HUNGER AFFECTSEVERYONE THE NEW FACE OF HUNGERREQUIRES A FRESH APPROACH

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Stories HopeFall 2010

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• An inspiring Food & Fund Drive• Working toward a Hunger-Free Minnesota• Inside SNAP Outreach• Above & Beyond for our hungry neighbors

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If you live in Minnesota, you are affected by hunger, and Hunger-Free Minnesota can prove it.

Hunger-Free Minnesota is an emerging movement to end hunger in our communities, initiated by a coalition of Minnesota hunger relief organizations —including Second Harvest Heartland—united in the common belief that food is a basic and essential human right that every Minnesotan should enjoy. The coalition attacks hunger on two fronts: with jarring, insightful statistics and also with the emotional stories of our hungry neighbors.

The first initiative of Hunger-Free Minn-esota was to present a series of studies

examining the state of hunger and hunger relief in Minnesota. The most recent of these studies, the University of Minnesota Food Industry Center’s Cost/Benefit Hunger Impact Study, reveals that the effects of hunger are more far-reaching than we ever suspected.

Simply put, the Cost/Benefit Hunger Impact Study shows that if you are a member of our community, hunger has impacted your life in some way or another.

Our community’s hungry face more health issues than those who receive proper nutrition, and the 40% of our hungry neighbors who are children tend to do poorly in school and face a number of other risks ranging from depression and anti-social behavior to stunted physical and cognitive development. Minnesota taxpayers pay between $1.26 billion and $1.62 billion more per year as a result of higher healthcare and education costs due to hunger’s ravaging effects on the health, classroom performance and psychological well-being of our community.

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INSPIRATION COMES IN SMALL PACKAGESStillwater boys set a fine Food & Fund example

Working toward a Hunger-Free Minnesota

Second Harvest Heartland Food & Fund Drives generate tons of food and hundreds of thousands of dollars for our friends in need. But the most important thing a Food & Fund Drive generates? Inspiration.

And when it comes to inspiration, no one is better than the dynamic duo of Henry and Dylan. The two Stillwater-area six-year-olds (with a little help from their moms) have organized neighborhood food drives for three straight years, with astounding results. In 2010, Henry and Dylan ran an official Food & Fund Drive and raised nearly 800 pounds of food. The tots used a little blue wagon to distribute 175 brown paper bags donated by Cub Foods throughout their Oak Glen neighborhood. The bags were affixed with fliers requesting that neighbors fill the bags and leave them on their porch on a specific day. The busy boys then collected the 90 bags that were filled by their generous neighbors and (again, with a little help from their moms) delivered the donations to Second Harvest Heartland.

The best thing about our Food & Fund Drives is that they promote community involvement, and Henry and Dylan’s drive is a perfect

example. Two other Stillwater neighborhoods followed the example set by the boys and hosted Food & Fund Drives of their own.

“Sometimes all it takes to motivate and inspire someone to take action is to ask,” says Natalie Waters Seum, Henry’s mother. “We sent one message to 20 Stillwater moms asking if they and their children would be interested in organizing their own simultaneous food drive. From that single request with very short notice, two additional neighborhoods joined us this year and five more are excited for next year. Inspiring others to do similar work is one way that Henry and Dylan can increase the impact they are able to have on the issue of hunger.”

The three neighborhoods generated a total of 1,600 pounds of food donations and $480 for our hungry neighbors, proving that you’re never too young to get involved.

“I think the special part about this,” says Dylan’s mother, Katie Friend, “is that it gives all the families in the neighborhood a chance to participate and share some lessons about hunger with their own children.

Vintner BallSaturday, January 29 • Westin Edina Galleria

All proceeds for this world-class charitable wine tasting event benefit Second Harvest Heartland. Vintner Ball will host the sixth annual First Growths, generating warmth in the heart during the chill of winter. This year the bar has been set even higher, with a goal of surpassing last year’s donations for Second Harvest Heartland and providing yet another world-class wine tasting experience.

