Feeding the World on World Food Day

Did you know that one in eight people goes to sleep hungry? Hunger is not an issue I take lightly.

Last year my good friend, Jill Smokler, over at ScaryMommy.com, involved me in media coverage of a campaign that she led on her site to raise money to provide 400 needy families with Thanksgiving dinner. During this process, I discovered that last year, 17.2 million households in the United States were food insecure, the highest level on record, as the Great Recession continued to wreak havoc on families across the country. Of those 17.2 million households, 3.9 million included children.

Soon after that, my kids and I headed to a local food pantry led by The Larchmont-Mamaroneck Hunger Task Force. Twice a month they collect over 7,500 items of food. Some of it is donated through local food drives, and the rest is purchased from The Food Bank for Westchester, and from a food wholesaler. Then they sort it before distributing to hundreds of local families who need it most, including homebound seniors.

It’s easy to get your kids involved, it’s important for them to understand that there are less fortunate people on this earth and in the world.

World Food Day has been held every October 16, the day that the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) was founded in 1945 to help those who don’t have enough to eat? Around the world, events and conferences this week are drawing international attention to ways that agricultural development can ease world hunger and malnutrition.

Once again I’m inspired by the ONE campaign to get up and make a difference, impacting change in a real way.

Today, ONE members will send a message to US leaders to make commitments to reduce chronic malnutrition for 25 million children. They want everyone to send a message at 12 PM ET/9 AM PT to tell leaders to put nutrition on the agenda.

Watch this video to find out more: