Feeding Northeast Florida’s Post

For over thirty-five years, the Anne Arundel County Food Bank (AACFB) has provided critical services such as food, emergency supplies, and other necessities free of charge to our network pantry partners and the neighbors we serve. During the pandemic crisis through the relief provided by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), AACFB was awarded approximately $1.3M annually for four consecutive years to meet the high demand for food assistance. The COVID-relief funding to support hunger relief efforts that the food bank has relied on to meet the demand will end in June 2024. Yet the need for supplemental food in our community remains alarmingly high. Currently, AACFB is averaging more than 48,000 points of service monthly. This is 13% more than this time last year. Join us at one of Anne Arundel County's upcoming budget town hall meetings to testify to the positive impact that the work of the Food Bank has on you, your immediate community, and/or the County as a whole. Partnership at the county level is needed now more than ever to ensure that the people of Anne Arundel County experiencing food insecurity can continue to access fresh, nourishing food, free of charge. #advocacy #foodinsecurity #annearundelcounty  

There are very few things that we can agree on as a society. But one of them is that children should never go hungry. In Kentucky, 1 out of every 6 children lacks consistent access to enough food for a healthy, active lifestyle. Of the households served by Kentucky's food banks with school-aged children, nearly all (94 percent) receive free or reduced-price school lunch through the National School Lunch Program. Sadly, only 1 in 5 Kentucky children who eat free or reduced price lunch during the school year have access to such meals during the summer months when school is out. The Legal Food Frenzy helps our food banks fill the gap in access to food during these critical summer months, to ensure that no child goes hungry. You can help feed the kids! Each dollar you contribute will purchase roughly the equivalent of 4 pounds of food. If you are moved to join in the fight against hunger (and God bless you if you are), you can do so here: https://lnkd.in/eNiEPGHj

Hunger is not just a problem here in San Diego. It's nationwide. Feeding San Diego is a partner food bank of Feeding America, the nation's largest domestic hunger relief organization. Every year, Feeding America releases the latest findings from its annual Map the Meal Gap study. The findings released today emphasize the urgent call for all of us to take action. According to the new data from 2022, the number of people experiencing food insecurity has gone up in San Diego County. There are more than 350,000 people, including just over 100,000 children, experiencing food insecurity throughout the county. When we say people experiencing food insecurity, that means that at times during the year, a given household was unable to acquire an adequate amount of food for one or more of its members because they didn't have enough money or resources. The burden of food insecurity will impact generations to come right here in our county unless we continue to do the work to give a voice to those in need of the most basic human right: nutritious food. View the interactive map to learn more about the research: https://bit.ly/3wroSKx. #nonprofit #hungerrelief #data #endhunger

This! 👇 "In his article, Joshua argues that food banks are both subordinate to the power and politics that maintain the industrial food system model AND deeply central to corporations' ability to maintain the status quo of a food system that relies on charitable institutions to absorb their food waste."

🌟 Exciting News as We Approach the 33rd Annual Fifth Third Day!🌟 This May 3rd (5/3), join us in celebrating a special day dedicated to community and compassion. Each year, Fifth Third Day symbolizes our commitment to tackle the pressing issue of food insecurity, one community at a time. 📈 In today's challenging times, food pantries are experiencing the same budgetary pressures that affect us all. With grocery costs having risen by 24.7% since March 2020 (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics), and less overstock available for donation, food banks are finding it increasingly difficult to support those in need. But there's hope! * On Fifth Third Day, and throughout May, our collective actions will make a tangible difference. Your involvement will help us provide millions of meals across our 11-state footprint, extending even to California and Texas. Let's come together to make a significant impact! Share this post, spread the word, and let's fight food insecurity together! #FifthThirdDay #CommunitySupport #FightFoodInsecurity #MakeADifference #FifthThirdBank #communities #53Day #53better

For most, it's the berry season. For musician me, it's pie season. This summer marks the eighth year of my Pie & Persistence house concert series, which has raised over $85k for more than 30 non-profits from Seattle to Ukraine. And yes, there was a lot of pie. You can learn more here: https://lnkd.in/gF8Eyfuy In the semi post-Covid world, these typically happen during the summer. I'm a little stunned by how they've evolved from the early days of tip jars and collecting checks/cash for different organizations. This year, hosts have worked with individual organizations to create digital donation pages, which I think is pretty cool. Although this Friday's P + P for the Ballard Food Bank hosted by Jennifer Lamson and Ric Ilgenfritz is sold out, you can still support access to nutritious foods and services for 10,000+ households a month, keeping in mind that food is just the first step in their work of addressing the underlying issues their clients face. We can't address systemic challenges around hunger and food scarcity without building a strong network of community resources and services that are innovative, equitable and just. Access to healthy food is a right, not a privilege. Learn more and donate here: https://shorturl.at/6OMIP #pieforthepeople

