I am a dedicated food allergy advocate and Founder of the PAL Pantry, with a passion for expanding safe food access for the food allergy community and beyond. Through innovative solutions and community engagement, I strive to create environments where individuals with food allergies can thrive without limitations.I’m a mom to three amazing kids and am very passionate about food allergy advocacy. For 12 years, I have managed a household with multiple food allergies and I was recently diagnosed myself. I am very familiar with the stress that comes with planning and preparing safe foods. Prior to starting a family, I worked in the restaurant industry for 10 years. Food safety, meal planning, preparation and service has been a part of my everyday life for over 20 years.During this time, I have educated myself to not only care for and feed my children safely, but to be their voice in a world where the severity of food allergies are not completely understood.P-A-L = Protect-A-LifeIn 2019, I created the PAL Pantry to support our Food Allergy/Celiac kids in school. This also supportsthe parents and teachers too - knowing your child has safe food in the building is everything! The Pantry provides safe snacks, improves awareness and promotes inclusion with food related activities. By 2024, 8 elementary schools have added a PAL Pantry to support their students. More schools are making the choice to support the Food Allergy and Celiac student community. About 5.6 million children in the U.S. have food allergies. Milk the most common allergen, followed by egg, then peanut. School food nutrition programs include milk in almost every food item offered to students. The lack of allergy friendly options in schools is a major problem. Food allergic students need to have access to safe food. Without it, there is an increased risk for anaphylaxis or they go without because of fear of having a life threatening reaction. Every child should have access to safe food. The PAL Pantry's mission is to fill these gaps, advocate and provide safe options for the Food Allergy/Celiac student communities in schools.