Second Harvest: Hunger Action Month

By Lois Rockhill

September is Hunger Action Month. Activities throughout the nation will focus on taking action to end hunger or to mobilize energy and resources around ways individuals, churches, clubs, businesses and organizations can make a difference for hungry people in their communities.

Here in east central Indiana, Second Harvest Food Bank is focusing on Sept. 17. We want everyone to come over to our new place for a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 4:30 p.m. and then stay for tours and Dinner on the Dock at 6 p.m. Be ready for a big announcement about our capital campaign.

But that’s not all we have going on that day.

Beginning at 1 p.m., we will have three educational sessions geared to the pantries and other programs we serve. We are tying our annual agency conference in with the festivities and inviting all who are interested to participate.

At 1 p.m., we will consider whether it will be better or worse in our region in the next four or five years for low-income residents. Dr. Eric Kelly is our presenter. He is a planner, lawyer and professor of urban planning at Ball State University. Eric was appointed to the Indiana Land Resources Council in 1999. He consults on planning issues with local governments around the country and was recently elected chairman of the six-member Muncie-Delaware County Government Reorganization Committee.

Pantries continue to report increasing numbers of people requesting food assistance. What will the future hold for already strained charities? What must we consider as we think about building capacity to sustain and increase service? We look forward to Eric’s predictions.

The second session at 2 p.m. will be led by Erin Rockhill. Erin will introduce the national hunger study that will be in full-force early next year. She is director of agency relations and program development at Second Harvest Food Bank. She coordinated the 1997 hunger study while serving as an AmeriCorps volunteer with Second Harvest. She also oversaw the 2006 study as a staff member. Erin serves on the national Feeding America Advisory Council for the upcoming study.

The national hunger study orchestrated by Feeding America has a tremendous impact on federal legislation. The data describes the lives of people using local food assistance programs in terms of income, employment, health and family makeup. These studies have put a face on hunger and helped communities understand what low-income residents are up against. We will utilize volunteers from each county to visit pantries and kitchens to conduct 15- to 20-minute interviews with clients. The results will come back to us in national, state and regional reports.

Lois Altman will present the final session, and it will be all about food. Lois is currently an associate and assistant professor in the Department of Family and Consumer Sciences at Ball State University. Her experience as a pastry chef, and the owner of Menu Classics in Indianapolis, as well as her degree from the Culinary Institute of America, should assure all that her contribution to this session will be both informative and tasty. Lois will tackle the Second Harvest Food Bank inventory and present agency attendees with ideas for and tastes of nutritious menus.

Everyone is invited to these special sessions. There is no fee to attend. Please plan to stay for the ribbon-cutting and join us for Dinner on the Dock. Lois, along with area chefs, has come up with our dinner menu. You can expect corn chowder shooters, mini pasta salads, Caribbean grilled ham with mango sauce, potato/cauliflower gratinee, fruit mousse cones with brownie bites, caramel bread pudding with warm apples and more. Remember, no cost, casual, open to all, but please call to reserve your seats! (765) 287-8698 ext. 100. Find a map to our place at www.curehunger.org.

Lois Rockhill is executive director of Second Harvest Food Bank of East Central Indiana. She can be reached at lrockhill@curehunger.org.

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