Hunger Doesn’t Take a Vacation Dear Friends, Summer hunger has always had long-term consequences. Even prior to COVID-19, we know that a lack of reliable nutrition during the summer months takes a major toll on children and their families. Kids who struggle with hunger are more likely to experience “summer slide”, forgetting what they learned and starting the next school year months behind their more affluent peers. With the shift to remote learning this spring and into the fall, feeding kids and assuring their academic success becomes an even greater challenge. We are working in the following ways to address food insecurity across the region. . . - On the Advocacy and Policy front, we continue to keep tabs on the shifting landscape, how it impacts access to benefits and nutrition programs, and to urge our policy makers to do MORE to ensure no one goes hungry.
- First and foremost, we continue to push Congress to include a 15% increase to SNAP benefits in the next coronavirus response bill. On Monday, Aug. 10 we will join FRAC, Feeding America, and others around the country in a day of action to tell Congress not to go home until a COVID-19 relief package is passed that boosts SNAP benefits. Look for our e-alert on Monday morning, but if you want to get a jump on things this weekend, see FRAC’s sample plates for ideas or use this virtual paper plate tool from Feeding America.
- Working with our national and state partners, we’ve been pressing USDA to ensure child nutrition programs respond to families’ needs in light of the pandemic’s profound impact on the upcoming and far from normal start to the school year. In addition to our work with Pittsburgh allies to help nearly 200 organizations urge the continuation of child nutrition waivers that will help children access meals, we are now urging organizations (sorry, not individuals) to sign onto this national letter being promoted by FRAC, Feeding America, the School Nutrition Association, and No Kid Hungry.
- Lastly, in an effort to help those who are victims of the U.S. Senate’s inability to forward another coronavirus response bill to extend Pandemic Unemployment and provide additional relief to millions of Americans, we offer these resources:
- For the estimated 350,000-450,000 Pennsylvanians who may have missed their Economic Impact Payment (EIP), also known as the $1200 stimulus payment, they have until October 15 to sign up on the IRS website to receive their payment. In Philadelphia, The Campaign for Working Families is offering assistance, and, Pennsylvania’s Department of Human Resources has additional information available here.
- For those who fear eviction, the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency (PHFA) has announced a second round of rental assistance funded by the CARES Act. Funds will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis, and the program will run until Sept. 30 or until funding runs out. Philadelphia applicants can find more information here. Renters outside of Philadelphia can find the agency administering the program in their county here.
- Outreach and Education is working to reimagine how they work.
- To make summer meals more accessible to our clients, we have translated the summer meals toolkit into Spanish. Families can now access the toolkit, flyers, and social media posts in both English and Spanish. Our summer meals map is still live at www.phillysummermeals.org and we are working with clients one-on-one to find a site using our hotline at 1-855-252-MEAL.
- “Telling our health stories can be therapeutic, and telling them through comics can help others who are going through something similar connect to the emotions involved in our stories.”-Philadelphia FIGHT Critical Path Learning Center. Our partners at the Critical Path Learning Center are hosting a virtual workshop series on telling your health story through comics. This 6-week workshop series will help attendees create their own personal health comic. Learn more about this unique offering by visiting the Critical Path Learning Center’s website or Facebook event.
- Our SNAP Hotline team continues to answer questions and help households navigate the SNAP application process through our SNAP Hotline at 215-430-0556, Monday – Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. We are beginning to see a slow increase in calls to our Hotline.
- One of the ways we support our local Food Pantry and Soup Kitchen partners is through our Food Rescue Program for VIP (Victory in Partnership) program. This program connects VIP members with additional food resources. In a 2018 survey, just under half (42.8%) of Southeastern PA food pantries reported that they sometimes, often or always run out of food. During the months of June and July, the Food Rescue Program connected food pantries and soup kitchens to 34,460 lbs. of food to feed 1,344 households for a total of 4,032 individuals.
Hunger is a Racial Issue: Structural Racism and Food Insecurity – Part 3 This brief is the third in a three-part series covering the effects of racism on food insecurity. This installment covers the causes of racial disparities and offers anti-racist policy recommendations. We previously covered 1) the historical context of racial food disparities and 2) what the data says about how the pandemic has affected these disparities. Thank you to Theodoros Papazekos, Fox Fellow and Coalition Against Hunger Policy Intern for your work on this! Farewell and thank you to Theodoros Papazekos, a Fox Fellow, who interned with us at the Coalition over the summer! Theo has been working closely with Kathy Fisher, our Policy Director, on projects such as the Racism and Hunger brief. We wish you all the best as you head off to law school and hope we can meet you in person sometime in the future. WHAT CAN YOU DO? Thank you for your support of our work to connect individuals and families to the food resources they need during this challenging time. -The Greater Philadelphia Coalition Against Hunger | |
