Texas Joins the No Kid Hungry Campaign
Posted by Jeremy Everett on Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Texas is ranked fifth in the nation, but not for BBQ, rodeos or scenic views. Sadly, Texas is ranked fifth in the nation for child food insecurity, which meals more than 1.8 million children in the state are at risk of hunger.
Today I was pleased to join Texas Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples, Austin Mayor Lee Leffingwell, USDA Southwest Regional Administrator Bill Ludwig, and Share Our Strength’s Chairman and CEO Bill Shore on the steps of the Texas State Capitol to launch the Texas No Kid Hungry Campaign. This public-private partnership will utilize the community outreach expertise of the Texas Hunger Initiative—a project of the Baylor University School of Social Work—to connect more children to existing federal nutrition programs and work to end childhood hunger in our state.
The Texas No Kid Hungry Campaign will increase awareness about programs that provide a valuable safety net for children, such as school breakfast and summer meal programs. This campaign is possible due to the resources of corporate partners like Walmart, Maximus and Dairy Max, and the teamwork of government agencies such as the Texas Department of Agriculture and Dallas Independent Public School District.
The launch today, which featured the Emmy Award-winning Biscuit Brothers and a group of singing, laughing children, reminded me about the value of the work we are doing. A child that is hungry can’t study, focus or learn, and in turn, falls behind. Working to ensure that children get a healthy breakfast before school means we are changing lives. What could be more rewarding?
Yes, Texas is ranked fifth in the country now, which means we have a lot of children at risk of hunger, but with the No Kid Hungry campaign, Texas is taking on childhood hunger in a big way and this is our first step.
October 12, 2011 | 0 comment(s) | Tags: No Kid Hungry, texas
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