Katharine McPhee at Houston Summer Feeding Site
Via Press Release:
Musician Katharine McPhee Concludes U.S. Hunger-Free Summer Initiative for Kids by Visiting Houston Summer Feeding Site for Low Income Children
The Problem: Nationwide
During the school year, 19.5 million children receive free and reduced-price meals at school. But during the summer months, only 2.2 million children participate in the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Summer Food Service Program (SFSP).
Texas
New state-level data on child food insecurity revealed Texas is rated number-two in the country for the child food insecurity, at a rate of nearly 25 percent. Last year, Texas was rated number-one in the country with than 22 percent. In Houston and southeast Texas, 865,000 individuals need assistance with food each year. In addition, one in four children in Harris County live at or below poverty level.
The Solution: This summer, the ConAgra Foods Foundation and Feeding America worked together to help ensure all children have access to nutritious meals year round by launching Hunger-Free Summer, a five-year program with a goal to provide at least
25 percent more meals for children struggling with hunger during the summer through innovative food programs across the nation.
ConAgra Foods Foundation donated $5 million to Feeding America over five years to fund the initiative. This summer alone, 23 food banks received funding, including the Houston Food Bank, to champion the fight against child hunger by developing new approaches to increase awareness of the problem and access to services that can help.
ConAgra Foods Foundation and Feeding America partnered with singer and Feeding America Entertainment Council member Katharine McPhee. McPhee kicked off the Hunger-Free Summer initiative earlier this summer in Orlando and has since traveled across the country volunteering her time, raising awareness for the cause and singing with the children served by the centers. The program will conclude in Houston at one of the Houston Food Bank’s summer feeding sites, LINC Houston.
For more information, please visit www.conagrafoodsfoundation.org/summer
or www.feedingamerica.org/hungerfreesummer.
About Feeding America
Feeding America provides low-income individuals and families with the fuel to survive and even thrive. As the nation's leading domestic hunger-relief charity, our network members supply food to more than 37 million Americans each year, including 14 million children and 3 million seniors. Serving the entire United States, more than 200 member food banks support 61,000 agencies that address hunger in all of its forms. For more information on how you can fight hunger in your community and across the country, visit. Find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/FeedingAmericaor follow our news on Twitter at www.twitter.com/FeedingAmerica.
About ConAgra Foods Foundation
The ConAgra Foods Foundation, through its Nourish Today, Flourish Tomorrow platform, is dedicated to raising awareness of the nearly 17 million children in America who are at risk of hunger and don't have enough food to live active, healthful lives. It aggressively pursues sustainable solutions in the fight against child hunger. And the Foundation is committed to building a community of people who are passionate about ensuring that all kids have access to the food and facts they need to eat nutritiously while living balanced lifestyles and succeeding in school and life. ConAgra Foods Foundation invests in national and local partnerships with high-impact, not-for-profit organizations, such as Feeding America, that take an innovative approach to addressing needs in the core areas of hunger and nutrition education. For more information, please visit www.conagrafoodsfoundation.org or www.facebook.com/ConAgraFoodsFoundation. The ConAgra Foods Foundation is funded solely by ConAgra Foods.
About Houston Food Bank
The Houston Food Bank is the largest source of free and low-cost food for hungry people in 18 southeast Texas counties. A network of 400 charities, feeding a total of 80,000 people each week, receives more than 46 million pounds of food and prepared meals annually. Fresh produce, meat and nonperishables are distributed from Herzstein Center, a 73,000 square-foot warehouse, and hot meals are prepared and distributed from Keegan Center, a 15,000 square-foot industrial kitchen. Additional community services range from nutrition education to assistance with food stamp applications and hands-on job training. Red Barrels offer a convenient way for grocery shoppers to donate nonperishables for their neighbors in need. The Houston Food Bank, founded in 1982, is a certified member of Feeding America, the nation’s food bank network. The organization plans to grow to an annual distribution of 120 million pounds of food by 2018. For more information, please visit www.houstonfoodbank.org.
