LYNN — Kevin Waters, store manager of the Stop & Shop in Lynn, recently surpassed five years of partnership with the grocery chain and the Washington STEM Elementary School to feed families.

District Director Pat Hickey and more than 20 Stop & Shop store managers and staff joined Waters on Thursday to bag and hand out 200 bags of food at the school.

“It’s really all about giving back to the community,” Hickey said. “Anyone can sell groceries. Anyone can provide a service. But when you connect with people and they become your neighbor, you really can impact their lives.”

He said he is proud of Waters’ efforts and is looking forward to seeing the other store managers take their energy from the day to programs in their own communities.

The program at Washington started five years ago with just a closet, some food and Stop & Shop donating some money, Waters said. It has since grown to include daily food pick-ups for families, larger monthly pick-ups, and clothes donations with a laundry space in the school’s basement for families to use. They are working toward building a permanent food pantry, called The Wolves Den, in the school’s basement for easy access to food, clothes, and laundry.

Waters is also hosting a Mr. and Mrs. Claus photo opportunity at the Stop & Shop in Lynn on Dec. 14., planning an upcoming job fair aimed toward the parents of the Washington students, and runs a bus route on Tuesdays to pick up anyone from Wall Plaza, St. Theresa House, St. Stephen’s Memorial Episcopal Church, and St. Mary’s Lynn — just three more ways he is giving back to the community.

“Now, it’s become a true partnership,” Waters said. “This is the first time in my career — 27 years — that I feel fulfilled, that the whole circle is fulfilled.”

He credits much of the programs success to Nina Cullen-Hamzeh, community school director at Washington, and Bridget Clemens, the florist manager of the Stop & Shop in Lynn, who serves as the liaison between Cullen-Hamzeh and the store.

The three of them use Flashfoods, a program Stop & Shop uses, to sell groceries nearing their best-by date at up to 50% off, to give food daily to families.

Once the food gets posted to Flashfoods and no one buys it, Waters and Clemens then text Cullen-Hamzeh to pick up the food. She then sends out a mass text message to the families and the food is claimed and picked up that afternoon.

“I’d like to see all the food come out of the waste stream and be in the hands of people who need it,” Waters said. “That’s my goal.”

Principal Anthony Frye and Clinical Supervisor Brittany Hockman at Washington led the program at its inception and deserve recognition for its growth, Cullen-Hamzeh said.

Now in her second year in the position, Cullen-Hamzeh has worked with Clemens and Waters to take the program even further.

There are 462 children at the school. Cullen-Hamzeh estimates approximately 50 families pick up food a week from the Flashfoods program and 50 to 75 families come for clothes. Each month, all 200 bags packed by the team on the third Thursday are given away to families that same day. Families are not required to show a pay stub or anything to qualify for the donations.

Parents and staff alike work together to support the program, Cullen-Hamzeh said. Many teachers donate clothes and many parents volunteer their time to help set up, unpack trucks, and pack bags.

“The staff has certainly rallied around the idea of supporting the children and families,” Cullen-Hamzeh said.

Clemens said she got involved with the program because Flashfoods is located behind the florist section and she wanted to help out.

All of the workers get involved, she said. Staff from the deli counter and produce section inform her of items to donate so she can text Cullen-Hamzeh and have food donated that day.

Thursday was her first monthly visit to bag food and she said it all comes down to seeing the children happy. “That’s where the biggest impact is going to be,” she said.

Asma Namouli, a parent with a second grade student at Washington, said she both volunteers and receives donations from the program.

For her, coming to Washington is “like we’re coming to our house,” she said.