To learn more, visit vintnerball.com

Pound for Pound ChallengeNow - May, 2011

For every pound you pledge to lose, the Pound For Pound Challenge will donate 13¢ to Feeding America.

Visit pfpchallenge.com for more details.

The Mission Beyond the Mission

A message from our Executive Director

Continued on page 6

Continued on page 6 You can help.

Together we are transforming hunger relief. Mark your calendar with these events. Go to 2harvest.org/events for more details.

Dish is our annual gala—a wonderful opportunity

for committed members of our community to come

together over gourmet samplings, wine tasting, live

and silent auctions and premiere entertainment, while

recognizing and reflecting on stories of success and

those of continued need.

Visit dishcuisineforchange.org to reserve your tickets and tables!

CUIS INE FOR CHANGE

Thursday, April 21 • St. Paul RiverCentre

A refreshed Second Harvest HeartlandNine years ago, Minnesota’s two largest food banks joined together to create Second Harvest Heartland. Since that day, we’ve worked tirelessly not just to meet the needs of the hungry, but to make hunger relief more efficient, more effective and to more wholly connect our region’s abundance with our neighbors in need.

As the Midwest’s largest hunger relief organization, we’re leading the fight against hunger throughout the region and creating innovative ways to provide food to the people who need it. Every day, we work with more than 1,000 hard-working partner organizations to make sure that no one has to go without food. And in the years since our founding, we have evolved from a food bank focused almost solely

on food distribution, to a hunger relief agency that drives efficiency, innovation and collaboration to transform the system, enabling us to be there for every one of our neighbors when they need our support.

You—our partners, friends, colleagues, volunteers, donors and supporters—have told us you want to do more, to lead, and to transform the lives of those who are counting on us. Thanks to all of you who share the belief, and who act on your conviction that our community can sustain and provide sustenance to our hungry neighbors in their time of need.

Over the past 18 months, we’ve taken a closer look at what we stand for, who we help, and how we communicate. You will notice our new look and feel: a reflection

of the abundance of our community—the land, people and agriculture—that shapes our effort and fuels our conviction. The pressures of the tremendous need and changing resources of the recession have forced us to be even clearer about how we invest in hunger relief, and it is our hope that we can reflect that focus through our commitment to help our hungry neighbors, and through honoring your commitment to our work.

Our challenge as an organization is to live the Second Harvest Heartland mission every day through our words and our actions. Thank you for being a part of this important journey.

-Rob Zeaske

Summer Food Service Program

Summer 2010 was the third year of a partnership between the Minnesota Vikings, the Minnesota Department of Education and Second Harvest Heartland, with new support from Target, to expand children’s participation in the USDA Summer Food Service Program. The goal is to improve access to SFSP by increasing the number of sponsors, feeding sites and participation at existing sites. And by making the program known.

“When the Vikings ask hungry children to lunch, the kids respond with joy and eagerness,” says our executive director, Rob Zeaske. “The visibility around this program is a real breakthrough in communicating with families. ‘Free Food for Kids’ and purple pride make good nutrition a softer sell.”

For the program to fully lift off, efforts shifted to creating awareness by canvassing neighborhoods with “Kids Eat Free” door hangers, billboards and posters that appealed to children and parents alike. And grants were extended into Second

Harvest Heartland’s western Wisconsin service area, with additional support from ConAgra Foods.

Attendance at these SFSP sites has exploded, nearly tripling over the first three years of the program. More than 750,000 grant-supported meals were served to our hungry kids over the summer of 2010, and we’re projecting to serve more than a million meals next summer.

Food Rescue

The Second Harvest Heartland Food Rescue program is our fastest growing program.

With more and more people requiring nutrition assistance, fresh food—milk, dairy, produce and meat—is at an all time premium to all hunger relief organizations. More than ever, it’s crucial that we work to create new and innovative ways to provide fresh food to our neighbors in need.

So far, so good. In 2010, the Food Rescue program distributed more than 12 million pounds of fresh food through our network: a 92% increase over 2009. In fact, more than one-fifth of all the food we delivered this year was of the fresh variety.

