Whitehall-Coplay Hunger Initiative Pantry Garden Article – July, 2024
Written by Gwen Herzog, Pantry Garden Chair
 
 
Since my last article, our tomato, pepper, eggplant, watermelon, zucchini, and herbs have been growing nicely!  Tom’s sweet corn bed has not had a lot of germination, but what is growing looks great.  We spent the evenings of June 18th and June 24th weeding, watering, and admiring just how great our garden looks.  We have small tomatoes, peppers, and eggplants.  The watermelon plants are starting to run.  The zucchini doesn’t yet have flowers, but the plants are sturdy and spreading.   In one of the available beds, we planted winter squash seeds which have sprouted and are getting their second set of leaves. 
 
On June 18th and again on June 24th, we tied up our tomato plants.  The high winds on the 24th brought only a gentle breeze to the Pantry Garden; however, something has been eating many of the leaves on our sunflowers and it has even begun to nibble some of the leaves on a few of our pepper plants.  Fortunately for us, Hannah White, Greenhouse Manager from The Seed Farm, will be visiting our garden Thursday, June 27th to check out our progress.  Hopefully she will be able to offer advice on how to stop the attack on the leaves and give us other advice on how to keep our garden growing its best.
 
Thank you to our Pantry Garden neighbor, Walter, for dropping two large, beautiful tomato plants at the garden.  Thank you also to the anonymous donor who dropped cherry tomato and bee balm plants at Shari Noctor’s office.  We planted the bee balm at the Pantry Garden and due to limited space, we repotted the cherry tomato plants and gave them out at the June 13th food distribution.  Thank you to the local farmer who donated several flats of tomato plants and some cabbage plants.  These were also given out at the June 13th distribution.  All the plants, especially the tomatoes, were extremely popular!  Our Pantry guests were very happy to take home a plant or two for their own indoor or outdoor gardens.
 
At the June 20th food distribution, we were able to share over 10 lbs. of herbs which were grown in our Pantry Garden.  We had a very large amount of mint that we shared along with smaller amounts of cilantro, dill, basil, chives, and oregano.  In the coming months, we expect to continue to offer cut herbs from our garden.  We are also expecting that The Seed Farm will provide us with individual basil plants for our Pantry guests to take home and grow on their windowsill or in their garden.
 
A new challenge for us this season is that our water tank is now empty.  Each week we spot water (water each plant individually using watering cans) from our water barrels that have been filled from the water tank.  Due to lack of rain, our tank has not sufficiently filled to allow us to water beyond July 2nd.  If we don’t get rain in the next week, we will be forced to request that the Hokendauqua Fire Department provide us with some water to make it through this dry spell. 
 
Don’t forget, volunteers are welcome to join our Tuesday 6-7 p.m. work nights at the Pantry Garden.  Each Tuesday throughout the summer and fall we weed, water, and harvest.  No experience is needed, and no clearances are required.  We have plenty of extra gardening gloves and gardening hand tools ready for you!  Use the address:  3540 South Ruch Street, Whitehall in your GPS.  Questions?  Give me a call at 610-379-6823.
 
Happy July 4th!

I would like to extend a heartfelt THANK YOU to these wonderful organizations and people who helped WCHI recently:
 
Knights of Columbus Council #4050 (which covers Whitehall, Coplay, Northampton and Catasauqua) and Council #10921 introduced their first joint CORNHOLE Charity Tournament at Egypt Park on May 18th.  This event was a huge success and 48 teams participated. The two councils split their proceeds. Council #4050 presented a $3,400 check to WCHI to be used for Pantry food.  Council 4050 also has several members who regularly volunteer with WCHI: Gary Buschta, Bob Falkenstein, Tom Ganser, and John Halko.
 
Anna Daumer, Whitehall WAWA Store Manager, has helped WCHI for many years.  She provides WAWA bags for the refrigerator and frozen food items our guests select.  Whitehall WAWA is also doing a Free Community Meal for WCHI on Tuesday, August 20th in the Social Hall behind our Pantry from 4:00-5:30 pm.  Most recently, on both June 13th and June 20th, the store managers of the Lehigh Valley Region under Cody Lilly, Area Manager, volunteered and helped our guest’s select the food items they will eat in our Pantry; restocked our food shelves; and helped put the food in our guest’s cars. WCHI greatly appreciated and needed their help during both evening food distributions this month. The WAWA store Managers were from Union Blvd, S 4th St, and Gordon St, Allentown; Broadway, Fountian Hill; Schoenersville Rd, Bethlehem; and Hamburg. We greatly appreciate everything WAWA does for WCHI.
 
