We’ve hit a huge milestone for growing, rescuing and distributing food – This milestone also includes thousands of hours teaching our community to grow and cook their own food, as we seek to eradicate the roots of poverty that bring hungry neighbors to pantry doors.
But back to these big numbers...exactly how much is 10 million pounds? A number that large can be difficult to visualize for many people. The rocket that brought mankind to the moon in 1969 weighed just under seven million pounds. Here are a few things that weigh ten million pounds:
· 25 blue whales, the largest animal on earth
· 24 commercial airplanes
· 125 fully loaded semi-trucks
… and the number that matters most to us, 8,300,000 meals for hungry neighbors in the last year alone!
Thanks to the support of community members like you, who worked in the fields, ran food drives, donated needed funds, or drove trucks for delivery, Inter-Faith Food Shuttle distributed 10,000,000 pounds of food, or 8,300,000 meals, to hungry neighbors in the last year alone! Did you know that volunteers provide 40% of our labor needs? Volunteers power us forward.
This food is not just any food. We believe our neighbors deserve access to fresh, nutritious, culturally appropriate meals. Our innovative approach to fighting hunger allows us to address the root causes of food insecurity in addition to distributing food to provide for immediate needs. We’re bringing garden beds directly to homes with our Gardens for Everyone program, providing pathways to better health through our Community Health programs, and helping people find food close to home to promote more stability in life.
This is a milestone worth celebrating, and we could not have reached it without the help of our volunteers, donors, and other community partners. One of the Food Shuttle’s greatest assets is the diversity of its supporters. We all have something unique to contribute to this effort, and we are at our best when we collaborate, learn from one another, and work together. So, what does it take to get 10 million pounds of food into the hands of our hungry neighbors?
· 27,033 volunteer hours
· 54 dedicated staff members
· 2 local community gardens
· 1 Food Shuttle Farm
· 41 school operating pantries
· 1,043,531 neighbors served
· 7 counties served
These numbers represent a wide variety of people, programs, and communities all coming together to reach a common goal. Much like the largeness of figures like 10,000,000 pounds, the problem of food insecurity can feel overwhelming without enough hands. Thank you for lending your hands and support to make this incredible milestone possible. Hunger is a massive problem, but together we can make a difference.