I posted the following on my pre-trip report but wanted to post it here as well:
Ladies and Gents: I'm going to move forward on the pre-trip report in a few but I wanted to ask a favor from you all. Please please remember that this Saturday, May 11th, is Stamp Out Hunger! sponsored by Feeding America. org.
What I am about to say may make some of you angry but I feel a strong urge to say it anyway (and, you know me, I'm not one to shy away from ya'll telling me that I look crazy or act like a nut or have something stupid to say ).
So here goes.....there are so many organizations out there that help out those in other countries. There are commercials on almost every channel pleading with us to help them. Now, there's absolutely nothing wrong with that. I'm not saying that at all. But, right here, in our own backyards, hunger in America exists for over 50 million people. That is 1 in 6 of the U.S. population including more than 1 in 5 children. Why do we not see more commercials or advertisements asking us to help feed those in America?
Just look at these statistics taken from the Feeding America website:
Food Insecurity and Very Low Food Security iv
In 2011, 50.1 million Americans lived in food insecure households, 33.5 million adults and 16.7 million children.
In 2011, 14.9 percent of households (17.9 million households) were food insecure.
In 2011, 5.7 percent of households (6.8 million households) experienced very low food security.
In 2011, households with children reported food insecurity at a significantly higher rate than those without children, 20.6 percent compared to 12.2percent.
In 2011, households that had higher rates of food insecurity than the national average included households with children (20.6 percent), especially households with children headed by single women (36.8 percent) or single men (24.9 percent), Black non-Hispanic households (25.1 percent) and Hispanic households (26.2 percent).
In 2011, 8.8 percent of seniors living alone (1 million households) were food insecure.
Food insecurity exists in every county in America, ranging from a low of 5 percent in Steele County, ND to a high of 37 percent in Holmes County, MS.
While I have never been one of those who have gone hungry, I have been one of those who had a very limited budget with which to purchase our food, to stock our pantry and refrigerator. Back when John first got hurt, he was unable to work for long periods of time. We never knew when or if he would actually be able to work. Worker's comp paid us very little and it was a struggle. I remember back when we had $25 to last us for the entire week. Through the power of prayer and through the Grace of God, John's doctors finally came up with the right medications and he was released to go back to work and we had a semi-steady income again. Those were some hard times. I can not imagine what others go through to see their families hungry and without food.
So, I urge you! I beg you! I plead with you to please donate food items this Saturday! It requires nothing more from you than bagging up a few items and placing them near your mailbox. Just a few steps right outside your door. Can you imagine how many donated items would be gathered if each and every one of us here on my thread did that? Oh how wonderful that would be!
Here's more information straight from the Feeding America. org website:
On Saturday, May 11, 2013, the National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) will collect food donations in order to provide assistance to the millions of Americans who are struggling with hunger.
The Stamp Out Hunger food drive is a nationwide effort that provides food to local food banks and pantries. Food banks across the country continue to experience record demand for emergency food assistance, especially in the summer months when children are out of school.
The nations 175,000 letter carriers will collect food donations left at the mailboxes of generous Americans in more than 10,000 communities and deliver them to food banks and other hunger-relief organizations.
Celebrating its 21st anniversary this year, the Stamp Out Hunger food drive is the nations largest single-day food drive, having collected more than one billion pounds of food since its inception in 1993. In 2012, generous Americans donated more than 70 million pounds of food, which marked the ninth consecutive year that at least 70 million pounds were collected.
Nick Cannon, multi-talented entertainer and member of the Feeding America Entertainment Council, is the national spokesperson for the Stamp Out Hunger food drive for the third consecutive year. The drive particularly hits home for Cannon, who experienced hunger and relied on food pantries as a child.
Wonder what foods are great to donate to the food drive? Here are a few non-perishable food items requested by food banks:
Cereal
Pasta
Rice
Canned fruits and vegetables
Canned meals such as soups, chili, pasta
100% juice
Peanut butter
Pasta sauce or spaghetti sauce
Macaroni & cheese
Canned protein tuna, chicken, turkey
Beans canned or dry
Thank you all for listening to me and thank you in advance for your donations!
P.S. If any of you want to quote me and post this on either your trip reports or Facebook pages, please feel free! If it helps the cause, go for it!