WCHI has been feeding over 300 Whitehall and Coplay households; 1200 people monthly including children, adults and seniors.  We are 100% volunteer based and really need more cleared volunteers to help us with the increase in Pantry attendance.  Contact [email protected] for the Pantry.  We also need help at our Pantry Garden.  Gwen and her team have planted many vegetables and herbs that are given to our Pantry guests.  Contact Gwen at 610-379-6823.  School Community Service Hours are also available over the summer and during the school year at both our Pantry and Garden. 
 
We have three local Whitehall Churches who monthly take just one food item of the many WCHI requests, and their congregations provide that one item to us.  First Presbyterian of Hokendauqua- all kinds of pasta; St John the Baptist Church - canned tuna; St Peter Roman Catholic Church - cereal.  Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church does a regular monthly food drive with all kinds of donated items. We can always use more cereal, any kind of pasta, spaghetti sauce (plastic jars) and peanut butter.  Taylor Villas also does subdivision food drives for us.  Would your business, subdivision, service club, or social club like to collect a specific item for our Pantry or do a Food Drive for WCHI? 
 
I also would like to once again thank all the “ANGELS” that provide food and monetary donations for WCHI that are dropped or mailed to my RE/MAX Unlimited office, 1080 Schadt Ave, Whitehall.  If mailing a check, please make it payable to WCHI.  WCHI is a 501C3 Public Charity.  Your monetary donation may be tax deductible.  Please check with your financial advisor.
 
Thank you EVERYONE and have a great week!

WCHI currently feeds over 1,200 Whitehall & Coplay residents monthly consisting of 430 children (a baby-age 17), 550 adults, and 220 seniors (age 60+). Food items needed, that we cannot obtain from Second Harvest Food Bank, include peanut butter, cold cereal, any kind of pasta, condiments, and spaghetti sauce (no glass bottles please).  Store brands are fine. Please deliver to my Re/Max Unlimited Real Estate office, 1080 Schadt Ave, Whitehall M-F 9am-5 pm
 
This time of year, I write an article on Food Safety.  People do not realize if food is undercooked or not held at proper temperatures, people do get sick and make visits to the emergency room.  It is especially important just to remind you of some food safety guidelines and tips.
 
This valuable information is taken directly from “USDA Urges Consumers to Keep Clear of the Danger Zone This Summer” Released by USDA’s Food Safety Education Staff.  Please read the entire article from May 17, 2016, which still holds true today https://tinyurl.com/3s8pnk4e   I didn’t have a chance to submit this before Memorial Day weekend.
 
“Summer cookouts are right around the corner and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is urging consumers to remember the four simple steps to food safety — Clean, Separate, Cook, and Chill — and to steer clear of the “Danger Zone” while cooking outdoors.
 
What is the Danger Zone? The Danger Zone is the temperature range in which bacteria can grow faster. Bacteria can actually double in number in as little as 20 minutes when perishable food is kept in the Danger Zone. In order to steer clear of the Danger Zone, you should always:

1. Keep cold food, at or below 40°F, in the refrigerator, in coolers, or in containers on ice.
2. Limit the time coolers are open. Open and close the lid quickly. Do not leave coolers in direct sunlight.
3. Keep foods served hot at or above 140°F, in chafing dishes, warming trays, slow cookers or on the grill. You can keep cooked meats hot by setting them to the side of the grill rack, not directly over the coals where they could overcook.
4. Use a food thermometer to check the safe recommended temperatures.
5. Never leave food between 40 and 140˚F for more than two hours.  If the temperature is above 90°F, food should not be left out more than one hour.

 
As always, we remind consumers to follow the four steps to food safety when preparing dishes for a cookout:

