BY JASON COHEN
With 37% of families in the
South Bronx food insecure
and 99% of them qualifying
for free or reduced lunches,
one local high school student
is doing his part to address
the problem.
To increase access to
healthy foods while also promoting
a nutritious diet,
Riverdale High School senior
Will Moller decided to create
an energy bar and donate the
proceeds to LIFT Communities
in the Bronx, a nonprofi t
that supports families of color
in low-income neighborhoods.
Moller, 17, of Manhattan,
who is the founder of Bronx
Energy Bars, developed two
healthy, all-natural nut and
oat energy bar recipes and
found a licensed commercial
kitchen to produce them. According
to Moller, he has always
had the entrepreneurial
spirit, but over the past
few years driving through the
South Bronx to school and seeing
people struggle to access
food during the pandemic, he
felt compelled to help.
“It’s giving hard working
people the means to improve
their diet,” Moller told the
Bronx Times. “Food is the
most fundamental thing people
need.”
According to Moller, he
was never a fan of energy
bars when he tried them in
the past; they always tasted
too much like candy, were
loaded with sugars or extremely
bland. But while being
shuttered home during
the pandemic, Moller decided
he would attempt to create his
own energy bars with healthy
natural ingredients.
It was trial and error at
fi rst, but eventually he settled
on two fl avors: peanut butter
banana and cranberry orange
oat bars. He buys the ingredients
— organic quinoa puffs,
pea protein crisps, brown
rice crisps, banana chips,
agave syrup to name a few —
and sends them to an FDA-licensed
commercial kitchen;
his labels say 100% for charity.
The fast-acting carbohydrates
like the agave and
brown rice syrup provide
a boost of energy while the
longer-lasting carbohydrates
from ingredients high in fi -
ber like rolled oats and quinoa
SUMMONS
(Child Neglect Proceeding)
Docket No. NN-06932-35/2021
BRONX TIMES REPORTER, D 70 EC. 24-30, 2021 BTR
sustain energy levels and
lower insulin response.
“I was looking to make
tasty, delicious energy bars
with natural ingredients that
don’t taste like candy,” he
said.
In January, he offi cially
launched his company and
now Bronx Energy Bars are
available in 11 stores throughout
Manhattan, on his website
and also sold in Riverdale
High School. He began selling
the bars in August and so far
has donated $300. Additionally,
Moller raised more than
$3,000 for LIFT through a fundraiser.
His goal is to raise $50,000
by the end of 2022. “I’m trying
to get in as many stores as
possible,” he said.
The teen is quite ambitious
and didn’t stop with the energy
bars.
He realized the majority
of food insecure neighborhoods,
Riverdale High School senior Will Moller, who created Bronx Energy
Bars. Photo courtesy Will Moller
have gas stations and
bodegas that sell ultra-processed,
highly refi ned snack
foods that greatly outnumber
grocery stores that sell fresh
items. Therefore, simply raising
money doesn’t solve the
systemic issues in underserved
communities.
So, he created a nutrition
education e-book where he delivers
lessons to help food insecure
families and does videos,
blog posts, Twitter posts and
more to raise awareness about
food insecurity. He hopes to do
this long-term and eventually
expand to stores in the Bronx.
“I’m really proud of how
everything has turned out,”
Moller said. “Everything I’ve
created is a refl ection of me.”
Riverdale student fi ghts food
insecurity with energy bars
FAMILY COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK
COUNTY OF THE BRONX
---------------------------------------------------------------
In the Matter of
THE GARCIA CHILDREN
a Proceeding under
Article 10 of the Family Court Act
ISMAEL GARCIA
Respondent(s)
---------------------------------------------------------------
NOTICE: PLACEMENT OF YOUR CHILD IN FOSTER CARE MAY RESULT IN YOUR LOSS OF YOUR
RIGHTS TO YOUR CHILD. IF YOUR CHILD STAYS IN FOSTER CARE FOR 15 OF THE MOST RECENT
22 MONTHS, THE AGENCY MAY BE REQUIRED BY LAW TO FILE A PETITION TO TERMINATE
YOUR PARENTAL RIGHTS AND TO COMMIT GUARDIANSHIP AND CUSTODY OF YOUR CHILD TO
THE AGENCY FOR THE PURPOSES OF ADOPTION. IN SOME CASES, THE AGENCY MAY FILE
BEFORE THE END OF THE 15-MONTH PERIOD. IF SEVERE OR REPEATED CHILD ABUSE IS
PROVEN BY CLEAR AND CONVINCING EVIDENCE, THIS FINDING MAY CONSTITUTE THE BASIS
TO TERMINATE YOUR PARENTAL RIGHTS AND TO COMMIT GUARDIANSHIP AND CUSTODY OF
YOUR CHILD TO THE AGENCY FOR THE PURPOSES OF ADOPTION.
IN THE NAME OF THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK TO THE ABOVE-NAMED
RESPONDENT(S) WHO RESIDE(S) OR IS FOUND AT:
LKA
252 Robinson Avenue, #1
Bronx, New York 10465
And to: ISMAEL GARCIA: Biological Father/PLR
A Petition under Article 10 of the Family Court Act having been filed with this Court, and annexed hereto
YOU AND EACH OF YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED to appear before the Honorable Cynthia Lopez
in virtual Court at, 900 Sheridan Avenue, Bronx, New York, on JANUARY 4, 2022, VIRTUAL COURT
Part 8 Virtual Courtroom: https://notify.nycourts.gov/meet/0vvpb2 Or call 347-378-4143 Conference
ID: 173 206 941# at 09:30 A.M. o’clock in the afternoon of that day to answer the petition and to be dealt
with in accordance with Article 10 of the Family Court Act. You are permitted to call in on DECEMBER 14,
2021, at the above-number to participate in the court hearing.
On your failure to appear as herein directed, a warrant may be issued for your arrest.
Date: 11/10/2021 Stephen Byrne__
Clerk of the Court
FURTHER NOTICE: Family Court Act §154(c) provides that petitions brought pursuant to Articles 4,5,6,8
and 10 of the Family Court Act, in which an order of protection is sought or in which a violation of an order
of protection is alleged, may be served outside the State of New York upon a Respondent who is not a
resident or domiciliary of the State of New York. If no other grounds for obtaining personal jurisdiction over
the Respondent exist aside from the application of this provision, the exercise of personal jurisdiction over
the respondent is limited to the issue of the request for, or alleged violation of, the order of protection.
Where the Respondent has been served with this summons and petition and does not appear, the Family
Court may proceed to a hearing with respect to issuance or enforcement of the order of protection.
A Trusted Name In The Community For Over 50 Years
CHERICO ESTATE
CHERICO REAL ESTATE
718-653-2699
ONX, NY
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