TO FEED A COMMUNITY… TAKES A COMMUNITY

We welcome David Cool to Poverty’s Edge.  Dave has been  Agency Relations Coordinator at Second Harvest Food Bank for nearly a year.  In that time, he has seen an incredible increase in participation at emergency pantries throughout the Food Bank’s 6-county region. Dave knows that demand increases in the summer at the same time that supply decreases.

Over the past couple of years the need for food has risen at emergency pantries throughout the Second Harvest region.  Some pantries have reported numbers that are doubled and even tripled in that time! In an effort to help them keep up with demand, we moved a record breaking 6,000,000 pounds of food last year.  Unfortunately it is simply not enough.  As fast as the food comes in to the food bank, whether from local industry donors or food drives, it flies out. 

This is why community support is needed. 

Today, a mom who counted on school meals to provide nourishment for her kids is struggling to put meals on the table. Last week, a senior citizen had to decide whether cooling his apartment was as important as eating. This week, scores of working folks will skip lunch so that there will be dinner tonight.

And this is where the community comes in. Summer, for example, usually is slow for food donations, if your church or organization sponsors a pantry consider a special effort in organizing a summer food drive for the pantry. Don’t have a pantry in mind? Second Harvest could use your help!

Many people are just waiting to be asked. The generosity of people and companies might surprise you. 

Here’s just one example: Most kids (and lots of grownups) love peanut butter. It’s a great source of protein. But did you know that the price of peanut butter has doubled over the past year? And productions have dwindled. This is making it difficult for pantries and Second Harvest to supply this nutritious food.

This summer, Second Harvest and our network of emergency pantries are seeking the assistance of the community to supply the vital products we need.  The fight to end hunger is a never ending battle, but with the support of the local community, we can definitely make a difference.

If you would like to organize a summer food drive, contact Sharon Alexander (slhall@caclv.org). If you’d like to help a specific pantry or neighborhood, contact David Cool (dcool@caclv.org) for information.

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