As a parent, I would do anything to ensure that my children had their basic needs met. Clean water, shelter, healthcare…..and food.  That means that if I had to swallow my pride and join the thousands that get assistance from the government, take an extra job or ask for help I would.  I brought these babies into the world and it is not their job to feed themselves.  It is mine.  I work very hard to provide their basic needs because that is what you should do as a parent.  One of the many responsibilities we take on.  I have not always been so fortunate, not that I am rolling in it, but we get by comfortably.  Hard choices had to be made and we did what we had to do to.


But it’s not just my children I worry about.  It is the thousands that will go to bed hungry tonight, not have clean clothes or a safe place to sleep.  The kids who aren’t getting 2 meals a day at school while on summer break.  No basic hygiene products to keep clean and healthy, no doctor to visit.  No hope….

Did you know that 1 in 5 children in the United States do not know where there next meal is coming from? These children do not just live in low income areas.  Over the last few years many of these children come from families of the working poor.  With the economy taking an economic downturn, many families lost one or both of their incomes and became what is now known as ‘The Working Poor‘.

Many of us want to help, but we are hampered by our own finances, time or more often it is ‘out of sight out of mind’.  What we don’t want to see or acknowledge doesn’t really exist.

I am proud to say that I am partnering with ConAgra Foods to help educate others about the Child Hunger Ends Here Campaign.
From now until August 2012, Consumers that purchase a ConAgra product like:  
1.Banquet
2. Chef Boyardee
3. Healthy Choice
4. Hunt’s
5. Marie Callender’s
6. Manwich
7. Orville Redenbacher’s
8. Peter Pan
9. Snack Pac
There will be a code in an area on the label marked “Feeding America, ConAgra Foods”. Go to The Child Hunger Ends Here Website and enter your code.  It’s as simple as that to help one child in your area get a meal that they desperately need.

Go to this website , enter the code shown and make a difference

                                      
I truly hope that you will take a moment and see how YOU can quickly, easily and generously make a difference in a child’s life. You never know when one of these food insecure families can be yours.  It truly defines you, it certainly did me.  Growing up as a food insecure child myself, I can appreciate what a gift of a bag of groceries means to a needy family.

Thank you for your time. For more ways to help visit Conagra on Facebook, Twitter – use hashtag  #childhunger to share how you have helped as well!

I wanted to share what the rate of food insecurity was in MY state, Indiana.  Visit Gleaners Food Bank for how YOU can help in Indiana

As An Added Bonus….
In return for entering a code from specially marked packages, consumers can download their favorite version of “Here’s Hope” from Jewel, Owl City and Jay Sean. Exclusive interviews, messages and behind-the-scenes videos by each artist will also be available during the program on www.ChildHungerEndsHere.com. Consumers will also be able to submit their zip code to enter their local Feeding America food bank into a competition to receive an 80,000-meal donation (ten food banks will receive based on the total number of zip codes entered) courtesy of ConAgra Foods.


“As a homeless teen, I experienced the epidemic of hunger first-hand. Now, as a new mother, it breaks my heart to
know that children suffer from this every day,” said Jewel. “I’m honored and humbled to be able to help those in
need through the Child Hunger Ends Here program and say to our friends and neighbors struggling with hunger,
‘Here’s hope.’” ~ Jewel