No matter which side of the fence you sit on...

[Momagain1]

I do the same..and NOTHING, I REPEAT NOTHING Is more humbling than volunteering at the
food pantry....

we did that not too long ago and it is sad to see ppl come in and get excited because they had
peanut butter that day!

I plan on donating eggs to the pantry when I have them on pantry days; ours is only open two days
a month due to lack of donations..

My neighbor is elderly...very hand to hand living...

so we just "conveniently" made too much chili, or bought these canned goods due to a "SUPER CANT PASS UP SALE"...
I will keep her in eggs too..and probably chicken once ina while when we start butchering...

its not just elderly tho..we have a tocked pantry; but nothign to make "meals" on..but its a lot of "stuff"..
so many many days we eat cereal lol...my kids love it tho...

the stuff we run out of can b the expensive things: milk, bread & basic canned goods..milk is up over $4 a gallon now!

But if you watch it; sometimes you can get the 1/2 gallons for $1.50..so we'll get those instead...
dry milk for recipes...

 

[debilorrah]

There are many resource for hungry people, however, someone like Ken's friend (who is a bit dim to be honest) would never think to look, nor would his parents. They are a couple in their late 70's and food banks and soup kitchens were not part of their world, so they don't think about it. Seriously, if you need something speak up. There are people who WILL help. And if you have extra and notice someone who may need a bag of potatoes, hand it to them.

I was heartbroken hearing him talk tonight. Many jobless have no CLUE what to do for themselves, Ken's friend and his parents included.

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

That is so nice of you! I am glad that your DH's friend had you to turn to.

 

[debilorrah]

Quote:
We are too and he should have said something sooner. HE may be able to live on noodles, but his parents need more nutrition than that!!!

 

[SLWyandotte]

what gets me is the amount of food wasted every day. i'm not talking about personal use. and left overs in a house, or what goes bad in restaurants. my cousin works as a cafeteria worker at the public school. each evening they are told to throw out the leftover food and douse it in bleach. this is perfectly good food. why couldn't they call the local soup kitchen that would be perfectly happy to come get it at the end of the day. they have to fix enough for every kid enrolled in the school regardless if they are there or not. so there are a lot of leftovers. just my 2 cents.

 

[debilorrah]

Quote:
Because there are laws about the temperature of food for public comsumption. Same thing with restaurants. Someone comes in and orders a meal and then gets a call and has to leave. It goes in the trash. Not that I think it is a good idea, however, those laws are there to protect us from food born illnesses.

 

[Momagain1]

at the schools its not just prepared foods; it is bananas, apples all w/peels on..that is wasteful...

why not put a bucket where they can put the fruit there if it has not been peeled/eaten etc...

they are REQUIRED to have them take one kind of fruit...whether they want it or not...

 

[debilorrah]

Quote:
In a perfect world that could happen. Unfortunatly this is NOT a perfect world, and people are hungry. The ONE thing I want folks to get from this post is: SPEAK UP if you need food. if you HAVE food, GIVE IT!

 

[Momagain1]

I know..I agree!!!

 

[redhen]

Quote:
You're so right ,Debi... NO need to starve in this country... We are a country of such wastefulness..
Heck..i was watching a food show the other day(Andrew Zimmerman..) And they were in Cali..
Theres a BIG thing there where these folks go "dumpster diving" behind stores and restaurants... (they know what days they throw out the produce)
Its sickening to see how much produce is wasted..just thrown away.... many many bundles of bananas.... fresh berries... bags of potatoes.... corn on the cob..
So these people take it upon themselves to get all this still good food and make meals for the needy with it..(and themselves also).
Good peeps, Them!