Today I received an email from the Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee. It contained an appeal that should concern every one of us who are blessed to take our meals for granted:
Did you know that 1 in 5 children in Tennessee are at risk of hunger? According to a new report on Child Food Insecurity released by Feeding America, 20 percent of Tennessee children under 18 have what experts call "food insecurity,” meaning they do not know when or where they will find their next meal. Not only did Tennessee rank ninth in the country in the percentage of children under age 5 with food insecurity, our state jumped from seventh to fourth in the nation in the percentage of all children under the age of 18 with food insecurity. You can eliminate childhood hunger in Tennessee by making a donation today! Every dollar donated to Second Harvest provides 4 meals to hungry men, women and children.
As a parent of small children, it troubles me to think of how it's likely that some kids they may be playing with today might not be assured of a meal tonight.