Skip Lunch, Fight Hunger: How you can make a difference, with City Harvest
NEW YORK -- ABC7NY is partnering with City Harvest to get out the word about a way we can all contribute, and fight hunger in our area.
Below is information from City Harvest about the "Skip Lunch Fight Hunger" campaign, and how you can take part.
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The Skip Lunch Fight Hunger Campaign, Running from May 13 - 17,
Invites Corporate Teams and Individuals to Help City Harvest
Rescue and Deliver Enough Food to Feed 50,000 Children in Need This Summer
New York, NY - March 14, 2019 - City Harvest, New York City's largest food rescue organization, is challenging New Yorkers to raise $1.1 million to help feed New York City's children and their families through its annual fundraising campaign, Skip Lunch Fight Hunger. The campaign runs from May 13 - 17, 2019.
Almost half of all households in New York City don't earn enough to afford basic needs, despite the majority having at least one member who works full time. Unlike fixed expenses, such as rent and transportation, a grocery budget is flexible-it can be cut back on when families need to stretch their dollar. The consequence of not having flexibility with other expenses is that families confronted with high costs in other areas, such as housing, end up food insecure. One in five children across the five boroughs don't always know where their next meal is coming from, and many rely on free school breakfasts and lunches as the only healthy meals they will get during the day. As a result, families that are already struggling to make ends meet face the additional hurdle of having to provide these meals for their children when school is out for the summer.
Skip Lunch Fight Hunger was created in 2002 by Dana Cowin, City Harvest Board and Food Council member and former editor-in-chief of Food & Wine magazine. To date, the campaign has raised more than $9 million.
"I founded Skip Lunch Fight Hunger on the principle that even a small donation can make a big difference," said Dana Cowin. "As a New Yorker, and a mom, I felt compelled to take action and address the fact that so many children in our city don't know where their next meal is coming from. By donating what you would normally spend on lunch, you're helping City Harvest ensure that children and their families across New York City have the nutritious food they need to thrive. Just $15 helps feed more than 60 kids for a day."
"I've been living in the Bronx with my husband and daughter for about 8 years now, and everything is getting more expensive," said Emily, a mother living in the Bronx who works full-time as a clerk in a tax office in Manhattan. "They just raised my rent double. I live paycheck to paycheck. I don't get food stamps, I'm not on welfare. I just work. City Harvest is a big help and important for my daughter because she loves fruit and is always eating vegetables."
Thousands of New Yorkers participate in Skip Lunch Fight Hunger each year. Companies including Citi and Blackstone compete against each other to raise the most money, and teams devise creative ways to fundraise, including organizing bake sales in their offices, encouraging employees to donate at the cafeteria cash register, and hosting luncheons in their workplaces to raise awareness. Those who give $45 or more online before May 31 will receive a special thank you voucher from Pret A Manger in June.
Individuals can visit www.cityharvest.org/skiplunch to join or lead a team, and to make donations online. Funds raised from the campaign will directly support City Harvest's efforts to rescue 61 million pounds of nutritious food that would otherwise go to waste and deliver it to hundreds of soup kitchens and food pantries across the five boroughs that serve families in need year round.
Skip Lunch Fight Hunger is generously sponsored by BlackRock, Blackstone, Citi, CME Group, KPMG, Krasdale Foods with CTown and Bravo supermarkets, London Stock Exchange Group Foundation, and Pret A Manger.
About City Harvest
City Harvest is New York City's largest food rescue organization, helping to feed the more than 1.2 million New Yorkers who are struggling to put meals on their tables. We will rescue 61 million pounds of food this year and deliver it, free of charge, to hundreds of food pantries, soup kitchens and other community partners across the five boroughs. Our programs help food-insecure New Yorkers access nutritious food that fits their needs and desires; increase our partners' capacity; and strengthen the local food system, building a path to a food-secure future for all New Yorkers. To learn more about our work, visit CityHarvest.org.
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