We’re able to deliver this much produce, milk and meat because we’ve reinvented our thinking about how to deliver these perishable goods. In many cases, Food Rescue drivers pick the food up at the source and deliver it directly to a food shelf, a process that saves time and keeps costs down. Second Harvest Heartland has even brokered direct partnerships between corporate donors and local food shelves. It’s a more efficient way to get millions of pounds of fresh food where it needs to go.

Helping today, solving for tomorrow

We need to do more than simply deliver food today. By setting up sustainable systems that address the root causes of hunger, we can make it so our hungry neighbors always have access to food when they need it.

For more information about SNAP, SFSP and Food Rescue, visit 2harvest.org/howtohelp.

The need in our community continues to grow as hunger now touches every Minnesotan in some way. To break the grip hunger holds on our community, Second Harvest Heartland is pioneering new programs, partnerships and approaches that address the root causes of hunger. We have to not only relieve hunger; we have to transform the hunger relief system.

Second Harvest Heartland programs like SNAP Outreach, Food Rescue and the Summer Food Service Program take a fresh approach to issues often overlooked in the Hunger relief business. These innovative programs address our hungry neighbors’ access to available meals, the ‘rescue’ of fresh food, and how to impact the daily lives and potential of our hungry children.

We’ve proven to be more than proficient at distributing food. These proactive programs are built to do more.

SNAP Outreach

What is food support? Who is eligible? The quickly growing SNAP Outreach program is about answering these questions. Over the past 18 months, six dedicated Outreach Specialists have spread the word throughout

our community about the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, form-erly known nationally as Food Stamps and in Minnesota as Food Support).

The general lack of awareness and under-standing about SNAP in our community is astonishing. Our Outreach Specialists visit food shelves, soup kitchens, and special events throughout the Second Harvest Heartland service area with two goals: to enlighten people about SNAP and help them apply. The specialists report that even those who know about SNAP have no idea if they qualify, or even how to find out if they qualify. In fact, 36% of people eligible for the program leave their benefits on the table. That’s nearly $210 million in food and financial assistance through SNAP that goes unclaimed.

With so much assistance readily available, there is no excuse for people in our state to continue to go hungry. Our neighbors need to understand the help that’s available to them.

“Many people who only recently had been working and doing fine would never even consider SNAP,” SNAP Outreach Specialist Ali Gardner says. “They think they have to wait until they’re at their wit’s end, when their savings have run out and they have no other alternative.”

A large part of the Second Harvest Heartland effort to reinvent hunger relief is recognizing that there is a ‘new face’ in hunger relief. There are now hungry seniors, children and families in every neighborhood and many of these people have never been in this position before. First time visitors to local food shelves and shelters often have no notion that other nutritional assistance is available. SNAP Outreach is about finding these people and making them aware of all their options.

“Hunger today is not just an urban problem,” Ali says. “Hunger has arrived in the suburbs. My job is to help people understand that food support is an aid that can help a family through tough times.”

A FRESH APPROACH TO HUNGER RELIEFSecond Harvest Heartland’s effort to transform the system

Minnetonka is a city where the median household income is more than $80,000. It’s hard to believe that in such an affluent community, Steve and his neighbors live in a working class island. At their best, the former shipping and receiving associate and his wife both worked two jobs—a combined income of $50,000—to support their two daughters. But that was five years ago.

The couple now relies on unemployment benefits to feed 15-year-old Katie and 10-year-old Olivia. “We tried to make sure the kids don’t really feel it,” says Steve of the extent he and Treva have gone to protect their daughters from any sort of stigma associated with their lack of income. “It’s hard to have the kids not have a normal life and do just everyday things, knowing that the $20 you hand them is the last $20 you may have for a few weeks.”

Life has been a pendulum of promises and disappointments for the couple since they both lost their jobs. They continually file applications for work, dress and prepare themselves for interviews, and debate whether or not taking $7 to $8 an hour jobs is wise considering Treva’s and Katie’s medical needs from asthma complications. The 48-year-old Steve believes their age has been a hindrance in their search and hopes they can start new careers to take care of themselves.

