Champale Green-Anderson wasn’t raised with wealth, but she remembers goodness all around her in north St. Louis. Today, through her grassroots effort called Sweetie and her organization Champ’s Teardrops, she’s become a vital neighbor and champion for the children of Penrose who face hunger and poverty. This encore episode of Impactually revisits one of our most-loved stories about how one woman’s front-porch snack bags grew into a community lifeline during the Covid-19 pandemic and beyond. It’s called Sweetie.
Champale on the Steve Harvey Show: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=2218533048455340
Champale on Good Morning America: https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/living/story/missouri-mom-100-lunches-day-kids-neighborhood-65509436
Articles on hunger: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/foodfeatures/hunger/
https://whyhunger.org/just-the-facts/
Dr. Amanda Jacobs: https://my.officite.com/0041304/staff
Key Take-Aways
- Champale Anderson started Champ’s Teardrops with just 7 dollars, making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and snack bags for neighborhood kids who were coming home from school hungry.
- Her operation grew from 15 snack bags on day one to hundreds of snack and meal bags a day, especially during the Covid-19 school closures, serving children and unhoused neighbors.
- Food insecurity in the U.S. is deeply tied to poverty and shows up in children’s health, school performance, and long-term opportunities, even when programs like the National School Lunch Program exist.
- Champale’s “no paperwork, no questions” model centers dignity, trust, and opendoor access for any child or adult who needs food or a place to check in.
- Her dream is to grow Sweetie into a rec center and safe space where kids can learn, play, and build memories be
Calls to Action
- Support or volunteer with local hunger relief programs, food pantries, and schoolbased meal efforts in your community.
- Donate to national and local organizations working on food justice and child nutrition, or start a grassroots fundraiser of your own.
- Look up Champ’s Teardrops online and support Champale’s work if you are able.
- Contact local and state officials to champion policies that expand access to healthy, affordable food and strengthen school meal programs. Share this episode and talk with friends, family, and neighbors about hidden hunger in your own community.
We’d like to extend our sincerest thanks to our guests:
Champale-Green Anderson, Founder of Champs Tear Drops, role model, community activist, child advocate, mom, health care worker, friend, empathy champion, and on and on and on
We'd like to extend our sincerest thanks to our guests:
Champale-Green Anderson, Founder of Champs Tear Drops, role model, community activist, child advocate, mom, health care worker, friend, empathy champion, and on and on and on
Featured Musical Artists:
A very special thanks to our featured musician, Hannah Rose Graves, for providing her single “Are You Out There”. Her music is available on all streaming platforms.
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angels do exsist and one of them is called Champale Anderson