Upcoming Events
Benefits
12/14: Coventry
The Knights of Columbus, Snake Hill Road. Bring non-perishable food donations
from 7 p.m. until 1 a.m. with portions of the proceeds benefiting Connecticut Food Bank.
12/15: Clinton
"Feast For Your Ears", a holiday concert by jazz quartet Marcel and Magnifique at
7:30 p.m. at the Andrews Memorial Auditorium. Advance tickets are $14 for adults; $6 for seniors and children. A portion of proceeds benefit
CFB.
12/14/07-12/31/07: New Haven
At Easter Seals of New Haven’s Fantasy of Lights, Fridays & Saturdays,
December 14-15, 21-22, 28-29 (5-10 p.m.) are food drive nights! Bring non-perishable food items to benefit Connecticut Food Bank. Lighthouse
Point Park, Lighthouse Road.
Ongoing
Through 12/22/07
Zemels TV & Appliance at 67 Newtown Road in
the Berkshire Shopping Center, Danbury, is sponsoring a holiday food drive to benefit CT Food Bank. Donations will be accepted on Mon-Wed-Fri from
10:00am – 7:30pm and Tue-Thur-Sat from 10:00am – 5:00pm. Drop off is located in the reception area at the front of the store.
Through 12/24/07
Pepe's Pizzeria in New Haven and Fairfield will donate 5% of all Gift Card sales
to Connecticut Food Bank.
Through 1/31/08
Check Out Hunger at A&P Supermarkets throughout Connecticut. At the check-out line, grab a coupon and have $1, $3 or $5 added to
your grocery bill. All proceeds benefit CFB.
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CFB Happenings
Connecticut Food Bank offers its heartfelt thanks to all who made
this year's "Thanksgiving for All" food drive campaign a success. Many people came to our events throughout the region
to donate turkeys, non-perishable items, and cash to help feed people in need this holiday season and beyond. Nearly 250 volunteers
donated over 900 hours of their time to help us during our busiest season.
CFB appreciates the support of local media, supermarkets, organizations and businesses
for making the effort to get the word out about and provide locations for the food drives. Specifically, we would like to thank
WTNH, WDRC-FM, 99.1 WPLR, KC-101, WATR-AM, WELI, Star 99.9, Shaw's Supermarkets, ShopRite Supermarkets, Stop & Shop Supermarkets, Big Y
World Class Market, Mothers Against Drunk Driving, Bank of America, and Yale Athletics for sponsorship of the events put on to benefit our
organization and the more than 650 agencies that provide food to people in need.
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Food Distribution Days: On Monday and Tuesday before Thanksgiving, the agencies
Connecticut Food Bank serves in six of eight counties in the state came to our warehouses in East Haven, Waterbury and Fairfield to gather food to
distribute for Thanksgiving dinners. Member programs treated people in need in their communities
with the many frozen turkeys, fresh vegetables, and non-perishable items donated to CFB.
This Thanksgiving season, CFB was able to surpass 2006's number of turkeys with 25,298 collected. In
addition, 529,522 pounds of trimmings came in from donations and food drives, allowing us to provide an estimated 407,325 meals to people in need
during the holiday season.
We hope these numbers inspire you to give throughout the year, since the need remains constant beyond
Thanksgiving and the winter holidays.
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Hunger in the News
Farm Bill Stalls: In November, the Senate was unable
to end debate and move the Farm Bill along to a vote. At stake are improvements to food stamps and The Emergency Food Assistance
Program (TEFAP), which will increase households' buying power and help stock the shelves of food pantries around the country. America's Second
Harvest and the Food Research and Action Center (FRAC) both report that 35.5 million Americans have difficulty procuring full meals at some
point during the year. Congress reconvenes after a two-week recess during which Senate Agriculture Committee Chairperson Tom Harkin promised he
would work at building a consensus to move the bill forward.
Food Insecurity Remains Steady: According to World Hunger Year,
the USDA reports that the number of households experiencing food insecurity remained virtually unchanged from 2005 to 2006, from 11% to 10.9%.
The latest report shows that 12.6 million households in the United States had difficulty providing enough food to family members at some point during
the year. Also, FRAC reports that between 2000 and 2006, Connecticut has seen a 0.6% increase in food insecurity. The USDA's
survey reveals that 98% of hungry households worried that food would run out before money came in and 94% did not eat balanced meals.
To get the full report, check out the USDA's
website.
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Beyond Thanksgiving
A Unique Food Drive: This is the time of year that lights spring up around
the region as folks watch the days grow shorter and the many winter celebrations approach. That House in Milford, which in recent
years has seen its lights display grow and garner media attention, is using that attention to benefit Connecticut Food Bank.
This year, owner Chris Donnells is running a Virtual Food Drive on his website, which
features his display and how he puts it together. Their goal is to reach $2,000 in food and cash donations. Santa Fuel will match 10% of
all donations up to $200. To donate to the virtual food drives and directions to the light display, head to the links above.
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Get Interactive
Join the Food Force: Parents, guardians, and educators, check this
out! Last month, we showed you HungerBanquet.org's interactive project to teach about how food insecurity affects individuals
worldwide. This issue features an online game that will put you in the shoes of food aid providers. The United Nations'
World Food Programme presents Food
Force, which leads your child on a mission to provide aid - surveying via helicopter; creating diets, routes and food
procurement plans; and helping people rebuild their communities. The website also features lessons for teachers and the hard facts about
the real places that experience the difficulties portrayed in the game.
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