Think Globally, Act Locally: Everybody Eats

Do you ever think about how much food you waste?

I do.

And when I hear facts like these about the Eastern Illinois Foodbank, I feel even worse:

While the Foodbank distributed 5 million pounds of food to agencies and programs in its 14-county service area in 2006, the actual need is closer to 20 million pounds.

There are so many hungry people in my local area that the food bank, despite its valiant efforts, cannot meet the needs of all those whose bellies go empty at night.

I think about my daughter, and her little round tummy, asking for a banana. She gets one each and every time she asks. Because I know that she likes them, I make sure we have them in the house.

And that I am able to do so is a luxury in this country.

Can you imagine? To so many people, a simple banana – priced around 79-cents a pound in my neck of the woods – is a luxury. In this wealthy country.

Disgusting. Shameful.

The worst part, the fact that strikes me in the dead-center of my mother-heart, is the fact that 40 percent of the households served by the Eastern Illinois Foodbank include children under the age of 18.

Somewhere close, maybe down the street, a small girl just The Poo’s age has a hollow belly and will go to bed hungry tonight.

For this reason and so many more, I am joining forces with some other local bloggers to ask for help.

The 2007 “Food For Families” drive runs from Oct 14-27, and this year’s goal is to raise $65,000 and collect 190,000 pounds of food. Did you know that for every dollar donated, the food bank can acquire, store and distribute $10 worth of food?

If you are a reader who lives in the Chambana area, I ask you to please consider donating canned goods or cash to this very worthy effort. Canned goods (meat, fish, veggies and fruit), as well as boxed dinners, are excellent donation items. Monetary donations are also welcome. For more information, visit the food bank here.

And because everybody eats, I urge you to enter your zip code here to find your area’s food bank. Hunger is not limited to my small patch of land. And if you need any more reasons to put food in the mouth of a hungry child, please read this moving post by Jen at One Plus Two.

Jen, who works so hard to combat the ills of homelessness and hunger, writes:

An estimated 35 million Americans are food insecure with food insecurity and the necessity of food stamps being experienced by at least 4 in 10 Americans between the ages of 20 and 65. That’s 50% of Americans!

Meanwhile, the already burdened food safety-net program which was designed to alleviate hunger and food insecurity is under attack by the threat of reduction of funding and ease of enrollment by policy makers.

With food expenses being the most elastic part of a family’s budget, as limited funds usually get allocated to fixed payments first, such as rent and utilities, food purchasing has become the most compromised portion of the average family’s budget. So far in 2004, 35% of Americans have had to choose between food and rent, while 28% had to choose between medical care and food. While others, forced to stretch their budgets further and further, are buying less expensive but often less nutritious food.

It is wonderful to be involved in the political process on a national level, and it is especially important in this upcoming presidential election.

But I ask you, please, to remember that all politics are local. Taking action in our own communities is equally important. If you can spare a $10 or five boxes of Kraft Macaroni and Cheese, you can be part of the solution to one of the most intractable problems in our nation: poverty.

Imagine the difference that could make for one hungry child.

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UPDATED: Those wishing to make a monetary donation to the Eastern Illinois Foodbank may do so by clicking here. Thank you!