1. Clean: Make sure to always wash your hands and surfaces with soap and warm water for 20 seconds before cooking and after handling raw meat or poultry during cooking. Wash cutting boards, dishes, utensils, and work spaces with soap and warm water too. If you plan to be away from the kitchen, pack clean cloths and moist towelettes for cleaning surfaces and hands.
2. Separate:  When taking food off the grill, use a clean platter. Don’t put cooked food on the same platter that held raw meat or poultry. Any harmful bacteria present in the raw meat juices could contaminate safely cooked food.
3. Cook: Always use a food thermometer to check the internal temperature of burgers, steaks, chicken, and foods containing meat or poultry. Hamburgers, sausages and other ground meats should reach 160°F. All poultry should reach a minimum temperature of 165°F. Whole cuts of pork, lamb, veal, and of beef should be cooked to 145°F as measured by a food thermometer placed in the thickest part of the meat, and allowed to rest for three minutes before eating. A “rest time” is the amount of time the product remains at the final temperature, after it has been removed from a grill, oven, or other heat source. During the three minutes after meat is removed from the heat source, its temperature remains constant or continues to rise, which destroys pathogens. Fish should be cooked to 145°F. Meat and poultry cooked on a grill often browns very fast on the outside, and by using a food thermometer you can be sure items have reached a safe minimum internal temperature needed to destroy any harmful bacteria that may be present.
4. Chill: After a cookout, place leftovers in shallow containers and refrigerate or freeze immediately. Discard food left in the Danger Zone too long. Remember, when in doubt, throw it out!”

 

August HPI Article   Written by Jenn Dietz                   Oatmeal Raisin Bar Recipe –
I am a person who really enjoys food, which has been my motivation for volunteering at the WCHI pantry. Food is a basic need and it’s important to make sure that everyone has enough.
Sometimes it’s easy to be lazy and eat whatever is accessible, what is put on your plate by the person who cooks for you, or to grab fast food on-the-go.  I have recently started to become more selective with my dietary choices, while still enjoying a variety of flavors. I am trying to eat more natural foods; Foods that are grown in nature, have originated from plants and have had less manipulation from humans and factories.  When I want a snack, I look for nuts or seeds, fruits or maybe something from a box if I see that it has limited ingredients that I know how to pronounce.
The WCHI pantry food tasting sample in July was a simple and healthy recipe that fits the above requirements. This was an Oat Bar or Cookie made with only oats, bananas, peanut butter and raisins. I am excited to share this recipe because it has only four ingredients, is natural, fits a minimum of two food groups and I found it to be enjoyable as a snack, a dessert when I was looking for something sweet, and also as a breakfast nibble along with Greek yogurt or a glass of milk, which adds another food group. I will list here the reasons that this recipe is a nutritious treat.
There is a saying in the nutrition world that says to “make half your grains whole.” Grains have two subgroups: whole grains and refined grains.  Whole grains have the entire grain kernel, which includes the bran, germ, and endosperm. Some whole-grain examples are whole-wheat flour, bulgur (cracked wheat), oatmeal, and brown rice. These are a good source of dietary fiber, which is generally associated with being good for bowel regularity and may be said to help lower LDL Cholesterol.
Refined grains have been milled, which removes the bran and germ. This is done to give grains a finer texture and improve their shelf life, but it also removes dietary fiber, iron, and many B vitamins. Some examples of refined grain products are white flour, corn grits, white bread, and white rice.  Refined grains should be enriched, which means adding back certain B into enriched grains, which detracts from the healthfulness. Some food products are made from mixtures of whole grains and refined grains, but only foods that are made with 100% whole grains are considered a whole grain food. (Grain info from www.myplate.gov)
Bananas are 75% water and they contain potassium, vitamin B6, and vitamin C and antioxidants.  They contain fiber, and the natural sugar is better than the unrefined sugar found in candy and cakes. (Wikipedia & healthline.com)
Peanut Butter contains protein, fats and carbohydrates and is suitable for plant-based diets. It should not be overconsumed, but does contain many minerals and nutrients including magnesium, folate, vitamins B3, B6 and E, and iron. It also contains oleic acid, a monounsaturated, heart-healthy fat similar to olive oil. (healthline.com)
Raisins are a dried fruit and are a good source of antioxidants, fiber, potassium and iron. They are naturally sweet and may be high in sugar and calories, but in moderation (about ¼ cup) are a good addition. (www.webmd.com)
Oatmeal Raisin Bars  Servings: 12  Recipe from TheBigMansWorld.com 
These oatmeal raisin bars are soft baked bars loaded with plenty of juicy raisins! Made without oil, butter, or eggs, these healthy raisin oat bars take less than 15 minutes to make!  Prep: 5 minutes, Bake: 15 minutes   Ingredients: -4 cups rolled oats    -1/2 cup maple syrup (optional)  -1 cup peanut butter - you can also use smooth almond butter, sunflower seed butter, or tahini.  -6-7 medium bananas mashed – approx. 2 cups  -1 cup raisins     -Add cinnamon and nutmeg for a little more flavor if desired.
Instructions: Preheat the oven to 350F. Line an 8 x 8-inch pan with parchment paper and set aside.   In a mixing bowl, add all your ingredients, except for your raisins, and mix well. Fold in raisins, reserving a few to top the bars with. Transfer the batter into the lined pan and top with extra raisins. Bake for 15-17 minutes, or until the tops are golden. Remove from the oven and let cool completely, before slicing into bars.

