Kauai Food Bank officials said recently that there are still slots available for senior citizens on limited incomes who might want to take advantage of a free produce-distribution program funded by leaders in the federal government. Leaders of the Kauai
Kauai Food Bank officials said recently that there are still slots available for senior citizens on limited incomes who might want to take advantage of a free produce-distribution program funded by leaders in the federal government.
Leaders of the Kauai Food Bank Senior Produce Program distribute Kaua’i-grown, Grade A, fresh produce, on a weekly basis, at neighborhood centers and other locations, and can even deliver to homebound seniors, said Judith “Judy” Lenthall, Kauai Food Bank executive director.
Lenthall, Kaua’i senior citizens and others recently celebrated National Hunger Awareness Day, celebration of a grassroots movement to raise awareness about the solvable problem of hunger in America, she said.
At an annual senior-appreciation luncheon in conjunction with leaders of The Salvation Army on Kaua’i, Kauai Food Bank officials gave a presentation on hunger to over 70 seniors, and provided an end-hunger bingo game with prizes.
Instead of the “free” spot in the center of the card, they used “full,” and the senior had to yell out “end hunger” to win a prize.
The winners of hunger bingo included Millie Balbarino, Ming Lutao, Maryann Lindsey, Josephine Lee, Lorraine Amaral, Emila Adarbey, and Violet Ching, who was celebrating her 100th birthday this month.
The mission of leaders of the Kauai Food Bank is to provide food for the hungry, respond to emergencies, and eliminate hunger.
Each month, the Kauai Food Bank leaders feed over 6,000 Kauaians, half of whom are children, and 25 percent are the island’s kupuna (elderly).
Lenthall recently returned from Washington, D.C., where she represented leaders of all the food banks in the state at the “One Table, Many Voices” conference, with the lofty goal of ending hunger and poverty in America.
Sponsoring the conference was leaders of the Alliance to End Hunger, America’s Second Harvest, the Nation’s Food Bank Network, Bread for the World, Children’s Defense Fund, Christian Reformed Church, Food Marketing Institute, Mazon: A Jewish Response to Hunger, National Association of Letter Carriers and the Food Research Action Coalition.
Leaders of the Kauai Food Bank work with volunteers from food pantries established at local churches, offices of nonprofit agencies, and others, to distribute food to the island’s hungry population.
In addition to the Senior Fresh Produce Program, which is funded by leaders in the U.S. Department of Agriculture, there are several other anti-hunger programs.
- For more information about Kauai Food Bank programs, please call 246-3809.
