Governor Quinn Announces Appointments to Commission to End Hunger
New Body Aims to Increase Food Security and Access to Nutritional Food

press conference

Back row from left to right: Gary Tomlin, Dan Lesser, Sen. Don Harmon, Tracy Smith, Barb Karacic. Front row from left to right: Kate Maehr, Rep. Lisa Hernandez, Juanita Irizarry, Marla Goodwin, Mary Ellen Abbott.

Governor Pat Quinn announced his appointments to the new Commission to End Hunger on March 2, 2011. The Commission, established by the legislature in 2010, will address the growing problem of hunger in Illinois by improving food security and nutrition through education, better coordinating services and increasing access to programs. “Too many of our children, parents and seniors don’t have food to put on the table every day,” Quinn said. “We must do everything we can do put an end to hunger in Illinois, and this Commission will help us reach that important goal.”
Legislation which authorized the Department of Human Services to create the Commission was led by State Sen. Don Harmon (D-Oak Park) and Rep. Elizabeth Hernandez (D-Cicero). Appearing with members of the new Commission, Sen. Harmon said, “The diversity we have on this Commission will serve us very well. Hunger transcends all lines. It is not partisan or geographic.”
The Commission will include: Sen. Harmon (D-Oak Park); Sen. John Millner (R-Carol Stream); Rep. Elizabeth Hernandez (D-Cicero); Rep. Patricia Bellock (R-Hinsdale); Cristal Thomas, Gov. Pat Quinn’s Office; Kappy Scates, Lt. Gov. Sheila Simon’s Office; Kate Maehr, Greater Chicago Food Depository; Mary Ellen Abbott, Illinois Hunger Coalition; Marla Goodwin, Jeremiah’s Food Pantry; Barb Karacic, Holy Family Food Pantry; Tracy Smith, Feeding Illinois; Amy Rynell, Social IMPACT Research Center, Heartland Alliance; Kathy Ryg, Voices for Illinois Children; Dan Lesser, Shriver Center; Mark Ishaug, AIDS United; Ahlam Jbara, Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago; Esperanza V. Gonzalez, Illinois Migrant Council; Gary Tomlin, Economic Development Coordinator, Knox County; Nicole Robinson, Kraft Foods, Inc.; Juanita Irizarry, Chicago Community Trust; Terry Solomon, African-American Family Commission; and, Joe Antolin, Latino Family Commission.
Ex-oficio members will be represented by the following State of Illinois departments: Human Services, Education, Healthcare and Family Services, Child and Family Services, Aging, Agriculture, the African-American Family Commission and the Latino Family Commission.
“We are so fortunate to have these dedicated individuals on the state and local level to help us at a time of continued high demand for food,” said Tracy Smith, state director of Feeding Illinois. “Working with the Commission will help us to increase awareness among those in need about available programs, and better educate the public on the issue of hunger.”

Feeding Illinois Names Sen. Harmon Legislator of the Year
Two Other Leadership Awards Announced

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Senator Don Harmon receives the 2011 Legislator of the Year Award from Kate Maehr, Board President of Feeding Illinois and Executive Director of Greater Chicago Food Depository.

Feeding Illinois presented its second annual Legislator of the Year Award last night to Senator Don Harmon of Illinois’s 39th district. A member of the state legislature since 2002, Harmon was recognized for his advocacy for greater access to emergency food for residents across the state and for co-sponsoring legislation to establish the Commission to End Hunger. Sen. Harmon also was recognized for his record promoting better opportunities for children, greater access to affordable healthcare and improved government oversight and ethics reform. “Sen. Harmon has been a tireless supporter of Feeding Illinois’s fight against hunger,” said Kate Maehr, President of Feeding Illinois and CEO of the Greater Chicago Food Depository.
Feeding Illinois also presented two other awards to leaders in the fight against hunger. Brenda Hanbury, who is retiring as Chief of the Bureau of Homeless Services and Supportive Housing for the Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS), was given the Public Service Award, and Dennis Smith, the retiring executive director of the Northern Illinois Food Bank, received the Lifetime Achievement Award.
Hanbury was singled out for her long service to the State of Illinois and for her commitment to providing food, shelter, medical care and other vital services to her neighbors in need. In her role with IDHS she has overseen the Emergency Food and Shelter program, the state’s largest General Revenue Fund program for assisting homeless persons. She also administers the $10 million Supportive Housing program, the Assistance to the Homeless fund, the federal Emergency Food program, the SNAP Education program and SNAP Outreach.
In its award to Dennis Smith, who became executive director of Northern Illinois Food Bank in 1998, Feeding Illinois pointed to a wide range of achievements. Under his leadership, Northern Illinois Food Bank increased the amount of food distributed from seven million to 35 million pounds last year; boosted its partner agencies from 210 to 665; and expanded its revenue six fold. In 2010, Northern Illinois Food Bank was named Food Bank of the Year by Feeding America.

