Atlanta nonprofit fighting childhood obesity

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) – Every month Atlanta News First supports a local charity, giving back in big ways.

The amount of money donated depends on the accuracy of our weather team. So far, WANF has donated more than $100,000 to people giving back to their communities.

A team of volunteers with the C.H.O.I.C.E.S. nonprofit organization unpacked boxes Friday, piling food high on tabletops and repacking it all into 400 smaller bags for their upcoming food distribution. Thirty pounds of produce, plus meat, will be donated along with the food bag to each family.

The organization is run by chef Ashley Keyes. It was started by her mother.

“You can’t teach families how to eat healthy if they can’t afford to go buy the groceries that they need,” said Keyes.

The group works to get food into the hands of families in need, teaching them how to cook healthy meals with the donations they are given. They teach children how to have a positive body image and they partner with schools. They say their overall mission is to fight childhood obesity.

“Most of our families are low income, on some type of government assistance such as their SNAP program or WIC, families who have grandparents who are raising grandchildren,” said Keyes. “A lot of our families are also in a food desert. They have to travel within 15-20 minutes to a local grocery store.”

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