Let’s face it, as much as the prices for college tuition rises every year, so does the cost of creating quality food found around the world. The labor that goes into production, paying employees to prepare meals and the commute to ease our cravings takes a definite toll on our pockets. To make every penny count, check out ongoing nationwide causes such as Houston tech and food startup GroupRaise, and dial in to make sure every cent is worth it. Whether you choose to organize a fall fundraiser, plan a group meal, to donate, or to volunteer in person, there are also other ways to reduce hunger in the United States. According to NoKidHungry and the Houston Food Bank, statistics show that one in five children suffer from hunger. Teachers see students every day walking into class hungry of all ages, not just young kids. One in six Americans has experienced hunger. This fall season is a perfect time to give back to our communities.
Download this calendar to get involved and make this last week of September count!
Social media participation is a great, simple way to show your support and spread awareness about the cause. Share the posts, the facts, and the ways to help with friends, classmates, and family!
If you have Facebook, temporarily change your profile picture and add the frame from Feeding America to spread awareness to your network about #HungerActionMonth.
Or, use this profile picture tool from World Food Programme.
If you have twitter, join in now! Naked Juice has an ongoing campaign called #DrinkGoodDoGood that will donate 10 pounds of food or more, up to 250,000 pounds, if you post a self-portrait on Twitter with fruits or veggies.
Grab a box of colored pencils and take a study break. Add color to these pages and learn how statistics show expressing creativity and adult coloring are both beneficial to your mental and physical health.
Take a social media pledge to donate, volunteer at the local food bank, or contact a local representative asking for their support in this month’s fight against hunger.
Continue to spread awareness about #Spoontember, where you take pictures with a spoon on your nose and post it on social media outlets such as Twitter.
Get #hungerbites trending on social media now to show your support right away!
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Entertainment
Free Rice is the easiest way to build your language skills and interact with World Food Programme and their efforts to fight international hunger. Build your vocabulary and have fun gaming for a good cause. Use this gaming website as a study aid to whichever subject you are enrolled in this semester.
If you have access to a plain, plastic plate, draw on it and identify what it is that you can’t do without when you are hungry. Then, post your selfie with your customized plate using the hashtag #GiveALittleTLC on the TLC Facebook Page. Then, watch TLC episodes after you have finished all your homework.
Take the SNAP challenge. Here in Southeast Texas, there are so many recipes you can make from your dorm room and friends as you gather to watch the NFL games.
Learn more about the social media participation here.
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Fun on Campus
Print out interactive fliers like this one and pass them out during lunch time. Create colorful posters and walk down the halls as a group and recruit club members after engaging in conversation. Hold chats as a student leader during your organization’s meeting to inform the college body about how universities worldwide are joining the fight against student hunger. Don’t forget to ask your campus operations for permission to hold special hunger awareness events first. Who knows, maybe you’ll be able to get a meeting room with a projector for a presentation as well!
Network within your local college campuses and organize a meal where you can also start a college fundraiser. A huge portion of the proceeds will go to donating food through GroupRaise.com or to your cause. A college entrepreneur’s startup has made it super easy to schedule a group meal or attend one near your zip code with only a few minutes to spare. You can choose from Italian, American, Indian, and explore your city’s food scene while having fun. Learn more about it here.
Leave extra change in the vending machine or on the lunch table and watch as snackers get amazed by their luck as they frantically get ready for a study break. Or, invite someone to Ben and Jerry‘s select locations for free ice cream scoops through September 30!
Have a study group session and #MakeBreakfastHappen. Learn more why breakfast is a shortage in education here… HungerIs. It’s dubbed the most important meal of the day, so supercharge it with nutrients to get your brain in study mode. For instance, last semester, my classmates and I had an early morning test to study for, so they ran late to the session. I thought I’d lighten up the mood by buying breakfast burritos before we started, and they totally appreciated it!
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Grocery Shopping
Visit your neighborhood Kroger, Randalls, H-E-B, Albertsons, and stock up on canned goods and select grocery items to participate in campaigns such as Hunger Is and ChildHungerEndsHere by ConAgra Foods. Buy a premade grocery bag and it will be donated to your local food bank. Look for canned good codes to enter on childhungerendshere.com and every dollar will equal a meal for the hungry.
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Don’t forget to attend a volunteer event such as a charity run, register to hold a personal fundraiser, and find more ways to get involved this Hunger Action Month by visiting the following sites for more information:
http://www.feedingamerica.org/
http://www.houstonfoodbank.org/
Get #hungerbites trending on social media now to show your support right away!