TANF Stimulus Funds Feed Hungry Children Over the Summer

Feeding Illinois has received more than $2.7 million dollars in public and private funds for its Healthy Families Program to feed hungry children this summer, when they are at high risk of poor nutrition.

The funding comes at a time when more than half a million children in the state of Illinois wonder where their next meal is coming from. There is a significant spike in demand for food during summer months when children are out of school and do not have access to the free and reduced-price breakfast and lunch programs. Many families are unable to make ends meet and resort to literally taking turns eating at different meals throughout the day so they can stretch their food. These meals will be rich with fresh fruits and vegetables (1.5 million pounds) and will include nutritious main dishes that are easy for children to prepare for themselves like chicken soup and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches (4 million pounds).

The funding enables Feeding Illinois and its member food banks to purchase 5.5 million pounds of nutritious, child-friendly food providing 4.3 million meals across the state.

Feeding Illinois and its member food banks are grateful for the partnership of the following organizations that made this project possible:

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Illinois Department of Human Services
Walmart Foundation
The Chicago Community Trust
J.B. and M.K. Pritzker Family Foundation

Media

Summer Hunger Programs in Chicago and Cook County, WTTW/Chicago Tonight, August 10, 2010 http://www.wttw.com/main.taf?p=42,8,80&pid=_aEjP62Ze_Vssm0Fh4Ld79_zcE48qUN1

Mobile foodbank brings help where it's needed, Herald Review, By EMILY STEELE, June 30, 2010 http://www.herald-review.com/news/local/article_b5fa48db-e1db-5e6a-a5b4-f05f25548f9d.html

Feeding Illinois Release First Statewide Report on Hunger

Feeding Illinois reported in its first statewide hunger study a 50% increase in requests for emergency food assistance over the past two years. The study reports that one in 10 men, women, and children – 1.4 million Illinoisans – turned to food banks for emergency food in 2009.

Feeding Illinois held a press conference at the Illinois State Capital on March 24th to release the report and call for legislative action to:

Provide funding for Food for Families (SB 2539/HB 5173): To meet the rising need for food, Feeding Illinois estimates an additional 27 million pounds of food will be needed in FY 2011. The organization is asking the Legislature to provide 25 percent of this food by funding the Food for Families program at $5,040,000.

Create a Commission to End Hunger (SB 3158/HB 5501): To bring together public and private organizations, the state should establish a statewide Commission to End Hunger. The Commission will develop and update an action plan every two years that works toward the long-term goal of ending hunger in Illinois.

MEDIA

Nearly 1.5 million in Illinois short on food

The Northwest Indiana Times, April 5, 2010, http://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/illinois/article_9001a834-0bae-552e-ae34-4ee2f7f0e453.html

Illinois Statehouse News, March 30, 2010, By Bill McMorris, http://illinois.statehousenewsonline.com/2533/nearly-1-5-million-in-illinois-short-on-food/

Alton Telegraph, March 30, 2010, http://www.thetelegraph.com/news/food-38258-state-illinois.html

watch?v=C5992bCNtdo

Tax Check Off

Beginning with the 2010 tax season, tax payers in Illinois can give back while completing their income tax forms by donating to hunger relief efforts across Illinois. A new tax check-off program approved in the spring of 2009 by the Illinois General Assembly makes it easier than ever to donate at a time of unprecedented demand for emergency food. The USDA Food Security Study, released in November 2009, found that the number of people in the United States unable to access adequate, safe, nutritious food for themselves and their families increased 30% in 2008.