Written by Gwen Herzog, Whitehall-Coplay Hunger Initiative’s Vegetable Garden Chair

Over the years I have noticed that peppers seem to grow like crazy toward the end of the season.  I’m not sure if it’s the cooler weather, the realization that life is coming to an end, or perhaps my imagination, but the plants seem to be racing to produce as much as possible to finish out the season.  This season, peppers have been the most donated fresh vegetable at Re/Max Unlimited.  10/19 I brought to the pantry a tote bag full of green, sweet peppers from my garden.  On the same day, another pantry volunteer brought a huge bag of red, sweet peppers from his garden.  We mixed them in a bushel basket and the colors were amazing!  These fresh peppers were very popular with our guests and within a couple of hours, the basket was empty.  
I wrote in my last article that we had replanted most of our Pantry Garden beds with fall crops.  I am pleased to report that we have already begun to reap the benefits!  In October we were able to distribute some of our new herbs including 27 bags of dill and 17 bags of cilantro.  We also distributed a variety of our new greens including pak choi, tat soi, kale, endive, turnip greens, and chard.  It wasn’t an extremely large quantity of greens since our plants are just getting started, but it was enough for some guests to add to soup, sandwiches, or a salad.  Our fall brassicas including cabbage, Brussels sprouts, and broccoli are growing well and we should have some ready in time for November’s distribution.
I want to thank this year’s very dedicated group of Pantry Garden volunteers:  Sue Butchinski, Jenn Dietz, Sylvia Lee, and Tom Noctor.  Our garden would not have gotten cleared, planted, watered, weeded, harvested, fenced, nor the grass cut without this hard-working team!  The WCHI board recently made a change to the required clearances for the Pantry Garden, so everyone is invited to join us Tuesdays at 4 p.m.  We will especially need help on November 7th and 14th to harvest and down pack greens for pantry distribution.  Enter the address 3540 South Ruch Street, Whitehall into your GPS.  When you get to the surveillance sign at the end of the macadam, keep going.  Follow the gravel drive and park by the garden.  We look forward to meeting you and putting you to work!
Here are our YTD Pantry Garden numbers:  373 zucchini, 225 yellow squash, 24 bags of radishes, 304 tomatoes, 241 peppers, 18 bags of red beets, 96 eggplants, 3 tote bags of parsley, 36 ears of corn, 38 bags of dill, 6 bags of string beans, 17 bags of cilantro, 3 bags of turnip greens, 8 bags of pak choi, 10 bags of tat soi, 2 bags of kale, 7 bags of endive, and 3 bags of turnips.
Don’t forget, as you clean out your vegetable garden for the year or as you keep picking into the late fall, we will gladly accept your extra produce.  Please drop to Re/Max Unlimited, 1080 Schadt Ave., Whitehall, Monday – Friday 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. or call me at 610-379-6823 and I will gladly pick up.  We remain committed to nothing going to waste and will share your donations with our pantry guests, at free community meals, and with other pantries through Plant-A-Row.
Happy November!

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One in seven people are food insecure here in the Lehigh Valley.  Whitehall-Coplay Hunger Initiative (WCHI) has been blessed to have enough food to feed 1,000 Whitehall and Coplay residents in August and 1,008 residents in September.  October’s numbers are not in yet, since we have not finished the month.

From Feeding America, “The USDA defines food insecurity as a lack of consistent access to enough food for every person in a household to live an active, healthy life. This can be a temporary situation for a family or can last a long time. Food insecurity is one way we measure how many people cannot afford food.”

If a household needs food, WCHI follows The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) guidelines, which is operated in accordance with United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) policy, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age or disability. 

Eligibility is based upon the income limits listed on the form.  The recipient verifies, based on their household size, that they are at or below the income level indicated on the form to be eligible for program benefits. The income levels are based on yearly, monthly, or weekly gross income before taxes are taken out. WCHI has a chart to show our guests. For weekly income, a household of 2, cannot receive income higher than $519/week; a household of 5-$1,250/week; and a household of 8-$1,799/per week.  The income chart has all the different household sizes and income limits. Our guests circle or highlights the line with their household size, verifies their allowable income, and then signs the form.

