protein. Beef for Backpacks aims to address this issue.

“This program is impossible, though, without the donation of beef,” Gordon said. “And I cannot say enough about the ranchers who step up to make this program possible.”

Food insecurity is created by a myriad of factors, including poverty, lack of affordable housing, health complications, racism and discrimination. Poor access to healthy food results in reduced physical and mental health, general wellbeing and adversely affects performance in school and work.

Anyone living with food insecurity in Laramie County can access a bevy of community services offering food relief here. Among the list are Wyoming 2-1-1, the Women, Infants and Children Program (WIC), and various mental health services.

The following food-relief programs and initiatives operate in the Cheyenne area:

• Ambitious Diversities Purple Pantry, 3908 W. 5th St.
• Boys & Girls Club of Chyeenne, 15 W. Jefferson Rd.
• Calvary Chapel, 9209 Ridge Road
• Comea Shelter, 1421 W. Lincolnway
• Element Church, 600 E. Carlson St., Ste 201
• Family Promise of Cheyenne, 2950 Spruce Drive
• Friday Food Bag Foundation, 2003 South Greeley Highway, Suite A
• Meals on Wheels of Cheyenne, 2015 S. Greeley Highway
• Needs, Inc., 900 Central Ave.
• North Christian Church, 611 E. Carlson St., Suite 305
• Onereach, 422 McComb Ave.
• Pine Bluffs Senior Center (Food Pantry), 203 Main St., Pine Bluffs
• Salvation Army of Cheyenne, 601 E. 20th St.
• St. Joseph’s Food Pantry, 206 Van Lennen Ave.
• True Vine Community Church, 110 Central Ave.
• Unaccompanied Students Initiative
• Veteran’s Rock, 605 S. Greeley Highway, Ste. 1