Food Banks Running out of Food..................

[Stuart G]

Source: New York Times

REBECCA MUSCARELLO had long worked as a secretary, so she never imagined that at age 35 she would be left with no choice but to take her two children to a food pantry to get groceries. But like a growing number of Americans whose jobs have evaporated in a shrinking economy, Ms. Muscarello ran outof money and then food.

In the four months since June, demand for food aid has risen 20 percent in areas of the country with the healthiest economies and more than 40 percent in areas with the weakest, leaders of nonprofit food-distribution organizations say. And they predict that the need will keep growing in 2009 if the job market continues to contract, as expected.


Since the spring, the number of people showing up hungry at food pantries and soup kitchens has surged, straining the capacity of many organizations in the vast, largely unseen and lightly financed network of volunteer emergency feeding operations. Many are newcomers who were reluctant to seek help until they had no choice.

Requests are so high that some food centers are turning away the hungry. In Winston-Salem, the Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest North Carolina posted a notice on its Web site advising food pantries and soup kitchens of an 8- to 10-week wait to find out whether their membership had been approved.

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/11/giving/11FOOD.html?h

[fasttense]

1. If you are poor in America it is because God does not love you

like he loves those CEOs and the bushies.

:sarcasm:

That's what my former Preacher would like me to believe.

[earth mom]

16. Yep, that's why the fundies worship money and pray and tithe to be "blessed" with it.

:puke:

[Stuart G]

2. We got lots of problems here...but this one.sucks .hell we produce more food than

almost anyone. Enough to feed us all. Yet distribution and politics override everything...This one really sucks..
Think about it. Right now, at this moment, in the country with the largest surplus of food, we cannot distribute enough to feed our people here...

[shireen]

3. if you can afford it, please help ...

donate to LOCAL food banks, organize food drives. This is simply unacceptable, and it is clear that our government is not doing enough about it.

Check out your food bank's track record before donating:
http://www.charitynavigator.org /
http://www.charitywatch.org /
http://www.give.org


edited to add "LOCAL" and charity watch links

[OhioChick]

4. Thanks for posting...

K&R

[Stuart G]

19. We really need to keep this problem in a place where we are aware of it

It is ongoing, today, and will get worse. Let us not forget those who have nothing to eat.

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

5. It's prone to happening when the money banks run out of money. n/t

[Stuart G]

6. I thought about this...got some food for the local food pantry...ours,is

located in the back rooms of a local government office.(three blocks from where I live)
.. Closed today for Veteran's Day.. I'll drop it off tomorrow when it is open.............

..Do you know where your local pantry is?..

[Stuart G]

7. Here is the location and address in Skokie Illinois...let's list as many as we can...

Niles Township Government office
5255 Lincoln Ave in
Skokie,Illinois 60077



For info on this location...hit this link they really need food..:

http://www.nilestownshipgov.org/modules.php?name=Content&pa=showpage&pid=7

[renie408]

8. Second Harvest Food Bank, Charlotte, NC

500 Spratt St # B
Charlotte, NC 28206
[phone]

[babydollhead]

9. greater pittsburgh food bank

had volunteers ready to come help sort/ deliver food. They had to cancel because THERE IS NO FOOD.

[crickets]

10. Food Bank Checklist

Courtesy of ColbertWatcher from another thread:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=4206119&mesg_id=4214889

The entire thread is a great read for the ideas and discussion posted there.

[ColbertWatcher]

22. Thank you for remembering!

I try to post every Friday, and I will include the link in the OP for this week's thread!

[SammyWinstonJack]

11. K&R

[siligut]

12. Thank you for this.

If you can, food banks need pasta, dried beans and other dried legumes. If you can find them with the spice/meat flavor packet inside these are the most liked. They also like canned fruits and vegetables and peanut butter. Also someone posted about carnation evaporated milk being much better than dried milk.

[Sabriel]

13. I was at our local one last week. Very bare.

I'm taking some stuff in today, since creamed corn and pineapple were the special buy this week.

The heating season has starting, so once again folks will make the choice between heat and food.

The school I partner with for work has gone from 25% Free/Reduced Lunch to more than 60% in the last few years. And the demographics haven't changed at all.

Many kids there often get their two meals a day at the school. That's it. Very scary.

[shireen]

14. i don't understand why the press does not cover this often enough!

they should print stories like this over and over and over till it ends!

[Stuart G]

15. The press doesn't care..The media doesn't care..Government doesn't care.

But we must care.......This is our country, not theirs.

[shireen]

17. you're right

:hug:

[Stuart G]

18. We must stick together..

tomorrow, maybe a dollar or two, or a couple of cans for the food bank...Please...

[Stuart G]

20. I just came back from our local food pantry..

I talked to the person in charge..Very sad, not enough food, and too many coming in for help. I dropped off some food and then made a donation in cash. I live in a middle class suburb about 4 miles away from Chicago. I was told that the biggest problem is convincing people in the community that there is a problem. Many feel that there is no poverty here.

Please think about this...Pantries need food now...
..Thanks for reading this..
..............Stuart.

[ColbertWatcher]

21. Thank you for posting this!

For the last few Fridays I've been posting a reminder, but I never included a link to a news story about food banks.

Nice to know some in the media are paying attention!

[pointblank]

23. I took up a collection at my work last week

I collected $50 and did the shopping myself; Got about five paper bags full of some good food from the local Shop and Save! (canned pasta with meat, hearty soups, PBJ, granola bars, helthy snacks personal items)

...most people seem more apt to give if someone else is doing the legwork.

I plan on doing a collection about every 2-3 weeks and posting some articles about the food banks going bare on the wall, next to the notice, to promote awareness.

[Stuart G]

24. We need to deal with this daily.

This problem involves people starving on a daily bases. A reminder here cannot hurt..

[ColbertWatcher]

25. I post a Food Bank thread every Friday. n/t