Join us for Hunger Action Day, February 25 in Olympia

Hunger Action Day is only a week away!
Register now

During each legislative session, the Anti-Hunger & Nutrition Coalition hosts Hunger Action Day in Olympia to advocate for hungry families in Washington. The Seattle Food Committee is represented on the steering committee of the Coalition and helps coordinate Hunger Action Day, so we are encouraging our supporters to join us in Olympia on February 25 to engage our legislators in the fight to end hunger in Washington.

This year’s Hunger Action Day is especially important as the state’s budget crisis will result in the elimination or significant reductions of critical services that help struggling families meet their basic needs, like keeping food on the table. One in seven households in Washington struggled to provide enough food for their family in 2010. Washington now ranks as the thirteenth hungriest state in the nation, and the problem of hunger in our communities will continue to grow unless we speak out.

Register today and join us in Olympia on February 25th—the success of our efforts in Olympia rely on your voices and the voices of those we serve being heard! Help us spread the word! Tell your friends, family and co-workers.

For more information on HAD2011, click here for the event info packet.

See you in Olympia!

Highlights from the 2010 Mayor's End Hunger Awards

Last month, over 140 representatives from food banks and meal programs across the city gathered together to share a meal and honor those who have made an extraordinary commitment to alleviating hunger in our community. Mayor Michael McGinn presented awards to six community heroes.

We present to you this year's Mayor's End Hunger Award Recipients!



Eliana Madwed, OPERATION: Sack Lunch
Community Volunteer (Meal Program)
Eliana collected donations for OSL instead of presents for her 13th birthday.



Rachael Bigham, Ballard Food Bank
Community Volunteer (Food Bank)
Rachael contributed original works of art to the Ballard Food Bank and North Helpline's new facilities.



Mark Your Calendars: St. Vincent de Paul's 3rd Annual "Friends of the Poor Walk"

Check out this great opportinity to help St. Vincent de Paul's food bank and the other vital services they provide:

Join tens of thousands of caring people in more than 100 cities across the country in St. Vincent de Paul's Friends of the Poor Walk on Saturday, September 25th at Kennedy High School in Burien. Enjoy fun and music and get some excercise while helping to raise funds and awareness for those in need. All funds donated will be used by local St. Vincent de Paul volunteers to prevent evictions, hunger, utility shut-offs and more.

For more information and to register, click here

Seattle Food Banks Hit the Road for the 2010 SFC Van Tour

Running a food bank can be a chaotic job. Between keeping food on the shelves, managing volunteers, and serving the ever-growing numbers of hungry community members, food bank staff rarely have a free moment to pause and check out the work being done by their neighbors, as well as consider the possibilities for change and innovation for their own programs. That is why once a year, in August, the Seattle Food Committee gathers for the SFC Van Tour to visit a handful of local food banks. We learn about their successes and challenges, see how they deliver services, and get to know eachother a bit better.

This year was as full and inspiring as ever. With 50 attendees, it would more accurately be called a caravan than a tour. We visited 5 food banks, all of which were operating out of new facilities (either new locations or remodeled spaces). No two food banks were alike, and they all offered unique ideas and inspiration for participants to take back to their own programs.

The 2010 SFC Van Tour sites included:

Ballard Food Bank

VOA Greenwood Food Bank

North Helpline Food Bank

Jewish Family Service Food Bank

Spiritual Miracles Food Bank

Thanks to these 5 amazing programs for hosting and to all who joined us that day. We can't wait until next year!

The lovely photos in this post were provided by Julie Washburn, Executive Director of the Washington Food Coalition. To view her full album from the day click here

The Seattle Food Committee Plays it Safe, with Help from United Way

The basics of food safety seem simple enough. For example, we all know that we should wash our hands regularly and store and cook foods at proper temperatures. But for our local food banks and meal programs, often the topic of food safety can become much more complicated. How to take an accurate temperature reading of a walk-in cooler and what types of donated foods should be thrown out due to their high risk of contamination are just a couple of questions that food bank staff and volunteers must be able to answer on a daily basis. If they are incorrect they risk making their clients (many of whom are already in a vulnerable state due to homelessness or chronic health problems) very ill.

At the Seattle Food Committee's Food Safety Information Fair, which took place on June 21st, King County food bank and meal program staff and volunteers had the opportunity to brush up on their food safety knowledge and get all of their questions answered by a group of local food safety experts.

Also, thanks to a generous donation from United Way of King County, they left with some great supplies to help them maintain safe food handling practices at their programs. Thermometers, spray bottles for sanitizing solution, food safe containers, and more!

It was a great day. Thanks to all who presented and participated, and THANK YOU UNITED WAY for equipping food banks and meal programs to better and more safely serve those in need!

Spotlight on Providence Regina House Food Bank in South Park!

The Providence Regina House Food Bank is an amazing program helping to meet the needs of the South Park Community, and recently they have been receiving lots of press!

Food Bank Manager Paige Collins has been selected as a finalist for the Brotherton Community Champion Award. If she wins the award Paige will receive $5,000 to help her to better serve families in need. Please take a moment to vote for Paige and the Providence Regina House Food Bank, and also watch the fabulous short film about her.
Click here to vote.

Also, a volunteer and client of Providence Regina House has graciously shared the story of his struggle and how it has led him to rely on the food bank. You can find it featured on the Feeding America Blog. It's an eye-opening read and a testament to the fact that there are many faces of hunger, as well as to the vital importance of our local food banks.

SFC Members Help Solid Ground "Strike Out Hunger"!

On March 27th, 150 folks came out to the Solid Ground Strike Out Hunger Bowl-a-thon to benefit Food Security for Children, a program that helps Seattle Food Banks serve low-income families with young children by supplying them with nutritious foods and essential baby supplies. The event was a smashing success with over $12,500 raised.

Thanks to Seattle Food Committee Team "Legion of Chaos" for their fundraising efforts and for lending their awesome energy to the cause!




To find out more about the Food Security for Children Program, click here