Fill Mugs to Fight Hunger

Did you know that your coffee cup could change lives?  

In these uncertain times, join Fill Mugs to Fight Hunger and help Mary’s Meals to provide life-changing support to the world’s poorest children.  

What you will need:

  • A mug 
  • Paper  
  • Coloured pens or pencils 
  • Scissors 
  • Clear tape or glue 
  • Plenty of imagination 

It’s so easy to take part – and a great activity for the whole family to enjoy. Simply download and print out our handy template and transform your favourite mug into a household collection box, which you can fill with coins.  

Don’t have a printer at home? Don’t worry, you can follow our simple instructions to create your very own unique mug cover.

  • Choose a mug to transform into a collection box.  
  • Mark out the size of label you will need to cover the outside of the mug. As well as a label to go around the outside of your mug, you can stick on a ‘lid’ with a coin slot.
  • Design and decorate your label and lid. 
  • Ask an adult to help you cut out the label and lid and stick it onto your mug!

Now it’s time to think of some creative ways to fill your mug with coins. If you’re not sure where to start, here are some suggested activities: 

  • Ask for coins to put in your collection box as a reward for helping with chores around the house. 
  • Planning a spring clean while you stay indoors? Add any stray coins you find down the back of the sofa to your collection. 
  • Save some of your pocket money and add it to your mug.  

Every life-changing meal costs just 13 cents, so every penny counts and each mug you fill with loose change will go on to fill many more mugs with nutritious school meals.  

Once your mug is full, send the money you have saved to Mary’s Meals. Don’t worry if depositing the coins at the bank is not an option at the moment, you can make your donation online. 

The money you raise will provide school meals in some of the world’s poorest communities and help hungry children to find hope in the classroom.  

It’s a simple idea that works! The promise of a nutritious meal encourages children – who might otherwise skip lessons to work, scavenge or beg for food – to come to school, where they can gain an education that can offer them an escape from poverty.  

In schools where Mary’s Meals are served children: 

  • Have more energy to learn and play 
  • Feel happier and healthier 
  • Find it easier to concentrate in class 
  • Gain an education which helps free them from poverty 

Let your friends and family know about Fill Mugs to Fight Hunger 

  • Print out a poster to stick in your window. If you don’t have a printer, why not design your own? 
  • Share a photo of your finished collection mug on social media using the hashtage #FillMugs 
  • Post on social media about all the different ways you’re collecting coins to fill your mug. 
  • If you’re keeping in touch with friends and family by video call at the moment, you can tell them all about your project and even show them your collection mug! 

The more people who take part, the more mugs we can fill – here and in classrooms around the world!

Home schooling your kids?  

Fill Mugs to Fight Hunger is a wonderful way to help them learn about the lives of other children around the world and the challenges they face. Here are some suggested activities to help keep young minds active in uncertain times and empower the youngest in our communities to see how small actions can make big changes to the lives of others.  

We feed children in 19 countries – read about some of the different meals served in Mary’s Meals kitchens around the world. 

It costs just $26.40 to provide a child with school meals for a whole school year and just 13 cents for each individual serving of Mary’s Meals. Ask your child to count up their coins and work out how many children their donation could feed and/or how many meals it will provide.