Hunger lives here
When most people think of “the hungry,” they tend to think of those in poor, third-world countries. Or the homeless. Or poor people who live “somewhere else.”
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In reality, millions of Americans are going hungry in every community in the country. Families are living one catastrophe — such as the loss of a job, a car repair or a family illness — away from hunger.
Marci is a single mom living in Iowa with a 9-year-old daughter. Marci had been a manager at McDonald’s for 13 years before switching jobs to be a caterer at five John Deere cafeterias.
She works long hours at her job, takes care of her daughter and volunteers as the president of a neighborhood association. You might not think she would have to deal with hunger.
But because her job change resulted in a pay cut, Marci now needs assistance from the Northeast Iowa Food Bank.
“Considering the rising cost of food,” Marci said, “the food bank has been such a great help. I now have food to make my daughter lunches to take with her to school.”
The woman waiting on you in a store, the man cutting your lawn, the elderly neighbor woman on a fixed income, the boy who sits next to your child in school.
These people could be part of the estimated 35 million Americans that are what is known as food insecure.
They may not talk about their hunger problems, but for any of them, their reality means:
Not knowing where or when their next meal will come from
Only getting one meal a day because it’s hard to make ends meet
Not having anything to eat for a whole day, or several days at a time
Feeding their children instead of themselves
Soaring food and gas prices, lost jobs and stagnant wages mean that the number of people needing food assistance is rising.
Feeding America, formerly known as America’s Second Harvest, is a national non-profit organization and the nation’s largest food bank network. Vicki Escarra, president and CEO, says that demand in their food banks has risen 15 to 20 percent since 2007.
“We’re seeing more and more people visiting food banks for the first time,” she said.
“Many people are living paycheck to paycheck. In big sections of the country industries that had provided good wages are gone and there aren’t enough good paying jobs left. So people need help.”
Who are the hungry?
Children. More than 12 million children live in food insecure homes.
Research has shown that children are particularly vulnerable to the effects of food insecurity because even mild undernutrition can have adverse impacts on behavior, school performance, and cognitive development.
Related Topics:
Social Issues, Business, Economic Issues, Poverty, Food Security and Hunger, Nonprofits and NGOs
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