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As September comes to a close, I hope this note finds you doing well. This time of year ushers in an extremely busy time here at Manna, filled with preparations to help neighbors set bountiful tables, outreach opportunities, communities coming together, visits from partners, and much more. Over the past month we have been grateful to harness these activities and reconnect with valued collaborators, stakeholders, and community members to make sure that our service is the best it can be. I’m excited to share with you some updates.
This month we celebrated the grand opening of a new distribution site hosted by the Universities at Shady Grove; expanding food access both for the campus and surrounding community with a choice model for fresh produce and healthy shelf-stable basics. Later in the month we hosted the Board of Share our Strength–a national leader in ending childhood hunger and a dedicated supporter of Manna–to share our insights on the importance of community education and the choice model from the perspective of dignity, health, and food waste.
Last, but certainly not least, I was honored to represent our community and attend the White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health this week. The conference was the first of its kind in 50 years and mobilized communities across the nation to create the will to meet “a bold goal: to end hunger in America and increase healthy eating and physical activity by 2030.” There is a lot for me to process from the workshops, plenaries, and position papers, so please expect to hear more in future editions of this newsletter. For now and in the spirit of collaboration, I’ll leave you with the same closing remark President Biden ended with yesterday, “There’s nothing beyond our capacity when we work together.”
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