Feed America First
“Hunger is a local problem,”said Tom Henry, executive director of Feed America First. “If we refuse to allow our neighbors to go hungry then hunger will cease in America.”
Feed America First, a non-profit relief agency headquartered in Franklin; partnering with Feed the Children, a Christian non-profit relief agency headquartered in Oklahoma, with a warehouse in Nashville; and the Nashville Family Church ministry OneGenAway hosted a food distribution Tuesday in the parking lot of the old CPA warehouse on Columbia Avenue.
About 300 families showed up to receive a 25-lb. box of non-perishable food, a 15-lb. box of personal care items and paper products and a 5-lb. bonus box donated by Avon, a partner with Feed the Children. The remaining boxes were distributed to shut-ins who were unable to retrieve supplies.
Feed the Children has 320 trucks en route to 120 cities with the highest poverty and unemployment rates in America. Each truck has enough supplies for 400 families, said Suzanne Werdann, Feed the Children director of sports partners. The total value of all those supplies is between $35,000 and $45,000, but through Feed the Children partnerships, donations and bulk buying, churches and community organizations can sponsor an entire truckload of supplies for $7,200.
According to Whitney, neighbors helping neighbors is the most effective way to get things done. Local agencies know who needs help and personal interaction accomplishes more than a check.
“The face of hunger is a single mom, the elderly, the infirm, and grandparents raising babies,” Henry said. “People make choices – food, rent, prescriptions. With this event they have a chance to pay the rent and not miss a meal. This is an opportunity to be the hands and feet of Jesus.”
The needy are just people – they have the same dreams, the same desires, but their circumstances are different and their needs aren’t just once a year; they need consistency, Whitney explained. Click here to read more.