WCHI needs three things from our community:

1. We want to serve as many Whitehall and Coplay food insecure households as possible.  Please tell anyone you know that we are here to help.  Many people are extremely proud and do not want people to know they need food.  Numerous people feel this way.  At some point, they come to the realization that having food is better than being hungry, and then they schedule an appointment to come to our Pantry. Many people do not have transportation.  Can you bring them and make sure they have any appointment?  No one is judged. We all need help sometime in our lives.
   

Pantry Appointments are Required. Please call 484-225-0358. Guests must show proof of residency with a driver’s license and/or a utility bill or other form of mail coming to their address.  We serve guests during their pantry appointment time. If they come early, they need to wait for their appointment time.  If they come late, our guest will have to wait for an opening in our WCHI schedule. We are fully booked on both distribution days.  We genuinely appreciate our guests arriving at their scheduled appointment time.

1. WCHI is 100% Volunteer, and we are most grateful to our selfless Volunteers who see the huge need for basic food in our community. Each one has stepped up and taken action to obtain all the PA required child abuse clearances to be a WCHI volunteer and work in our Food Pantry.  We have children attending the pantry, thus the required clearances. 
   

These volunteers see the Pantry attendance growing every month as food, gas, rents, taxes, and soon home heating bills may be rising.  WCHI needs many, many more volunteers to help stock shelves and take our guests through the pantry on the 2nd and 3rd Thursdays of the month, which are WCHI’s Pantry food distribution days.  WCHI Volunteers will help you obtain your clearances by having you come to our Pantry and use our computers to complete the requirements. For more info, please go to our website  https://tinyurl.com/WCHIvolunteer or contact Sylvia at [email protected] 

1. WCHI is asking our community to donate food or host a food drive for us to provide the food that we need. 
   

We request the following items: Boxes of Oatmeal, Canned Fruit- Peaches and Pineapple (Preferably Low Sugar or Light Fruit Syrup), Canned Corn, Canned Tuna, Cereal, Pancake Mix & Syrup, Pasta (all kinds: elbows, spaghetti, rigatoni, rotini, shells, etc), any kind of Soups (Including: Creamed, Chunky, Chicken Noodle, Tomato, Vegetable, etc), Spaghetti or Pasta Sauce (canned or plastic bottles). All food items above can be store brands.

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Since Covid-19 paved the way for WCHI to ultimately provide a Food Pantry for Whitehall-Coplay residents, I have been thinking about creating an Advisory Board. This is different from our Board of Directors, who help make top-down decisions.  

​Our Mission is to alleviate food insecurity in Whitehall and Coplay. 

The purpose of the WCHI Advisory Board is to help WCHI accomplish our Mission.  I want to expand our focus to include different perspectives from a myriad of people that ultimately will help our Pantry guests.  And as a group, we will further alleviate food insecurity in Whitehall and Coplay.  

I would like this new Advisory Board to consist of pantry guests, a couple of our current Board members, faith-based community members, and any local government, business, & service organizations members.  This would be a bottom-up approach to help our guests with Pantry improvements.  It also will help WCHI obtain a contact and direct information on established community services: i.e., Meals on Wheels, WIC, Department of Aging, etc.   We also need more businesses, housing developments, faith based and service organizations to do more organized Food Drives for us and would love a representative to be on our Advisory Board.

The Advisory Board will consist of 20-30 area members, though there is no minimum or maximum limit. NO State mandated child abuse clearances are required to be a member of this Advisory Board unless you further volunteer with WCHI.

The Advisory Board will have three meetings a year lasting about 90 minutes.   Our first meeting will be held on Tuesday, October 17th at 2pm, in our Food Pantry at St John the Baptist Campus in the Christ the King School, at 3024 S Ruch St, Whitehall. (If putting in your GPS, please put in Coplay as the town.  Some GPS bring you to our WCHI Garden on the other side of S Ruch St that does not connect to our side of S Ruch).  Park in the back parking lot and look for our Pantry signs to come in the side door of the school.

