Free grocery store concept opens for Denver Public School community
DENVER — On November 9, Mayor Michael B. Hancock, Denver Public Schools (DPS) superintendent Dr. Alex Marrero, and partners from Goodr, Amazon and Aetna opened a school-based, free grocery store concept to support DPS students and families facing food insecurity. There will be two free grocery stores at Place Bridge Academy and Colfax Elementary.
According to a press release, both grocery stores will be operated by Goodr, a sustainable waste management and hunger relief company that works to reduce food waste and fight hunger. In 2021, Goodr expanded its hunger relief work by opening the first in-school free supplemental grocery store in Atlanta. Following Mayor Hancock’s visit to the Atlanta store, the concept is now being brought to Denver.
“These two grocery stores make a total of four stores that Goodr has been involved with opening and operating and that is one of the accomplishments of which we are most proud,” said Jasmine Crowe-Houston, the founder and CEO of Goodr.
The free grocery stores will be part of the DPS’ new school-based Community Hubs program. DPS is working with the City of Denver and community partners to open hubs to help connect families and the DPS community to local services.
“We all need to be there for every child, because justice for our children is a future full of possibilities. And we couldn’t be prouder to partner with DPS to expand the range of services we can provide to students across the city,” Hancock said.
Additional services that could be offered through the Community Hubs include case management, workforce development and financial literacy for adults, academic tutoring, and more.
The six Community Hub locations will be at Place Bridge Academy, Colfax Elementary, Smith Elementary, Focus Points, John H. Amesse Elementary and Johnson Elementary.
“When a student comes to school or goes to bed hungry, their ability to learn while in class suffers,” Hancock said. “With these free grocery stores, we can support those students and families who may need a little help putting food on the table, and I want to thank Goodr, Amazon and Aetna for their support in that work.”
Theresa Ho is the RMPBS Kids digital content producer. You can reach her at theresaho@rmpbs.org.