3SquaresVT Challenge

3SquaresVT Challenge: November 14th—20th as part of National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week.

Learn first hand what it is like to try to make ends meet on a limited food budget! Live on a 3SquaresVT budget for a week – spend only $38 on food to eat for the week. Then share your experience with others. Learn more, find materials and, if you haven't already, register for the challenge on our website.

3SquaresVT (formerly food stamps) is the nation’s single most important program in the fight against hunger, designed to improve the nutrition and food purchasing power of people with limited incomes. The program makes a difference in the lives of thousands of Vermonters every day, but in many cases, the benefits are too low to allow households to purchase nutritious food and feed their families healthy meals on a consistent basis. The 3SquaresVT Challenge seeks to highlight what it is like to eat on the average 3SquaresVT benefit — approximately $1.80 per meal.

Register for the challenge and check back here in November to comment on my blog about your experience.

Lamoille Valley Hunger Council Kicks Off

Back in 2006, we developed the Hunger Council model through our partnership with Northfield Savings Bank. The Councils in Washington and Chittenden Counties have made great strides in reducing hunger in their regions and are still going strong. Based on the success of these other groups, we are thrilled to start a Hunger Council to serve the Lamoille Valley.

This past Thursday, September 30th, was the inaugural meeting of the Lamoille Valley Hunger Council. The group includes several dozen community leaders from organizations such as the Lamoille Family Center, CVCAC, Laraway Youth and Family Services, the Department of Health, Meals on Wheels, and Johnson State College. This Council will be co-chaired by Scott Johnson, Director of the Lamoille Family Center, and Susan Bartlett, former State Senator.

The reason for this meeting – and for the new Council in general – is the fact that hunger is on the rise in the Lamoille Valley. As Dorigen Keeney from the Campaign explained, 1 in 6 children in the Valley are hungry. Despite the hard work and dedication of the folks on the Council, there is still work to be done to make sure everyone in the area has access to adequate nutrition. That will be the mission of this Council for the coming years: to understand what barriers local citizens face when trying to provide for themselves and their families, what programs or policies need to be created or improved, and how we can all work together to make these changed happen. Stay tuned!