Hunger in America
Hunger and malnutrition is pervasive and a devastating malidy in the United States, which it should not be with the resources we have at hand. We are much luckier than so many other countries in the world in regards to the resources we have here to offer our citizens.
There is no reason any person in this country should go hungry. And together we can make sure to take control of that issue. And the time is now, the day is today. Give to your local food pantries. If you see a homeless person begging for money, buy them a healthy sandwich instead. Get involved in your community, donate some time to a food kitchen.
We are striving to put together a concise listing of food pantries, soup kitchens, agencies and so on for each state. If you know of such a resource, please SUBMIT IT HERE.
- This includes food and nutrition resource info for each state as well as agencies and groups listed by state and city. Food pantries and other such facilities are also listed here.
Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest NC
About them: Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest North Carolina was founded in 1981 and opened its doors in 1982 to address the growing needs of people seeking emergency food assistance in Northwest North Carolina.
Since then, we have experienced dramatic growth in food distribution, operations and programming to better serve our more than 390 partner agencies – and the thousands of people who rely on the food they provide each year.
To date, the Second Harvest Food Bank has distributed nearly 100 million pounds of food to non-profit agencies and churches that feed our hungry neighbors in 18 counties.
About them: Founded in 1975, WHY is a leader in the fight against hunger and poverty in the United States and around the world.
WHY is convinced that solutions to hunger and poverty can be found at the grassroots level. WHY advances long-term solutions to hunger and poverty by supporting community-based organizations that empower individuals and build self-reliance, i.e., offering job training, education and after school programs; increasing access to housing and healthcare; providing microcredit and entrepreneurial opportunities; teaching people to grow their own food; and assisting small farmers. WHY connects these organizations to funders, media and legislators.
At WHY, we envision a world without hunger and poverty. If we can shift the prevailing viewpoint on why hunger and poverty exist, then we can influence the policymakers and put an end to this human tragedy.
WHY sponsors two major fundraisers each year. Hungerthon is WHY's largest annual public outreach. It is broadcast during Thanksgiving week to more than 6 million people with essential information about hunger and poverty. At the WHY Awards Dinner each spring we honor excellence in grassroots organizations and the media with cash grants.
WHY is a not-for-profit registered 501(c)(3) organization founded by radio talk show host and present Executive Director Bill Ayres, and the late singer-songwriter Harry Chapin.
About them: Shortly after I became the director of the West Milford Community Garden in late 2008, I learned that our garden plot holders -- like millions of backyard gardeners nationwide -- left large volumes of fresh produce unharvested when they grew more than they could possibly use.
I found this to be troubling and we created a program called Ample Harvest to gather the extra food and deliver it to local food pantries.
It soon became clear however that food pantries were hard to find. Most operate without an Internet site or yellow page listing. And it turns out this same challenge is faced nationwide by backyard gardeners wishing to share their bounty.
To address this dilemma, we created the AmpleHarvest.org campaign, a way for food pantries and gardeners with extra produce to find each other. AmpleHarvest.org gives food pantries the opportunity to be listed in a central directory so that gardeners can share their fresh produce and, garden-by-garden, help diminish hunger in America
AmpleHarvest.org is a program of Sustainable West Milford, a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) sustainabiliy organization. Everyone involved in the creation and support of AmpleHarvest.org has donated their time and talent. There are no costs to the food pantries or the gardeners for use of the site.