Article by Mel Ulle
September is Hunger Action Month, which is just an excellent and completely appropriate time to support Denver’s hunger agencies. This annual campaign, created by the Feeding America network, encourages all of us to “go orange” to raise awareness and take action against hunger. People can help through donating, volunteering, and advocating for policies that address food insecurity.
You’ve probably heard of Food Bank of the Rockies, led by Erin Pulling, local badass. They cover a massive area across Colorado and Wyoming to get food and necessities to people in need. For every dollar you donate, they can provide the equivalent of three meals, which is just staggering.
There are many more food heroes in our midst. Denver Food Rescue is a fantastic group that tackles food waste and food insecurity. They rescue surplus, fresh food—over 700,000 pounds annually!—that would otherwise go to waste and get it to communities that need it, often using e-bikes to do it sustainably. I love that they prioritize fresh produce, with a majority of what they distribute being fruits and veggies.
And then you have organizations like Jewish Family Service (JFS), which runs the Weinberg Food Pantry to help people facing hunger and food insecurity. They provide regular groceries but also have special holiday programs with all the fixings for a Thanksgiving or Passover meal. They have a mobile food pantry that travels to different neighborhoods which is just brilliant for folks who have a hard time with transportation.
Metro Caring is another incredible agency that provides a free grocery store stocked with locally sourced and donated products. They meet people’s immediate needs while also addressing the root causes of hunger. Note that appointments are required for participants!
We Don’t Waste is another key player, working to reduce hunger and food waste by recovering unused food from venues, caterers, and food service companies and then distributing it to local food pantries and shelters.
I’ve previously written about Food for Thought Denver, which is a nonprofit program that provides meals for school-aged children. On Fridays, they put bags of non-perishable food, called “sack packs,” in students’ lockers to help bridge the food gap over the weekends.
One of my other favorites is Project Angel Heart, which provides a food service for those who are too ill to prepare their own meals. They prepare and deliver medically tailored meals to people living with severe illnesses such as cancer, HIV/AIDS, kidney disease, and more. The meals are made from scratch and customized to meet each person’s unique dietary and medical needs. Their services are provided at no cost to the clients, and they deliver along the I-25 corridor from Pueblo to Larimer counties.
How can you help? It’s simple, silly. These agencies rely on the kindness of people like you. You can donate money to help them buy food in bulk, and sometimes your gift will be matched which doubles the impact- yahoo! You can also donate food directly, or, and this is my favorite part, you can roll up your sleeves and volunteer. Nothing connects you to a cause or a mission like working side-by-side with others. Bring your kids. Modeling volunteerism is key to turning them into future do-gooders, I promise. We have two of them in this house.
Also, and I know I say it all the time, so much that you probably can’t even read the words anymore, but volunteering is so good for you! It helps release dopamine, oxytocin, serotonin and endorphins. Who wouldn’t sign up for that?
So, in the spirit of Hunger Action Month, find yourself a local food pantry and get to work. Supporting these organizations is a beautiful way to ensure that every family in our amazing city has something nourishing to eat, and it will make you feel pretty satisfied as well.
Read Melanie Ulle’s monthly Making a Difference Articles at Urban Life Wash Park.
