Simple Ways to Help Reduce Food Disparities Within Your Community

There are over 42 million Americans (13 of which are children) who suffer from food insecurities (according to Feeding America). The pie chart below (from the USDA) shows the different types of food-insecure households that exist in the U.S. today.

As the president of Have Hope Ministries, I frequently hear stories from individuals about the difficult choices they have to make when they are forced to decide between food or medicine for the month, the struggles they face when their applications for food stamps but are denied because they make just more than the income guidelines state.  I also know from personal experience what it is like being told, “Sorry, we can’t help you. You make $125 too much.” It was only because of our church and family that we made it through these rough times.

I created Have Hope Ministries, to fight hunger in our communities, and to help individuals and families who are facing these struggles. But, you don’t need to start a non-profit in order to help your community.  There are simple things you can do every day to help fight hunger in your community.

Some things each of us can do without much effort:

1. Donate to your local food bank.
2. When checking out at the store, round up your bill to help fight hunger.
3. Donate food to a little food pantry.
4. Donate to a soup kitchen.
5. Support charities that help fight hunger, like Have Hope Ministries.
6. Create a fundraiser on social media for a local charity that fights hunger.

If you are looking to get more involved in fighting hunger, you might want to consider becoming more involved by:

1. Volunteering at your local food bank.
2. Volunteering at other charities whose mission is to fight hunger.
3. Sitting on the board of a charity.
4. Joining a fundraising committee of a charity.
5. Partnering with a charity to fundraise.
6. Starting your own little food pantry.
7. Starting your own charity that helps fight hunger.

Now that you know some simple ways to help fight hunger, I challenge you to do something small (daily or at least weekly).  If everyone works together, we can reduce food disparities and have ONE LESS person experiencing hunger.