Talk about taking action, more than 400 people just rode thousands of bike-miles to benefit the Vermont Foodbank. (I rode 25 miles and had a blast.) The fundraising window is still open, but close to $75,000 has been raised already. There isn’t a bike-ride fundraiser every day, nor is bike riding for everyone, so what action will you take to help end hunger?
September is national “Hunger Action Month.” Food banks and their supporters all across the country will be challenging themselves and others to take action to end hunger. If you listen to Cash Man, the hunger fighting superhero (www.CashFeedsMore.org) one of the most productive ways to fight hunger is donate cash to your local food shelf, feeding site or food bank. In the words of Cash Man:
There is no such thing as a bad donation, but cash is so much more effective than cans that it just makes sense to donate cash. Watch the Cash Man Rap video for a humorous, musical explanation!
But cash, while put to excellent use and very much appreciated, is not the only way to take action. The Vermont Foodbank’s Fall Newsletter (http://vermontdev2.wpengine.com/press_room/newsletter/ ) has a calendar list “30 ways in 30 days” to take action to end hunger. Hold a food drive (despite what “Cash Man” says), write your local paper or legislator about hunger in your community, volunteer.
Consider this: if you take action this month, next month, and the month after that, we are one step closer to ending hunger in Vermont and the nation.
Help transform a life. Take action against hunger.
“Justice” feels like a big word these days, no matter what word precedes it: food, health, racial, economic, migrant, equal . . . I could go on. In digging into the meaning of “justice,” I am left unsatisfied because the definitions and descriptions feel subjective and kind of squishy.
For the first time in a long time, I’m feeling optimistic. The American Rescue Plan Act (ARP), passed by Congress and signed on March 11 by President Biden, brings much needed support to families hit hard economically by the pandemic.
As we wake up to another morning of news about demonstrations across the country, it’s time for all of us to make sure our voices are raised for racial justice. As CEO for the Vermont Foodbank my “lane” is hunger and food security.
