Newspapers / Elon University Student Newspaper / Dec. 6, 2017, edition 1 / Page 6
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Holiday donations benefit Alamance County food bank Maggie Brown Assistant News Editor I @M3ggieAbrown. Allied Churches of Ala mance County (ACAC) is the largest ^ feeding program in the county, located less than 5 miles from Elon Universi ty’s campus. Their goal is to improve the community by helping residents find hous ing and secure meals. Originally, ACAC began as a core group of church es pooling its resources to serve community better. But today, ACAC acts as its own nonprofit funded by more than 100 churches in the local community. During the holiday sea son, ACAC supports its res idents through a program called Honor Cards. ACAC^ ^ttnotes''ffi^feness by sell-" ing their own holiday cards that have a unique design on them and are something commuinty members can send to their friends and fam ily during the holiday season. Many churches and minis tries in the community, such as Greensboro Urban Min-'- istry, will have these cards available for purchase. Sup port from fundraisers like this is what keeps many different programs in ACAC funded through the holiday season. “We have so many pro grams relying on holiday cards,” said Caidin Vatikio- tis-Bateson, ACAC’s commu nity relations director. “We have ‘honor card ambassa dors’ and they will take them back to their church and seU them. It’s amazing because I can’t sell $25,000 worth of honor cards.” One of the programs fund ed by these holiday cards is ACAC’s community kitchen. The kitchen feeds hot meals to around 200 residents per day. Most of those seeking a meal are those whose month ly government benefits, like the Supplemental Nutri tion Assistance Program (SNAP), can no longer support them. The community kitch en is open for lunch and dinner five days a week. One of the kitchen staff employees, Willie War ren, is a proud resident of Burlington an employee of the ACAC. “One time I used to go through this line,” Warren said. ACAC does not act alone. They are not only by being supported by hundreds of churches in the commuinty, but also by Elon. Elon Dining partners with the ACAC to make sure they have meals to provide to residents even more during the holidays. Just last week, they donated leftovers from the Thanks giving meals. “’Ihis chicken came from Elon cafeteria,” Warren said. “Every Wednesday they bring us food like salads, fresh vegetables.” The community kitchen receives most of its food ei ther from donations or from their food bank. Because the ACAC receives their food from a food bank, they are able to get supplies for some times 19 cents a pound. WHAT IS FOOD INSECURITY? • Food insecurity is a lack of guaranteed access to regu lar meals • Food insecurity can also refer to reduced quality, va riety or desirability of diet • The United States De partment of Agriculture recognizes four levels of food insecurity, from low to high “We can go to the food bank so our dollar goes fur ther,” Vatikiotis-Bateson said. The ACAC encourages monetary donations during this holiday season over food donations. While all dona tions are appreciated, there is more of a monetary need when addressing the issue of hunger. “Eight now the support '"Irom the community is huge,” Vatikiotis-Bateson said. “We have so many food drives happening and people com ing in. We are getting more food than we can use.” In addition to the al ready abundant contribu tions from the community, Vatikiotis-Bateson is asking for donations of $10-$20 de partment store gift cards. She hopes those coming to the community kitchen will not be returners, but rather be able to economically support themselves enough to not come back. “We have great relation ships with lots of employers around,” Vatikiotis-Bateson said. “But ifour resident gets a job in the manufacturing industry and doesn’t have a pair of shoes, we can’t buy them for him without the proper funds.” By providing residents with gift cards, residents are able to purchase supplies they may need for a job. If they are able to maintain this job because they have the right equipment, then they will not need to return to the ACAC’s kitchen. u RIGHT NOW THE SUPPORT FROM THE COMMUNITY IS HUGE, WE HAVE SO MANY FOOD DRIVES HAPPENING AND PEOPLE COMING IN. WE ARE GETTING MORE FOOD THAN WE CAN USE, CAITLIN VATIKIOTIS-BATESON ACAC’S COMMUNITY RELATIONS DIRECTOR Issues of housing and hun ger are directly related. And though it would make sense to feed the hungry all the time, the ACAC recognizes hunger stems from a larger, economic problem. According to Feeding America, 78 percent of the residents in Alamance Coun ty are below the guidelines for SNAP. The food insecuri ty rate is 15.7 percent, where nationally, low rates are from 5 to 10 percent and high rates are in the upper 20s. Senior Meredith Piatt is a student intern at ACAC and has been a resident of Burl ington her whole life. She is MAGGIE BROWNIASSISfAUTKEKSEdll Senior Meredith Piatt at Hit Allied Churches of Alamance County gets ready to serve liincli. FOOD INSECURITY IN ALAMANCE COUNTY $2.90 Average weekly dollar amount food-secure individuals report spending on each meal. 24,200 Number of food insecure people i Alamance County 78% [OF ALAMANCE RESIDENTS] MEET REQUIREMENTS ,F0R FOOD STAMPS $23,550 The current federal poverty level for a family of four. The level is $19,530 for a family of three. 8,560 Number of children eligible for free and reduced-price school meals passionate about how hous ing has affected the hunger in Alamance County. “Issues of housing can include issues of unemploy ment or issues of discrimi nation,” Piatt said. “Donating stuff really helps people get on their feet, but the real back ground to everything is that people need housing and help.” Many in the commu nity believe there is an increased need in the hol iday season because more people are donating. But the ACAC is asking for a consistent number of do nations that don’t fluctu ate during the seasons. “The goal is to get peo ple out as quickly as pos sible, so we aren’t proud to have people,” Piatt said. “A perspective of commu nity members and also students is that during the holiday season there is an increased need. There isnt. There is a consistent need for donations.” Because ACAC partners with Elon Volunteers (EV!), many of the volunteers are lost during Eton’s breaks. The holidays are where the ACAC has a lack of volunteers and is looking for more help. But mostly, the needs in the hol iday season are consistent with the needs throughout the year. “We work really close with Eton, and Eton gives us a lot of support, but we always need volunteers because there is always something happen ing at the shelter.” Vatikio- tis-Bateson said. Ready to make the most of your world? Do the unexpected. Apply by January T: peacecorps.gov/openings
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