BROWARD COUNTY Hunger on rise, survey shows (Miami, Davie: loan, income)

[sunrico90]

This needs to be resolved>.... What can we do to help?

A summary of survey results released Monday showed that nearly two-thirds of low-income families can't always afford to give their children a balanced meal. Complete survey results will be released later this month. To save on food, some residents eat non-nutritious meals, which are usually cheaper than healthier ones. And residents must make painful decisions every day about which bills to pay.

The council's Million Meals Committee, which has representatives from more than 65 agencies, sought the survey to quantify the amount of hunger in Broward. The results were timed to coincide with today's National Hunger Awareness Day.

The planning council went to places such as healthcare centers that serve low-income residents and surveyed more than 800 people who earn $35,000 or less a year. About 57 percent of the respondents had children.

The findings were grim:

Of families with children, 77.5 percent relied on only a few kinds of low-cost food for their kids, and 31 percent sometimes reduced the size of their child's meal.

And many adults -- 62 percent -- cut the size of their own meal or skipped meals some months. As many as 27 percent of adults did not eat for a whole day.

Hunger hits senior citizens hard as well. The number visiting the H.O.P.E Outreach Center in Davie has increased by 20 percent since 2004

About 48,000 households in Broward and 173,000 in Miami-Dade County get food stamps, according to the Florida Department of Children & Families. But illegal immigrants aren't eligible for food stamps, and only about 40 percent of residents who are eligible actually get them

[jhlcomp]

Isn't it shocking that this country, as great as it is, isn't much different than a 3rd world or developing country. That a single child has to go hungry is unspeakable. Thank you for bringing this to light.

[sunrico90]

Fighting hunger in South Florida just got personal. This group got the MSG....

A South Florida food bank is asking people to skip a meal and donate the money to help people in poverty. The program, launched by the Daily Bread Food Bank as part of Hunger Awareness Day, seeks to help feed the 450,000 people living in poverty in Miami-Dade County and 800,000 in Southern Florida, said Daily Bread Executive Director Judith Gatti.

Language barriers make the area harder to work in, Gatti said.

''I think that one of the strengths that we have in South Florida is our diversity, but it's also one of the challenges that we face,'' she said. ``It's important that people understand each other.''

The U.S. Department of Agriculture released a report yesterday that said participation in the food stamps program by eligible people jumped 20 percent from 2001 to 2005.

But Miami's rates, at less than 60 percent participation, lag behind the national average of 65 percent, said Daniella Levine, executive director of the Miami-based Human Services Coalition.

Roberto Salazar, the administrator of the USDA's Food and Nutrition Service, which runs the food stamps program, said efforts to engage Spanish speakers could help bring up the rates.

Maybe multiple groups joining forces can make also a different....This is a great cause to take on...

[MrTudo]

Well at least the Empire can afford to support it's vast military complex all over the world. ( Not without begging the communist Chinese to loan the money of course )Heck that's getting into the trillions .

Such a deal