Summer 2014
austinfoodbank.org
Bringing Everyone to the Table Summertime is a tough time for seniors, kids and families to put food on the table.
You Can Double Your Support for Christopher You can double your impact this summer, with the help of a generous donor!
Farm Bill Update 2014 Farm Bill includes new ways to connect SNAP recipients to healthy, sustainable food.
SPECIAL ISSUE
News from the Capital Area Food Bank of Texas
Bringing Everyone to the Table
Vara, a Food Bank Partner Agency client, is one of the many Central Texans you can bring to the table this summer. Summer in Central Texas is a time of change for local families. Flip flops are in, school is out and temperatures are on the rise. However, summer can also mean more families are struggling with hunger. With students no longer in school, children do not have access to free or reduced price lunch. Higher temperatures will raise electricity bills for seniors and families. All these changes mean that our Central Texas neighbors need help from the Food Bank, now more than ever. Neighbors like Vara rely on Capital Area Food Bank of Texas partners to make ends meet. A native Texan, Vara is long-time client of El Buen Samaritano, one of the Food Bank’s 300 Partner Agencies. In her 80 years, Vara has lived a rich and fascinating life. As a young woman, she became a model at a local department store in Houston to support her two daughters. “People say ‘oh you were a model!’ But all I was thinking was ‘I got to feed my kids and myself,” Vara said with a smile. “I was just a working mother.” For over 40 years, she was featured as a model and actress in catalogues and commercials for companies around the world. But Vara’s career was cut short when
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her health declined. For years, an allergy to cosmetics went undiagnosed and then, while working on the set of a film, she suffered a heart attack. Vara’s health problems not only limited her ability to work but also created the financial hardship she experiences today. Unfortunately, there are many older adults in our community that face similar challenges as Vara. One out of every seven seniors in Texas experiences hunger. Senior citizens are especially vulnerable to the physical and emotional stress of hunger. Inadequate access to nutritious food
affects their ability to maintain independent, healthy lifestyles. Payments for rent, utilities and medication often overshadow the need for a nutritious diet for many seniors living on a fixed or limited income. They are often forced to choose between paying for food or prescription drugs: a choice no one should have to make. According to research by Feeding America, between 2001 and 2011, the number of food insecure seniors more than doubled. This fact is even more troubling when data from the 2010 U.S. Census shows that during the
“It’s scary. I don’t know if I’m going to be able to buy food at the end of the month.” Vara, 80 years old El Buen Samaritano client
Staff at El Buen Samaritano, a Food Bank partner, providing support to clients. past decade, Austin’s small elderly population grew by 27 percent, twice the national rate. Today, more than one-third of the older adults served by the Capital Area Food Bank of Texas go extended periods without food. “There are some months when I’m not sure I will make it,” Vara said, referring to her limited budget. “Especially if I have a lot of medications.” Vara relies on the support of El Buen Samaritano’s food pantry to help her get groceries and stretch her budget. “It’s scary,” Vara said. “I don’t know if I’m going to be able to buy food at the end of the month.” There is a strong connection between poor health and food insecurity for the senior population, as indicated by a Feeding America study. Food insecurity is associated with increased risk of developing negative health conditions, such as diabetes, high blood pressure and asthma. Without access to healthy food, older adults facing food insecurity are at risk for health complications. The partnership with the Capital Area Food Bank of Texas is critical to making healthy food accessible to our neighbors in need. By working with corporate donors, community leaders and local government, the Food Bank provides a supply of fresh produce, healthy protein and other staples essential to a wellbalanced diet.
“Without the food pantry, I would be struggling to make it.”