If you have any questions about this Advisory Board, please call me on my personal cell 610-730-8067.
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Our next Free Community Meal is on Thursday, October 19th at Redeemed Christian Church of God, 5 N 3rd St, Coplay 610-262-8993.  Meals are served from 4-6pm and are while supplies last. 
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WCHI fed 1,008 residents in September consisting of 266 households, 365 children, 428 adults, and 215 seniors.  We had 27 new households consisting of 29 children, 36 adults, and 21 seniors for a total of 86 newly served guests.  The 86 people are included in the 1,008 total people served.  Not every registered guest comes every month.  This is only the total number of households served for September.
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Please host a Food Drive for WCHI. We are limited as to what we can obtain from Second Harvest Food Bank.  Please advise us that you want to and/or are doing a Food Drive.  We are starting to collect items for the holidays.  A computer list of what is needed can be found at our website.  https://tinyurl.com/yc2vdns3  

These are the needed items that are on or website:  Boxes of Oatmeal, Boxed Potatoes, Canned Fruit (Low Sugar or Light Fruit Syrup), Canned Corn and Canned Peas, ​Canned Tuna, Cereal, Condiments (mayo, ketchup, mustard), Macaroni and Cheese, Pancake Mix & Syrup, Pasta (all kinds), Ready to Eat Items (Canned Ravioli, Spaghettios, etc), ​Rice 1lb bagged (brown or white);  All kind of ​Soups (Including: Creamed, Chicken Noodle, Tomato, Vegetable, etc), Spaghetti Sauce, and Stovetop Stuffing Mix.    **All food items above can be store brands. ** All Donations are appreciated and may be shipped to or dropped off at Re/Max Unlimited Real Estate, 1080 Schadt Ave, Whitehall, PA 18052 M-F 9am 5pm.

Please contact me with anything listed above.  Thank you and have a great week!!

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I thought you may find this interesting and informative.  It is a Press Release from Feeding America   August 30, 2023

The Feeding America nationwide network of food banks is coming together this September for Hunger Action Month to inspire conversation and drive passion for the issue of hunger. The month-long campaign will highlight the impact of food on people's lives and show how a meal goes beyond solely nourishing our bodies. When people are fed, futures are nourished, and individuals go from just living to truly thriving. By joining the movement, Feeding America believes our collective voices, actions and commitment will help ensure every community has the food it needs to flourish.

“Food has a tremendous impact on people’s lives. We have all experienced firsthand how a meal goes beyond solely nourishing our bodies,” said Claire Babineaux-Fontenot, CEO of Feeding America. “Access to nutritious food is essential for each of us to reach our full potential and reminds us that we can all help to create positive change in our communities to ensure that no one goes hungry in America. Now is the time for us to come together to elevate the voices of people who experience food insecurity and inspire everyone to join the movement to end hunger.”

Everyone needs nutritious food to thrive, and in every community in America, people are working hard to provide for themselves and their families. Yet, Feeding America estimates approximately 1 in 6 people turned to charitable food assistance for additional support in 2022. A recent Feeding America survey found that 80% of network food banks reported either increased or steady demand for emergency food services in June 2023. This includes almost 35% of responding food banks reporting an increase in the number of people served. The vast majority are also reporting that food purchase costs are higher and food donations are down over the last four months.

To support food banks and neighbors experiencing food insecurity, people across the country can get involved during Hunger Action Month by listening, acting and inviting others to speak up about ways to end hunger.

Listening and Learning:
Read and watch stories of people facing hunger.
Learn about the impact hunger has on communities.
Read the Elevating Voices to End Hunger Together report to learn about anti-hunger policy recommendations informed by neighbors facing hunger.

Committing and Acting:
Donate to a local food bank or Feeding America.
Visit and volunteer at a local food bank.
Wear orange throughout the month of September, or on Hunger Action Day on Friday, Sept. 15, to spread awareness and show commitment toward ending hunger.

Speaking Up and Advocating:
Sign our petition to members of Congress urging them to strengthen critical nutrition programs in the 2023 Farm Bill that help seniors, families, children, active military members and other people in communities across the country.
Join the conversation and share support by posting photos or stories of advocacy to social media with #HungerActionMonth and @FeedingAmerica.

On Hunger Action Day, Sept. 15, Feeding America will release the 2023 Elevating Voices to End Hunger Together: Insights Report, an annual, nationally representative snapshot of the experiences, concerns and ideas of people who had challenges putting food on the table. The report builds off last year’s foundational initiative to understand issues driving food insecurity and develop ideas for solutions to end hunger from the people most impacted by it.

Hunger Action Month is a time for everyone across the country to collectively act against hunger. You can choose to donate or advocate. You can choose to volunteer or raise awareness. You can choose to help end hunger. Learn more about how you can take action by visiting HungerActionMonth.org .

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