Beck and Zitting are members of the leadership program of Personal Mastery Martial Arts in Sandy, Utah.  The empowered teens took on the food drive for several reasons.  They wanted to help needy children in their community, they wanted real-world practice implementing the leadership skills they have been learning, and they were fulfilling a commitment to the Lindsey Vonn Foundation.

The Children’s Pantry is located in Murray, Utah, and supports hundreds of people weekly with food donations.  The pantry’s mission is to eliminate childhood hunger in their community by providing direct assistance to the community members in need.  They strive to give all members of their community equal access to nutritious food, regardless of race, religion, national origin, disability or personal preferences.

Upon hearing about the teen’s efforts and its connection to World Peace day, Sherry Van Bibber of the Children’s pantry stated, “It is so impactful for teens to do service.   Especially, when they see how their efforts directly affect those in need.  Service creates a feeling that is contagious and positive. “

Beck and Zitting were recipients of a one-year leadership scholarship at Personal Mastery Martial Arts, through the Lindsey Vonn foundation.  Vonn, a former Olympic gold medalist, helps deserving teens fund leadership and personal growth experiences through her foundation based in Colorado.   The Lindsey Vonn Foundation provides scholarships and programming for education, sports, and enrichment programs to give future generations the tools they need to reach their goals and discover their grit within.

The food drive was part of a multi-faceted effort to not only help hungry children in the local Utah community but also as part of the celebration for World Peace Day and an act of service associated with the global launch of the charity CONNECT Universe.

Beck is a 12 old who lives in Salt Lake City and is a blue belt in Tae Kwon Do “I really wanted to do something that would have a positive impact in our community and help kids that really needed it.” said Beck.  Beck trains with her mother and younger brother and they are taking the journey to black belt together as a family.

The food gathered by Beck and Zitting was added to other donations gathered around the community and will help feed hundreds of local families over the coming weeks.

Zitting is a 15 old who lives in Sandy, Utah and is a green belt on the leadership team at Personal Mastery Martial Arts along with her mother and brother.

“My parents have always taught me that service to others is important and I have learned a lot from their example.  This felt like a great project to help others in our community,” explained Zitting.

The food drive will culminate on Monday, October 4, at 7 pm.  Beck and Zitting will lead a team of fellow leadership students in the stuffing of hundreds of backpacks with the food from the food drive.  The backpacks will then be given to children in the community to take home so they have food for the following weekend.

For more information, contact Brett Lechtenberg at Personal Mastery Martial Art.  Email is PersonalMastery1@gmail.com Phone: 801-718-3851

Location Info:
Personal Mastery Martial Arts
8663 Highland Dr, Sandy, UT 84093, Sandy, Utah 84093
+18019471010