It's time to elevate the voices of those directly involved in the hunger relief system 🙌 and look beyond the halo effect of the charitable food system. Having managed a large church food pantry for over a decade under the Feeding America network, I often describe my perspective of the system as the toddler view. 👶👶👶 Allow me to illustrate: When a parent cleans a house, they see a polished, clutter-free table and feel a sense of pride and accomplishment, perhaps even expecting praise from their partner. But when a toddler looks up, they see a different reality. They notice the cracks, dirt, gum, and grime that have accumulated over the years beneath the table. I have that toddler view. Working at ground level, I witness the areas in need of improvement within food banking and food rescue. Do I have all the answers? No. But I do have solutions. ALL frontline workers have solutions. 💡 My question to those who support hunger relief efforts (foundations, event planners, elected officials, food futurists, food sustainability experts, big corporations, universities, government agencies, journalists, etc.): When was the last time you listened to and amplified the voices of the community leaders on the frontlines rather than relying on the words of those who make decisions behind a computer screen and pose for the perfect picture? Here are some things you can do: 1. Understand the ability to scale doesn't always solve hunger, it might actually perpetuate it. 2. Invite frontline workers to round table discussions, listen fully, and take notes. 3. Provide a safe place for frontline workers to share their concerns without fear of retaliation. 🧐🧐🧐 4. Understand you will have to go against the status quo and think differently. 5. Admit that we all have room for improvement. 6. Realize there are many perspectives. 7. Know that each community is different and a one size fits all approach doesn't work! 8. Encourage frontline workers to be bold with their thoughts and experiences. 📢📢📢 9. Acknowledge that we have all been wrong b/c if we were right, hunger would not exist. #FoodDignity #BetheChange #ElevateFrontlineSolutions #RealSolutions #LocalCommunity #CommunityBuilding

Our very own Camesha Grant, PhD, VP of Community Impact at Food Bank For New York City, appeared on abc7NY to discuss the alarming statistic that 1 in 4 adults in New York are experiencing #foodinsecurity. In some parts of New York City, like the Bronx, it's even higher at 39%. Food Bank For New York City's mission is vital now more than ever as more of our NYC neighbors find themselves struggling to make ends meet. Watch the full clip to learn more about the current state of food insecurity in New York and how you can help empower our neighbors in need: https://lnkd.in/ezNXG5tg

‘I hate April’. So said someone we are supporting in a foodbank this week. As we at Your Own Place CIC have our own internal conversations about the need to withdraw from foodbanks due to uncertainty and late decision-making on funding, it turns out that the people we support are not unaware of what the end of the financial year means. By early March at the latest, we need to know where our team are going to be in April. No news on funding means we have to start letting people, partners and volunteers in foodbanks know so that we can neatly and respectfully close that service when the funding ends - end of March unless we hear otherwise. The wasteful annual funding cycle means that organisations lose staff, partnerships, momentum and ultimately have to end the service that is so desperately needed and that so much time, trust and money has been leveraged to start. That this has an impact on people and communities is visible and felt as they see projects, organisations and support in communities come and go. 😞 #funding #wasteful #vcse #communities #prevention #safeandsecurehome

Second Harvest has released its annual report for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2024. Check it out by visiting our website using the link below. The food bank remains steadfast in its mission to alleviate food insecurity across East Tennessee. Despite ongoing efforts, the challenges for food insecure households have intensified. According to the most recent Map the Meal Gap data, 202,560 East Tennesseans, including 44,860 children, are food insecure. This represents a significant 26% year-over-year increase, driven by inflation and other economic factors. In FY'24, SHFB-ETN distributed 26.3 million pounds of food (including 6.2 million pounds of produce), the equivalent of 21.9 million meals. “While these stats are impactful, they only meet 57.7% of the need.” says Executive Director, Elaine Streno. “To fully bridge the meal gap, 16.1 million additional meals need to be provided annually in East Tennessee.” Read more in our 2024 annual report.