Every Christmas, Bethany has a food drive. Last year, 1500 food items and 400 toys were collected for Waterford and Bethany families that need help over the Christmas holidays. This year’s food drive ended Friday, December 7, with a total collection of 1100 food items and 280 toys.
According to Feeding America .org, a national food bank organization, 1 in 7 people and 1 in 6 children struggle with hunger in Indiana at present time. Since the economy is doing well, one would think that people wouldn’t need food banks. So why is this food drive so important? Who needs this food? And why, in good economic times, do people still need to go to food pantries and get nutritional help?
During the great recession, when the unemployment rate skyrocketed, the number of food-insecure households rose. food insecurity is when a household does not have consistent access to adequate food because of a lack of money or other resources. according to the hamilton project, rates of food insecurity in us households have not dropped back to pre-recession rates. the proportion of us households that have food insecurity hasn’t recovered from its recession-era peak of 14.9 percent, and in 2016 fell to 12.3 percent. that is still above its pre-recession level of 11.1 percent. aside from the national average, some states have worse rates. only two states have better rates of food insecurity than they did in 2005-2007. this means that our economy is not getting better for everyone. the overall unemployment rate has gone down, the gdp is up, but food insecurity trends cast doubt on whether everyone is really doing better. some families are having trouble with basic needs like feeding their children, and they still need help.
That is where our community comes in. Food banks across America, run by secular and religious charities on community and national levels, can help fill the gaps for families affected by food insecurity. Bethany’s food drive helps Waterford and Bethany families to have food over the Christmas break, and it’s a great cause.