By checking off “Hunger Relief” on your tax form, donations will benefit Feeding Illinois (www.feedingillinois.org), a coalition of the eight Feeding America food banks covering the entire state. The entire check-off amount donated will directly support emergency food programs across Illinois.

Media

Hunger relief fund can be fed from your Illinois tax form, Chicago Tribune – The Stew blog, Monica Eng, March 19, 2010, http://leisureblogs.chicagotribune.com/thestew/2010/03/hunger-relief-fund-can-be-fed-from-your-illinois-tax-form.html

Pork Power Donation

As part of the Pork Power: Partnering to Fight Hunger in Illinois campaign (http://www.ilpork.com/displaycommon.cfm?an=1&subarticlenbr=136), the Illinois Pork Producers Association (IPPA) (www.ilpork.com), along with the Illinois Corn Marketing Board (ICMB) (www.ilcorn.org) and the Illinois Soybean Association (ISA) (www.ilsoy.org) presented Feeding Illinois with more than 32,000 pounds of ground pork. Through Pork Power, more than 110,000 pounds of pork was donated in 2009.

Each day, at a time of unprecedented need, Illinois food banks provide access to healthy and nutritious food in an effort to keep families in Illinois from going hungry. The USDA recommends meat protein as part of a well-balanced and nutritious diet, yet it is often difficult for food banks to maintain an adequate supply. The Pork Power partners’ goal is to make meat protein available to those most in need. This donation helped re-stock the shelves of food banks after the increased demands of the holidays.

Media

Pork, corn, soybean groups donate 4,000 pounds of pork to River Bend Foodbank, Quad Cities Online, Posted Online: Feb. 17, 2010, http://qconline.com/archives/qco/display.php?id=480278

Pork given to food banks, Quad Cities Online, February 17, 2010, http://qctimes.com/news/local/article_5a429e68-1c2d-11df-b64f-001cc4c03286.html

Pork, Corn, Soybean Groups Donate 4,000 Pounds of Pork to River Bend Foodbank, Illinois Corn, February 17, 2010, http://www.ilcorn.org/internal.php?q=vprofile&id=597&date=February 17, 2010&banner=news

Wal-Mart Supports Feeding Illinois

Wal-Mart Foundation Donated $225,000 to Feeding Illinois to help stock shelves in local food banks across the state. In response to a sharp statewide increase in the need for food and groceries in Illinois food banks, combined with today’s tough economic conditions, the Wal-Mart Foundation has donated a check for $225,000 to Feeding Illinois’ annual food and fundraising campaign.

The donation of $225,000 enabled Feeding Illinois to purchase and distribute approximately 500,000 pounds of food or 375,000 meals. It also helped Feeding Illinois build capacity in food purchasing.

Media

Groups deliver food, gifts to those in need, Herald Review, By Theresa Churchill, December 18, 2009, http://www.herald-review.com/news/local/article_6e718cc7-1959-5291-89ae-b21d13acc75d.html

Local charities see more people in need this year, The State Journal-Register, By John Reynolds, December 15, 2009, http://www.sj-r.com/carousel/x967376901/Local-charities-see-more-people-in-need-this-year

Wal-Mart Makes Big Holiday Donation, WMBD/WYZZ, By Brandon Arnold, December 18, 2009, http://centralillinoisproud.com/search-fulltext?nxd_id=90931

Feeding Illinois

News & Events

Governor Quinn Announces Appointments to Commission to End Hunger New Body Aims to Increase Food Security and Access to Nutritional Food

Feeding Illinois Names Sen. Harmon Legislator of the Year Two Other Leadership Awards Announced

TANF Stimulus Funds Feed Hungry Children Over the Summer

Media

MEDIA

Tax Check Off

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Media

Media

Governor Quinn Announces Appointments to Commission to End Hunger
New Body Aims to Increase Food Security and Access to Nutritional Food

Feeding Illinois Names Sen. Harmon Legislator of the Year
Two Other Leadership Awards Announced