Nothing beats the feeling of helping out others that need it the most. That’s the theme for Gretchen Mercer as she helps guide children of Northwest Indiana in the right direction.
Mercer was born in a small town called Huntingburg in the southern part of Indiana. She would end up going to college at DePaul University and then furthered her education at Indiana University for graduate school as a speech pathologist. Since her early childhood, she has been very experienced in communicating with others in different ways.
“My dad has been deaf since he was 7, and my mom has been hearing impaired since birth,” Mercer said. “I grew up as a child of deaf adults. Sign language was pretty much my second language, and it’s played a huge part in my everyday life.”
Following her educational endeavors, Mercer went on to work as a speech pathologist for five years while serving as a stay-at-home mother. Once her youngest child started kindergarten, she decided to do something different and dialed in on opening up an organization called NWI No Child Hungry.
“We provide Buddy Bags for local students to offset hunger over the weekends,” Mercer said. “These bags are created every week and delivered to 12 schools in the area for students who are in need. The goal is to try to fight food insecurity by giving these Buddy Bags to nourish the students and ensure they’re ready in school.”
The organization is completely run by volunteers. All of the money raised comes from private donors and community events.
As the president of NWI No Child Hungry, Mercer wears many hats in her position. She’s motivated to make sure the organization runs smoothly while operating the purchasing, fundraising and physical bagging each week.
“There’s no better feeling than to know we're giving back to these kids,” Mercer said. “I’m over the moon about how the community has come together to help support my organization. We all work dynamically to help the students, and hopefully it leads them in their learning experience each week.”
One of the biggest reasons as to why Mercer has been able to find success with NWI No Child Hungry has been due to surrounding herself with people who are knowledgeable, educated and supportive.
“I started this with only 75 students from the school district that my children go to,” Mercer said. “Today, we’re able to serve about 300 students every week. We’ve seen tremendous growth over the past five years, and it’s been incredible.”
Mercer has been ecstatic with the evolution in her organization. She emphasizes the importance of people understanding the impact that food insecurity has on not just students but also families. According to Mercer, 36% of families in Porter County and 50% of families in Lake County are considered food insecure. She also notes that some schools have 100% of their students qualify for free or reduced-cost lunches.
As for the near future, Mercer plans to continue educating others while bringing awareness about food insecurity to families in Northwest Indiana. Being able to provide for the students and empowering schools to become more independent is at the forefront of her future plans with NWI No Child Hungry.
Outside of her work with assisting the community, Mercer loves to spend time with her children. She’s an avid reader, loves exercising and has a strong passion for animals.