Last year, the Food Bank distributed more than 8 million pounds of produce through our network of partners across the 21 county region. The healthy groceries provided through the Food Bank’s network means older adults like Vara can have access to nutritious food that they need to stay well. “I can get fresh produce and healthy food I can’t normally get,” Vara said. “Without the food pantry, I would be struggling to make it” But the summer is a critical time for everyone struggling with hunger in Central Texas, not just seniors. During the summertime, your neighbors are facing months of high electricity bills and families with children must stretch their budgets to provide more meals. The Food Bank is rising to the challenge with a bold goal to raise one million meals to meet the community’s need. When you support the Capital Area Food Bank, you make it possible for everyone who needs help to come to the table. Vara and Central Texans like her need help from the Food Bank to stay nourished and healthy. But we need your help. While the summer is the season when our clients need the most help, it is also the time when the Food Bank struggles to raise food and fund donations to meet this demand. We need your support now, more than ever, to
keep our neighbors healthy and nourished. Reflecting on her experience with El Buen Samaritano, Vara is thankful for all the support she has received from the Food Bank partner. “I’m so grateful,” Vara said. “You don’t know how much you’re helping.” Only with your help can we keep our promise that anyone struggling with hunger will be able to come to the table and get the help they need.
Let’s bring everyone to the table by raising 1 million meals for families, seniors and kids this summer. Visit austinfoodbank.org to donate.
Fresh groceries provided byFood Bank partner agencies. 3
UPCOMING EVENTS HEB Help End Hunger Campaign
HEB and Central Market locations Wednesday, May 7-Wednesday, June 25
At H-E-B and Central Market stores all across Texas, you can help end hunger by adding a $1, $3 or $5 donation to your final grocery bill. Tear-off coupons are available at every register. Funds from Central Texas-area H-E-B stores will benefit the Food Bank.
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Keep Austin Weird Fest & 5K Long Center, 701 W Riverside Dr. Saturday, June 28
Join the Food Bank at “the wackiest 5K you’ll ever run, walk, or slither!” This family friendly fest and 5K features everything from great music and creative costumes to “fun stops” from local icons like Amy’s Ice Cream. Children 12 and under get in free with a donation of 3 canned goods. Visit keepaustinweirdfest.com for tickets and more information.
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KEYE Food for Families Food Drive Monday, July 7-Sunday, July 17 Austin-Area Randalls Stores
The 2014 KEYE-TV Food Drive helps nourish hungry Central Texas children during the summer months. Donate via the $1 and $5 tearpads or purchase a pre-packaged bag of the Food Bank’s most-needed items at Austin-area Randalls locations. Donations will also be accepted at keyetv.com or via coin drops at Randall’s registers.
Austin Chronicle Hot Sauce Festival Sunday, August 24 Fiesta Gardens, 2101 Jesse E. Segovia St.
If you want to beat the heat, you’ve got to eat the heat! Austin Chronicle Hot Sauce Festival brings together hot sauce and music lovers to support the Food Bank. Just bring 3 non-perishable food items or a $3 donation to join in on the fun. For more information, visit austinfoodbank.org/hot-saucefestival.
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THANK YOU FOR FIGHTING HUNGER IN CENTRAL TEXAS! 1, 14. Five Hole for Food The 2nd annual Five Hole for Food street hockey tournament raised over $2K for the Food Bank during SXSW. 2. UFCU Check Presentation University Federal Credit Union donated $1,510 to the Food Bank, enough to provide 3,775 meals to Central Texas families in need. 3, 16. Bacon & Beer Festival Presented by Edible Austin, the first-ever Austin Bacon and Beer Fest raised over $10K for the Food Bank. 4. Souper Bowl of Caring The 2014 Souper Bowl of Caring event raised over 1.4 million meals for Central Texans in need! 5. APLA check presentation 7th annual APLA & APES Golf Tournament raised over $50,000 for the Food Bank! 6. Amplify Austin In just 24 hours, donors raised over $5.8 million for Austinarea non-profits, including over $175K for the Food Bank! 7, 11. Austin Reggae Festival Thousands flocked to Butler Park for the 21st annual Austin Reggae Festival, benefiting the Food Bank. 8. Bitcoin Food Bank representatives accepted BitCoin donations at the unveiling of the 2nd Austin Bitcoin ATM. 9. Comedians Give Back Comedian T.J. Miller showed his love for the Food Bank at the Comedians Give Back event during SXSWi. 10. CROP Walk Hundreds gathered at Camp Mabry for the CROP Hunger Walk, benefiting Food Bank programs and Partner Agencies. 12. Tennant Tennant employees volunteered at the Food Bank as a part of their annual conference and delivered a $3,000 donation! 13. Volunteer Leader of the Quarter, Jack Harrington Volunteer Leader of the Quarter, Jack Harrington, has volunteered over 1,000 hours in Product Recovery and at the St. John Community Center! 15. Freescale United Way Day of Caring Freescale employees volunteered at the Food Bank for United Way’s Day of Caring.
