September is a time for orange on trees, Bloggers Go Orange, and Hunger Action Month. For the second year in a row, several mom bloggers have gotten together to teach their children and others how to fight hunger. Jen Fischer of The Good Long Road and Stacy of Kids Stuff World launched the campaign last week. You can visit their sites for a way to join the fight against hunger.Quite honestly I had forgotten about this campaign until I came across Jen’s post on Facebook. I didn’t mean to forget, but as you know we have had a lot going on at our house this fall.  Despite all that, I didn’t want to forget to acknowledge and celebrate it this wonderful way to serve others. It is really important that JDaniel understands and remember that there are people that go hungry every day.

Giving to our local food pantry has been our way of helping fight hunger. It isn’t JDaniel’s favorite place to go. He is bothered by the sometimes empty shelves we find there. I confess that it sometimes bothers me too. It would be wonderful if they were filled or overflowing.

My husband and I are both job hunting and while we have been faring well so far there are many around us who haven’t. We know a lot of people that have been laid off and haven’t found new jobs. They want to work as much as we do and for one reason or another, they haven’t been able too. Being able to stop by the local food pantry and pick up healthy things to eat it really important to them.

This year I decided to head to a nearby grocery store and pick up some of JDaniel’s favorite orange foods to take to the food pantry just as we did last year. I also purchased some of them for our family to make JDaniel an afterschool snack.  The snack was shared along what it symbolizes. Edible object lessons or talks are always delicious.

If you plan to join the fight against hunger here are a few tips:Many people reach into their food pantry and grab a few cans to add to hunger-fighting events this month. While that is a great idea, it is important to check the end dates on the cans. I have heard horror stories about food pantries have to throw away huge amounts of donated food because they are long past their expiration dates.

Taking your children to the store with a photo shopping list of items food pantries need helps them feel more apart of the giving process.Hunger isn’t an easy or comfortable topic to discuss. It can make people uncomfortable. It does need to talk about and shared. I think it shares this issue with him helps him understand how grateful we are to have food at home and to be able to share it with others.

 

More Information
The two blogs I mentioned at the beginning of this post are spearheading the Bloggers Go Orange: Moms Fighting Hunger events. Please stop by their blogs for ways that you can help or participate in their campaign. You will also find information on  No Kid Hungry and Feeding America.  

ChallengeWill you pick up two can or boxes of food for each member of your family? Can you take those can to a food drive donation site this month? If you answered yes, you will be helping to fill the shelves of your town’s food bank.