Take the SNAP Challenge!
National Hunger and Homeless Awareness Week is coming up the week of November 13th – 20th. United Way of the Midlands and Harvest Hope Food Bank are partnering to launch the SNAP Challenge during the week.
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as the Food Stamp Program, has served as the foundation of America’s national nutrition safety net, working to end hunger and improve the health of low-income people by helping families buy the food they need.
The SNAP Challenge asks participants to live on the same budget as people living on food stamps, approximately $4 per person per day for a week. The Challenge is not meant to be an exact replica of the experience of people depending on SNAP, but to bring awareness to how we all make food choices and how more limited resources affect those choices. Again, the Challenge is not meant to completely and 100% accurately reflect the experience of living on SNAP, but to provide a similar experience. It’s not exact and not a science – just meant to challenge your perceptions of poverty.
Why take the Challenge? With the 2012 proposed budget, cuts are expected in SNAP, the Commodities Supplemental Food Program (CSFP) that serves seniors, Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TEFAP), and Emergency Food and Shelter funds. The community must urge elected officials to understand how these cuts effect working families struggling to make ends meet. Current safety net programs are already stretched thin – our struggling families cannot endure additional cuts. Also, the SNAP Challenge emphasizes the importance (and difficulty) of healthy food choices on a limited budget. During the week, we will provide education materials on healthy cooking on a budget and host a cooking demonstration in partnership with the State Farmers Market with a local chef.
If you would like to participate in the Midlands SNAP Challenge please notify Jennifer Moore, United Way of the Midlands, at jmoore@uway.org.
Tags: Hunger, SNAP Challenge
October 26th, 2012 at 10:01 am
[...] Around this time last year, several United Way of the Midlands staffers were getting ready to participate in something known as the SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) Challenge. [...]