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Farm Bill Update Thank you for a great 2013!
By Kathy Green, Senior Director of Advocacy and Public Policy As the 2014 Farm Bill was finally signed into law this year, much of the focus was on how the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP or food stamps) escaped the large cuts proposed in earlier versions of the bill. Overall, the Farm Bill was seen as a best case scenario, with Texas hunger advocates relieved that the outcome wasn’t worse.
“Addressing hunger in our community is truly a collaboration...” Other less-discussed provisions in the bill will increase access to nutritious and even local food for our low-income neighbors. Food Insecurity Nutrition Incentive Grants were funded at $135 million, and provide support to projects that incentivize SNAP participants to buy fruits and vegetables and are located in underserved communities. SNAP recipients will also be able use
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their benefits to participate in Community Supported Agriculture programs, or CSAs. CSAs are an arrangement between a farmer and consumers, where consumers purchase a certain number of shares, or a membership in the CSA. In return, the consumer receives a box of seasonal vegetables. Another provision in the bill will allow an exemption for farmers markets and farm stands from having to pay all of the equipment and implementation costs for electronic benefit transfer (EBT) machines. This could increase the number of local food retailers that accept SNAP benefits. Finally, the bill also provides a Healthy Food Financing Initiative, which provides healthy food retailers with grants and loans to overcome the higher costs and initial barriers to entry in underserved areas. Projects that support regional food systems and locallygrown foods receive priority on funding. Addressing hunger in our community is truly a collaboration among nonprofits like Capital Area Food Bank, our private and corporate partners and the government. Through such provisions in the Farm Bill, we can address it in a more healthy way.
No doubt, the Capital Area Food Bank of Texas has the best volunteers around. With more than 96,000 volunteer hours donated last fiscal year, Food Bank volunteers are vital to our mission to help families struggling with hunger in Central Texas. We want to give special thanks to the top volunteer groups giving time to help fight hunger. Together, we served over 48,000 of our Central Texans neighbors. Thank you for making a difference in our community! Advanced Micro Devices
Little Helping Hands
Austin CPA Chapter
National Charity League, Inc.
Breakthrough Austin
National Instruments
Christ Lutheran Church
Oak Hill Elementary
Dell Deloitte
Regents School Rudy’s Bar B Que
Freescale
St. Michael’s Academy
General Motors
Target
Girl Scouts
University of Texas
Hewlett Packard
Vista Ridge High School
Interactions KingsIsle Entertainment KIPP Austin
VMWare Young Men’s Service League
You Can Double Your Support for Christopher We have exciting news! To help as many people as possible during the difficult summer months, Eric and Keri Stumberg have issued a special $100,000 matching gift challenge for supporters of the Capital Area Food Bank. On June 1st we launch our Summer Meals That Matter Campaign. This drive is a direct response to hunger during the summer months, when many families face their greatest challenge to keep nutritious food on the table. Will you help us reach our goal to raise 1 million meals by June 30th to eliminate the pain of hunger in this community? Families like Christopher’s will really benefit from your kindness. Christopher lives with his wife and two children at home. He recently worked at a local movie theater and did freelance design work on the side. But with this economy, the design companies he used to work for have had to tighten their belts, forcing him to tighten his as well. His wife works full time, but one income isn’t enough. In addition to increased living costs during the summer, Christopher has to make sure his children have health insurance. Because of one daughter’s special needs, their deductible is very high, and comes with very high monthly payments. It’s become difficult to keep food on the table. To help us reach our goal of feeding families
like Christopher’s, the Stumberg family will match every dollar you give, up to $100,000. That means you can feed twice as many Central Texans this summer! This is an important time for us, as thousands of children in our community will no longer have access to free and reduced
until June 30th will be doubled. That means a gift of $5 will provide 25 nutritious meals for your neighbors who need a helping hand. Or a gift of $10 will provide 50 meals. And because you stand up for hunger relief in our community, Christopher’s two young daughters will have a healthy and happy summer.
