Food Finders Food Bank Joins Feeding America’s “Elevating Voices To End Hunger Together” Initiative

Food Finders Food Bank announced today its plans to join Feeding America’s initiative, Elevating Voices to End Hunger Together, an effort aimed to collect input from people facing food insecurity. Through Elevating Voices to End Hunger Together, the Feeding America nationwide network of food banks will engage in a variety of activities to reach people in community, listen and learn with the goal of co-creating solutions to be shared with the White House, which has set a goal to end hunger by 2030.

“As the nationwide network of food banks, food pantries and meal programs, Feeding America provides billions of meals to tens of millions of people each year,” said Vince Hall, chief government relations officer at Feeding America. “The network covers every county, borough and parish and Elevating Voices aims to amplify the power and voices of neighbors in need across the country. Feeding America believes that communities understand the solutions to their problems better than anyone, and we want to help surface those solutions to inform policies and programs to end hunger.”

Elevating Voices to End Hunger Together will connect directly with individuals and families with living or lived experience of food insecurity through 100 listening sessions, 10,000 questionnaires and 100,000 text message conversations. That data and insights will be published in a report later this summer by Feeding America. At the local level, Food Finders plans to host four listening sessions across its service area in the coming weeks. There will be options for all local people facing hunger to participate through questionnaires and text surveys distributed through the food bank and their agency partner’s direct service programs now through the end of August.

“It has been more than 50 years since the first and only White House Conference on Food, Nutrition and Health. That event influenced the country’s food policy agenda for the next 50 years,” said Kier Crites Muller, Chief Engagement Officer at Food Finders Food Bank. “We are thrilled that the Administration is turning the spotlight onto the issues of hunger and health across American and even more so to offer our neighbors an opportunity to share their lived experiences in an effort to shape future policy,” says Muller.

Earlier in May, the White House announced that it will host a conference on hunger, nutrition, and health this September aimed at ending hunger, reducing diet-related disease, and increasing physical activity. Food Finders shares Feeding America’s intent to focus Elevating Voices to End Hunger Together using the guiding principles that put the people facing hunger at the center, with solutions grounded in preserving their dignity and agency.

Upcoming Listening Sessions

· Tippecanoe County

Thursday, July 14, 11 am – 12:30 pm

FFFB Food Resource & Education Center

1204 Greenbush Street, Lafayette, IN 47901

Second Session – August, TBD

· White County

Monon Community Church

Monday, July 25, 5 pm

530 West Broadway, Monon, IN 47959

· Warren County

Williamsport Public Library

Thursday, July 27, 11 am – 12:30 pm

28 E 2nd St, Williamsport, IN 47993

· Howard County – August, TBD

· Miami County – August, TBD

Reservations to attend a listening session are required. Space is limited to 10 attendees per listening session, attendees will be compensated for their time. Additional sessions may be added if there is demand. Those who would like to participate should call 765-471-0062 to RSVP.

To learn more about Food Finder’s local hunger-relief efforts and get involved, visit food-finders.org