Until such a time comes, they turn to their local food shelf, the ICA Center at St. David, for assistance. The agency of the Second Harvest Heartland food bank provides them with the food the parents need to keep their family fed.

To learn more about Steve and his family’s struggle with hunger, visit help.feedingamerica.org

HUNGER CAN STRIKE ANYONE, ANYWHERE

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Hunger can strike anyone, at any time. Read on to learn more about this Minnetonka family.

SFSP served more than 750,000 grant-supported meals to kids this summer.

The Food Rescue program delivered 12 million pounds of fresh food in 2010.

As the weather cools down, our efforts to help our member food shelves expand their cold storage capacity are heating up.

Second Harvest Heartland is always looking for ways to help our agency partners meet the growing need in the community. As our ability to deliver

fresh, perishable foods grows, it is important that our partner agencies grow their capacity to handle these deliveries.

At many of the 1,000 local food shelves, shelters, programs and soup kitchens in the Second Harvest Heartland network, cold storage for essential items like fruits, vegetables, milk and cheese is at a premium. Which is why, throughout the months of November and December, we will deliver 67 Beverage-Air commercial grade coolers and freezers to 64 of our agency partners.

Christine Pulver, Director of Basic Needs at Keystone Community Services, says that while the

new refrigerated three-door unit to be delivered to her organization’s Midway location in St. Paul greatly increases the food shelf’s capacity to accept nutritious, perishable food, it also overcomes another significant problem.

“The glass doors on the refrigerator add more of a retail look,” she says. “Clients can shop as they would at a retail store. It adds dignity to the process.”

Adding dignity to hunger relief is more important every day, as people who have never had to ask for aid find themselves in need. More than 500 people visit Keystone’s Midway location every week, while the number of visits throughout Keystone’s network has increased 61% over the last two years.

Second Harvest Heartland earmarked $250,000 of general fundraising efforts for this vital project. These funds cover 75% of the cost of the units, which were purchased through Ideal Refrigeration in St. Louis Park. The receiving agency covers the rest.

“Help like this makes it so much easier to service our clients,” Christine says. “The more perishable food we can receive, the more people we can help.”

ALISON BRADY: SNAP Outreach Specialist

Alison Brady sees the growing need in our community every day.

As a Second Harvest Heartland SNAP Outreach Specialist, Alison helps people from all walks of life not only understand their options, but access these options.

“I’ve worked with many people who have never had to think about public assistance,” she says. “These are people who don’t know anything about how [the program] works because it is the first time in their life that they’ve ever needed help. I work with men, women, teens, elderly, English and non-English speakers. Some have college degrees and others have only completed the equivalent of a middle school education level.”

As Second Harvest Heartland’s mission to reinvent hunger relief focuses more and more on creating access to available food resources, the work of SNAP Outreach Specialists like Alison becomes increasingly important. The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly known nationally as Food Stamps and in Minnesota as Food Support) is a federal resource that is vastly underused in Minnesota, and

Outreach Specialists like Alison are essential to helping our hungry neighbors learn about and apply for this valuable option.

Alison travels throughout Minneapolis and Anoka County, talking to people who are in need or who may know someone in need. Every day is different for Alison as she screens clients anywhere there might be people who require further assistance. She sets up at churches during free lunches. She sits in the lobbies of food shelves and screens people as they come in for their appointments. She also schedules special group events for seniors, visits local events held by other organizations (such as Coats for Kids) and even meets people one-on-one, all in an effort to tell people that help is available.

But the job of a SNAP Outreach Specialist is so much more than informing our hungry neighbors about their options. Alison also helps potentials applicants examine their finances to discover whether they qualify. She’ll sit with a client and help fill out the daunting SNAP application forms. And after the application is filed, she’ll follow up to see how the applicant is doing.

Helping erase the negative stigma that comes with requesting aid is a big part of the job. Her one-on-one appointments

often take place at coffee shops or libraries in an effort to make potential applicants—especially those who have never had to ask for aid before—feel at ease.

