Written by “Over 90,000 go hungry in Northern Virginia, one of the nation’s wealthiest regions. We’re changing that.”
Fairfax County is one of the wealthiest counties in the United States. The high cost of living makes it difficult for lower-income families to meet the basic needs of food, housing, medical and child care.
This problem is further complicated by federal programs that are meant to help low-income families (like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or SNAP) not taking the varying costs of living in different jurisdictions across the country into account. This causes low-income families in counties with higher costs of living to be turned away from government programs left to fend for themselves or discover other resources. That’s where nonprofits like Food for Others come in.
In the month of November, mHelpDesk donated a little over 126 pounds of food in support of Food for Others. The food donated will be used to provide free groceries to people in need in an effort to fight hunger and food insecurity in Northern Virginia.
“mHelpDesk employees love a little competition,” said Lindsey Rodriguez, mHelpDesk’s Talent Coordinator. “Participating in the mHelpDesk “Food Fight; Fight to end hunger” allowed our employees to build team bonds by competing amongst one another, and boost morale, while making a positive difference on the lives of those less fortunate.”
Food for Others is a nonprofit that provides free food to more than 2,000 families every week (on average). The families receiving the food are in dire need of basic necessities (food, housing, transportation, child care, etc). These hardships leave families with the choice to pay for either food or shelter, and often shelter becomes the priority. The families affected range in age and include newborn babies to the elderly and everyone in between.
Food for Others Power Pack Program (also known as P3) provides food on the weekends at 29 Fairfax County public elementary schools. They also distribute free food from their warehouse and at 16 neighborhood sites throughout the Northern Virginia area. Food for Others also supports smaller organizations and nonprofits with the same mission, allowing them to aid food pantries and homeless shelters in the area.
Visit the Food for Others website if you’d like to learn more about their mission or contributeto their cause.
Last modified: December 15, 2016
