Boca Annual Cereal Drive Under Way

Cereal4All, which runs an annual cereal drive organized by twin brothers Jett and Luke Justin, hopes to collect more than 4,000 pounds during its annual cereal drive this Spring and donate it to Boca Helping Hands (BHH).

This donation means that Boca Helping Hands will be able to provide clients with approximately 40,000 bowls of cereal. The Justins, 16-year-old twin brothers and Boca Raton residents, are 10th graders at American Heritage School in Delray Beach.

The Justins have expanded their organization nationally to partner with schools in Connecticut, Arizona, New York, Nevada, Washington, Virginia, New Jersey, Texas, and California for Cereal4All cereal drives that benefit local food banks in those areas.

They’ve also established a new Student Ambassador Program that guides students from across the country to volunteer sessions at local food banks to get them more engaged in the fight against hunger and food insecurity.

The Justin brothers have partnerships with other businesses. Target donated gift cards for participating schools to buy school supplies. Publix will provide cereal parties for K-5 schools’ top-donating classrooms; and there will be a drawing for prizes for students who participate in cereal drives.

In addition, First Watch has partnered with Cereal4all by donating breakfast food for a recent “Oatmeal Airlift” that Jett and Luke piloted to different islands in the Bahamas.

"We created Cereal4all to fight hunger around America's breakfast tables because millions of American families suffer from food insecurity, which means they can't always afford enough meals for everyone in their homes. Those families depend on food banks to help ease their hunger issues. Since breakfast food is one of the least donated items to food banks, pantry bags of meals distributed to families in need are often missing breakfast food,” said Luke Justin.

Local schools participating in the cereal drive at this point include Village Academy Center in Delray and the following schools in Boca Raton: Calusa Elementary, Verde K-8, Blue Lake Elementary, Sunrise Park Elementary, Whispering Pines Elementary, Grandview Preparatory School, FAU Community Service Club, Del Prado Elementary, Addison Mizner School, St. Joan of Arc Catholic School, West Boca High School, Olympic Heights High School, and others.

 “My brother and I learned about the breakfast food shortage in 2016 while volunteering in the food bank at Boca Helping Hands, and it had a big effect on us because, like most young people, we love cereal. Cereal is about breakfast, but it’s also about happiness, so we were bothered by the reality that millions of families and kids might not have daily access to breakfast and that moment of happiness in their day,” said Jett Justin.

Jett and Luke organized their first cereal drive for BHH in 2016 at their school, Calusa Elementary, when they were just eight years old. Despite their busy high school schedules and being active members in the Boca Raton Civil Air Patrol Squadron, the Justin brothers devote a significant amount of time to working on Cereal4all so they can expand their impact and help provide even more relief to families struggling with food insecurity.

“Running a nonprofit is hard work, but Cereal4all is one of the most fulfilling things my brother and I do. There’s really no better feeling than making a positive difference in someone else’s life,” said Luke Justin.

Jett and Luke were also recently recognized for their nonprofit work by U.S. Congressman Jared Moskowitz in the House of Representatives.

To donate to the cereal drive, contact Suzan Javizian at suzan@bocahelpinghands.org or call 561-417-0913.