“Thank you for making the choice to help us.”
price lunches in school. You know that no child should ever go hungry – especially during their active summer months. You can make a difference for families facing hunger like Christopher’s this summer. Thanks to the generous Stumberg family’s matching challenge, the impact of every gift you make
“Thank you for making the choice to help us. We appreciate it and it helps us immensely to get by as we try to figure out how to do better,” Christopher says, sincerely. You could bring happiness to our hungry neighbors all summer long. Will you make the most generous gift possible? There are thousands of Central Texans just like Christopher struggling with hunger this summer, and there is no better time to help these families. Your generosity means so much. Thank you for helping to put food on the table for our neighbors in need this summer and all year long.
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CAFB Board of Directors Mike Tomsu, Chair Vinson & Elkins LLP Heidi Baschnagel, Vice Chair National Instruments Corporation Melissa Mitchell, Treasurer CPA Terry G. Knighton, Secretary Applied Materials, Retired Austin Community College Melissa Anthony Sinn anthonyBarnum Public Relations Matt Dow Jackson Walker LLP Kenneth Gladish, Ph.D. Seton Foundations Robert Holmes Applied Materials
Joyce Mullen Dell, Inc. Laurie Rice 3M Hon. Jeff Rose Texas Third Court of Appeals John Sanchez Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. Sheldy Starkes, MBA, PMP Booker, Starkes & Patodia, Inc. Leslie Sweet HEB Grocery Company, LP Catherine P. Thompson Motion Computing, Inc. Jason Thurman PlainsCapital Bank Mark J. Williams
Hunger is good at getting our attention. It is nature’s not so gentle reminder that our lives depend on us working together, caring for the resources that make food possible. Hunger is not the same as it was three years ago when I joined the organization as president or even eleven years ago when I began as a volunteer on the foundation board. Hunger has infected our suburbs and has tightened its grip on children and working families, showing no signs of letting up. I am excited to share how we attend to the changing needs of our community through stronger partnerships, new programming, and by sharing the message of hope and new opportunities through food security. I see the impact of your support through the 300,000 individuals we serve each year like Vara, who is featured in this issue. I am honored to be part of a team of people who come to work each day dedicated to providing quality food, safely, efficiently and with the friendly touch needed when people are vulnerable and often embarrassed to need our help. Your support makes a difference to the people we serve every day - people who have finances to rebuild and have hopes and dreams to fulfill. Thank you for bringing everyone to the table this summer. Together, this is how we take care of each other and build a healthier community.
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Hank Perret President & CEO
Our Mission: To nourish hungry people and lead the community in ending hunger. Capital Area Food Bank of Texas 8201 S. Congress Ave., Austin, TX 78745 | (512).282.2111 Color printing generously donated by Ginny’s Printing, Inc.
Thank you for fighting hunger We want to thank our Summer Meals That Matter sponsors! SPECIAL ISSUE
SolarWinds
Grainger
Strong, Healthy Kids Sponsor
Strong, Healthy Kids Sponsor
Emulex
BMC Software
Food for Families Sponsor
Nourishing Neighbors Sponsor