On Tuesday, Amazon surprised students at West Jackson Middle School in Jefferson with a “Breakfast Bananza” to celebrate the school’s new breakfast program as a part of Amazon’s Rise & Smile initiative. Created in partnership with Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry, Rise & Smile will provide 100 schools with grants to help them incorporate a healthy breakfast into the school day – which is expected to result in over 3.1 million breakfasts for more than 29,000 students across the country.
 
“Students can’t learn and engage in school when they’re hungry,” said Jackson County School System Nutrition Director Dr. Morris. “This program will remove barriers for students who can’t come to school early to eat or who feel insecure about eating school breakfast and will help ensure our students come to class every day ready to learn.”
 
West Jackson Middle School along with West Jackson High School were among the 100 schools that received a grant from Amazon. To celebrate, associates from Amazon’s local fulfillment centers delivered bananas and engaged students in fun activities, such as healthy eating trivia, to emphasize the importance of eating a nutritious breakfast.
 
“Amazon is excited to be part of the Jefferson Community and join No Kid Hungry in the fight against childhood hunger,” said Amazon General Manager Amanda Reed. “We are always looking for opportunities to give back where our associates work and live, especially when we can support a child’s ability to thrive and empower them to be the next generation of innovators.”
 
The event was the first of 20 planned events to surprise students and support the schools effort to provide healthy breakfasts. The Rise & Smile campaign is a part of Amazon’s commitment to fight against hunger.