Broward and Palm beach counties could be affected
Now when we drill down to our local neighborhoods of Broward and Palm beach counties, according to feeding South Florida there are 455,700 people suffering from food insecurities as of August 2020. And of that number, almost 30% of them are children. So over 35,000 kids that will be dealing with hunger in our very own neighborhood!
In the past, school was a way to feed these children and weekends were when they had to deal with hunger. Before that Monday, they could barely concentrate on homework much less have energy for play. But now, how will these children deal with education from home if they don’t have a steady supply of healthy balanced meals? How can anyone live a healthy and productive life? This is why the local communitie must come together for them! By helping out those less fortunate within the neighborhood, everyone can insure a better future for that community.
... 18 million of them children!
Being food insecure in America happens because there are days that the money simply runs out before the next SNAP payment kicks in. Before Covid-19, 37 Million people were struggling to get by on stagnant wages or underemployment, while fighting the rising costs of living according to the Feeding America network. Of this group, approximately 11 million children were going hungry every day. After Covid-19 it is estimated to jump to 54 million and 18 million of them children by the end of 2020.
According to the Northwestern institute for policy research, food Insecurity has tripled for families with children! In part this is because of their loss to subsidized school meals that were a large factor in meeting kids’ basic food needs. By the end of April, more than one in five households in the United States, and two in five households with mothers with children 12 and under, were food insecure. The Hamilton Project COVID Impact Survey also confirms this. According to an ongoing Marketplace-Edison Research Poll, about 69% of the American workforce is either unemployed or feared losing their jobs in the next 12 months after Covid-19 hit. A stark contrast to only a few months before when unemployment was down to a 50-year low of 3.5%.
Snap has increased benefits by 40% as of April 22. However, in Florida 846,443 people did not receive the aid because they were already at the cap which is for a family of five with no income $768 monthly. That’s only $156 per family member. For these children, nutrition is so important for their healthy development and there is no excuse, we must help our local children during this pandemic.
Acie explains what the face of hunger in America looks like and the effect it has on its young students. As an educator of health and wellness, he is aware of the challenges that food insecurities can pose on these young children. He is committed to bringing about awareness of this plight and looks forward to helping us end hunger in his local community. Your help is also needed in what ever capacity you can, so please click the link below to help your neighbours in need.
In America Is Not Easy To Recognize
The Great Depression, produced many millions of poor that were seen roaming the city streets and alleys by the hundreds in search of food and handouts. Soup lines were long and their faces even longer from the effects of malnutrition and fatigue from fighting off the looming threat of starvation.
Fortunately, in modern America Hunger has been much less severe than what victims back in the 1930’s experienced. Thanks to the creation in 1939 of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), severe food deprivation was halted for good and the face of hunger in America was no longer emaciated and tired looking. In fact, before Covid-19 it is most likely overweight due to a diet high in carbohydrates and sugars. Obesity is a completely different pandemic (and a great cost on our health care system) which we might touch on in the future, but for now, the poor are not dying of starvation. They are what is termed as “Food Deprived”.
By Dorothea Lange - An impoverished American family living in a shanty, 1936
This year we aim to help eliminate the worry and stress that our local children feel because they were not sure where their next meal will be coming from. We are confident that the nutrition and peace of mind that these unfortunate children will receive from these meals will help them not only to stay healthy, but to have a better chance to prosper. They will be able to focus on learning instead of worrying. No one can dispute that in the long run they will have a better chance of becoming more productive members of society than without our help. A good educated is the best chance they have to leave the life of poverty. This in turn will ultimately contribute to the well being of our neighbours, the community as a whole.
So recapping all these numbers, and stats, the poor in this country receive just enough to not starve, however not enough to live healthy productive lives. It is easy to point the finger, but ultimately it is up to the residents to help out those less fortunate within their neighbourhoods… if only to assure a better future for all living there.
Our solution is to provide them with nutritionally balanced meals at the lowest cost possible and with out compromising the quality. At this moment one dollar will buy three meals thanks to our partnership with Bridges to Neighbors. They will be coaching all our volunteers on how to pack these whole food ingredients into meal packets that will then be distributed to the local kids. To see more about this food packing process click here. If you live in south Fl, please don’t forget to donate your time here and if possible contribute some meals for the local food packing event as well here. It’s not just for them, but for all of us. Let’s send them the message that we care and want them to stand strong and proud.
Click here to listen to the story of a BFL employee who as a student receiving food assistance during the weekends. This first hand testimonial lets you see how an important roll it played in her ability to go through her school years with out fear of food insecurity. Hunger does exist and through her story you can see how it was like to receive these meals from a Childs prospective. Now that she is grown up, she asks herself, the questions we should all be asking, “what if the food was not available”. Well it won’t be unless we all continue to take acton. How can afford to not help these children?
Together For Them
4690 North State Road, 7 Unit 109A
Coconut Creek, Fl 33073
(954) 532-4174
Together For Them is a US nonprofit corporation and has applied for 501 (c)(3) status with the IRS.
EIN 83-4376130
100% of Donations received will go directly to the cause we are promoting! Donate Here
