You Can Help Cross Out Hunger During Hunger Action Month

September is Hunger Action Month! Hunger Action Month is a time to act to help the 38 million people in the U.S., including more than 12 million children, facing hunger. Here in San Diego County, there are hundreds of thousands of people who have to worry about their next meal. Feeding San Diego’s programs support all San Diegans who need food assistance, and this month we are asking the community to help Cross Out Hunger with us. No one should have to make impossible choices between necessities like groceries, housing, and healthcare. 

The Continued Impact of the Pandemic on Food Banks

The COVID-19 pandemic brought unprecedented demand for our services. Industries and communities around the world shut down almost overnight, and unemployment skyrocketed. Food banks were overwhelmed by the sudden surge in clients. We witnessed unprecedented lines at our distributions. At this most trying time, we also saw compassion and support like never before. Our donations increased when people desperate to help organized their own fundraisers to support their communities. It was an exceptional response. 

The Inflation Factor

After two challenging years, we all hoped we could talk about the pandemic in the past tense. But hot on its heels, 2022 witnessed inflation in the U.S at a 40-year high. Gas prices surged, with San Diego seeing eye-watering costs of over $6 a gallon in March 2022. Add to this rapidly rising rent and an end of federal pandemic relief aid, and the long lines have not decreased for our food distributions. At Feeding San Diego’s Together Tour food distributions, which started as a response to the increase in need during the pandemic, attendance has been increasing in recent months.  

A volunteer loads food into a car at the first Feeding San Diego Together Tour distribution in February 2021

For example, take Feeding San Diego’s food distribution at Southwestern College in Chula Vista, which started back in April of 2021. Held every month, the distributions are open to anyone in need. Community members can drive through to receive fresh produce, pantry staples, and a frozen protein. While there were initially 1,008 households that drove through the first distribution in April 2021, over time the numbers decreased, dipping to 675 in September of 2021. Since then, attendance has been steadily climbing. Last month, the site served nearly 1,500 households, the highest number ever served at that site. This trend indicates what we are seeing across the board at Together Tour distributions throughout the county.  

Continuing Struggles

The pandemic caused many families and individuals to seek our services for the first time, particularly those forced into unemployment and struggling to make ends meet. Now inflation brings another new group of people to Feeding San Diego – those who are still employed but struggling as inflation lowers their purchasing power. As every dollar is stretched to its limits, even those with a regular income and savings are having to make hard decisions about what they can and can’t afford.  

Faisal with his wife, Katherine, and his 18-month-old son, Raiden, at a Feeding Heroes distribution

“When COVID hit, everything got more expensive everywhere. We watched apartment prices rise. We watched the housing market skyrocket. My Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) can barely even afford a single bedroom apartment anymore,” Faisal told us at a Feeding Heroes distribution over the summer. “Right now, inflation and gas prices are decimating our budget. I didn’t use to have to count how much I needed for gas. Now I look to carpool. What’s hardest for us is prices going up for fruit and vegetables.” 

Costs Inflating for Feeding San Diego

At Feeding San Diego, we too are feeling the effects of inflation. Our operational costs have risen dramatically, with the cost of purchased food up 20 percent. We’ve always been proud that our operation runs primarily on rescued food. Pre-pandemic, 97% of the food we distributed was rescued, with only 3% purchased. The rapid increase in demand and the closure of many sources of rescued food meant that our model required us to shift to buying more food, now about 30% of all the food we distribute. Our food and fuel costs have increased at the same time that donations and federal support have decreased.  

Why Funds, Not Food

Prospects for those facing food insecurity are bleak. More families are being forced to make hard choices between food or other critical necessities. More people know about food banks, so more are turning to us to help them juggle their basic needs. These issues are why we continue to ask for your help. 

We’ve always been so proud of our incredibly supportive community here in San Diego. When we ask, you ALWAYS step up. This Hunger Action Month, we are asking our supporters to start or join a fundraiser, or donate to one!  

Ali Colbran, director of development, institutional giving & donor relations at Feeding San Diego, explains why financial donations have a much greater reach than food donations.   

“Every single dollar you donate to Feeding San Diego goes so much further than donating individual food items. Our significant buying power, leveraged through Feeding America’s national networks, and our ability to source donated and rescued food means that every dollar donated helps provide two meals,” she says. “$10 = 20 meals, $50 = 100 meals – it really is that simple to make your impact on food insecurity.” 

Your Network Can Cross Out Hunger

We’ve always been so proud of our incredibly supportive community here in San Diego. When we ask, you ALWAYS step up. The uplift in donations during the pandemic stunned us and has made so much possible. This Hunger Action Month, we are launching our Cross Out Hunger campaign with a new way to donate – one that became popular during the pandemic when people could no longer volunteer and wanted to get involved. It’s called Peer to Peer (P2P) fundraising, which is when individuals organize personal campaigns to collect donations from their peers. This Hunger Action Month, we are asking our supporters to start or join a fundraiser or donate to one!  

We know that you care that your neighbor has enough to eat, so we have come up with a way that you can amplify your compassion and make a difference. P2P fundraising lets you find many more pockets to support your efforts within your community. Make your cause your network’s cause! Food should never be an impossible choice.  

We Make Fundraising Easy!

We have created a toolkit to support all our generous and compassionate fundraisers. It has all the information you need to set up your fundraiser and helpful tips to make it the most successful it can be during the month. Help someone have a nutritious meal that they can gather around the table with their family to enjoy. There is no doubt you will be thrilled to see how your efforts can turn into many dollars when you include your network. As always, our gratitude to each of you, our generous supporters. Together, we can Cross Out Hunger.  

This is a guest post from Inga Brydson, a Feeding San Diego volunteer.