How to Fight Hunger in Your Community
Right now, even as you read this, people in your community are fighting food insecurity. That means they aren’t getting access to enough nutritious food to feed themselves and their families adequately. Hunger and lack of access to nutritious foods can make it hard to live a happy, active, normal life. It can even contribute to diet-related health problems, including nutritional deficiencies, diabetes, heart disease, and obesity.
But what can you do to help fight hunger in your community? Actually, there’s a lot you can do to help your community members get access to nutritious food. If you have extra time or money to donate to the cause, you can help members of your community, including many children, to get access to the food they need to live healthy lives.
Set Up a Community Pantry or Fridge
A community fridge or pantry is a grassroots attempt to combat food insecurity in a community by making unopened food items available for free. A community pantry may be a small shed or wooden box filled by members of the community with non-perishable food items that anyone can take if they need to. A community fridge is similar, but contains perishable items that need to stay cold, and for that reason, a community fridge is usually kept outside a store or other local establishment where there is access to an electrical outlet to keep the fridge plugged in.
You can set up your own community pantry or fridge on your property, or you can contribute to one that already exists in your community. Search for community pantries near you and leave whatever food you can afford in one near you.
Organize or Participate in a Local Food Drive
Food drives collect food to give out at local food pantries, soup kitchens, school meal programs, and other events designed to help combat food insecurity. You can partner with your church, school, or place of employment to organize a food drive.
Start by contacting your local food bank to find out what items they need. If a major holiday is coming up, for example, your local food bank may need traditional holiday meal items to donate to those in need, so that they can prepare holiday meals for their families. Recruit other volunteers to help you collect, organize, and deliver the food.
Donate Goods or Money to Your Local Soup Kitchen
If you have extra money to donate towards fighting food insecurity in your community, consider donating goods or cash to your local food bank or soup kitchen, or to a charity like Meals on Wheels that helps fight food insecurity. If you’re going to donate goods, call the organization first to ask what is needed.
Food banks, soup kitchens, and other organizations often require supplies like trash bags and dishwashing liquid in addition to food. However, because these organizations typically get a discount on purchased food and supplies, it might be best to donate cash if you have it, or use donor advised funds to donate investment securities.
Volunteer Your Time and Talents to Local Organizations that Fight Food Insecurity
Local food pantries, soup kitchens, and mutual aid organizations often need volunteers to give their time and talents just as much as, or more than, they need money and food donations. If you have grant-writing, data-entry, or administrative support skills, you might be able to donate those skills to a local organization fighting food insecurity. At the very least, you can volunteer to deliver Meals on Wheels, to serve food at your local soup kitchen, or to distribute nutritious meals to school children on weekends and during school breaks.
Contact Your Representatives
Reach out to your local representatives to find out what they’re doing to fight food insecurity among their constituents, and to ask them to do more. Sign petitions and organize your community politically to show your representatives how important it is to make sure every member of your community is properly fed. Vote for candidates who are committed to helping food-insecure families get access to nutritious meals.
Educate Yourself
Learn more about the resources available in your community to people struggling with food insecurity. Know the food banks, soup kitchens, community pantries, and other food resources in the area. Familiarize yourself also with other resources, such as charities that help pay utility bills and other living expenses. If you find that someone in your community needs help, you’ll be better equipped to point them in the right direction.
Food insecurity is a big problem for a lot of people, but you can help. Do what you can to make a difference in your community. You’ll be surprised at how easy it is to help.