“The private appointments are very interesting because the client will often be more willing to discuss their situation outside of a lobby or waiting area at a food shelf,” Alison says. “I think they feel more comfortable because they are closer to their home and the setting is more natural.”

SNAP Outreach is a rewarding, challenging, sometimes heartbreaking vocation, and Alison Brady wouldn’t have it any other way.

“As painful as it can be at times, I appreciate when clients tell me about their lives,” she says. “It is a daily reminder that tragedy and hardship can happen at any moment. I’m amazed at the people I work with whose lives have hit absolute rock bottom and yet they are unwilling to give up.”

Voices of HungerTHE FRONT LINES OF HUNGER RELIEF

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Many neighborhood families had that conversation with their children while shopping together for food to donate.”

The Food & Fund phenomenon grows every year. Through October of 2010, registered Food & Fund Drives had raised $385,656 and 128,786 pounds of food.

Our Food & Fund Drive program makes it easy for anyone to place a personal stamp on hunger relief. We provide the tools and you provide the creativity and personal touch. By getting involved at the ground level, you’re setting an example that is sure to raise awareness and get other thinking about how to help our hungry neighbors.

To start your own Food & Fund Drive, visit 2harvest.org/

foodandfund.

Hunger, when not directly impacting the lives of our hungry friends, neighbors and children, directly impacts our wallets. The Cost/Benefit Study proves that while ending hunger is morally right, it is also a financially sound goal.

Hunger-Free Minnesota has also partnered with Minnesota Public Radio to present the personal stories of those affected by hunger. Through these stories, you’ll learn firsthand how hunger impacts their lives and how they’re finding hope through neighborhood food shelves and other organizations like Second Harvest Heartland. MPR will contribute news stories, blog posts and podcasts in an effort to shine a personal light on the issue of hunger in Minnesota.

Hunger-Free Minnesota gives everyone the chance to understand hunger from both sides. To learn more about Hunger-Free Minnesota, download all four hunger studies, hear stories of hunger or sign the Pledge for a Hunger-Free Minnesota, visit hungerfreemn.org.

INSPIRATION FROM PAGE 3HUNGER-FREE FROM PAGE 3

If you believe that food is a basic and essential human right, and that Minnesota produces enough food to nourish and sustain all who live here, please visit hungerfreemn.org and support Hunger-Free Minnesota in its campaign to end hunger by clicking Sign the Pledge.

Add your name to this pledge and unite with thousands of people across our state who believe in a Minnesota where everyone has enough to eat. Together, we can end hunger where we live.

SIGN THE PLEDGE FOR A HUNGER-FREE MINNESOTA

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AN EXTRA EFFORT FOR OUR HUNGRY NEIGHBORS

Cold storage, warm hearts

I like hearing about the lives of the people I help.

Alison BradySNAP Outreach Specialist

DOUBLE YOUR GIFT!Many employers in Minnesota match the charitable donations of their employees. Second Harvest Heartland makes it simple to find out if your company will match your gift. Just visit 2harvest.org/matchmygift and input your company into the search option.

Nonprofit Organization

US Postage Paid Second Harvest

Heartland

Taste of the NFL 2010The 20th annual Taste of the NFL generated more than $115,000 in support of the Vikings Children’s Fund Summer Lunch Program. By attending this wonderful evening, you made our goal of providing more than 1,000,000 grant-supported meals to our community’s hungry children more than possible. Thank you so much for your support.

Cause and EffectsYou supported the cause. Here is the change you’ve effected.

Second Harvest HeartlandPhone: 651.484.5117 Toll Free: 888.339.3663 Fax: 651.484.1064

2harvest.org

Contact InfoWill help provide 1,000,000 meals in 2011

8 Fall 2010

1140 GERVAIS AVE., ST. PAUL, MN 55109-2020

®

Taste of the NFL has been such a success that at this year’s event, USDA staff presented the Vikings and Second Harvest Heartland with

certificates of appreciation (upper right).

200,000

750,000

1,000,000

Helped provide nearly 200,000 meals in 2009

Helped provide 750,000 meals in 2010

Meals provided by