Save The National Hunger Hotline
A call to action

WHY responds every day to the emergency food needs of poor and hungry Americans through our National Hunger Hotline. Each month we serve more than 1,500 of our fellow citizens from all across America who are hungry. The demand for this lifeline increases daily. The federal funding of this vital program is in jeopardy and our nation stands to lose the only centralized call center connecting individuals to local food sources, empowering services,
government programs, and in addition rescuing thousands of pounds of food every month.

The hotline provides crucial assistance to hungry Americans in need of emergency assistance. We not only listen, we act. We connect individuals in need to emergency food in their own communities through our extensive network of community-based organizations. We connect people to government feeding and poverty programs including Food Stamps, WIC (Woman, Infants and Children Supplemental Food Program) Summer Feeding, School Breakfast, and Earned Income Tax credit. WHY also refers callers to community services that provide job training and placement, transitional and permanent housing, child care and more.

Here are some stories from the hotline:

A woman called from Kansas City, Missouri. She was crying uncontrollably and could barely get her words out. She was disabled, raising two teenage daughters without any child support, and was not receiving nearly enough food stamps to cover their needs. She had just given her daughters the very last bit of food in the house and she had not eaten for three or four days. Since this was an emergency situation, we made a number of calls for her, and arranged for a volunteer at a local food pantry to put together some groceries and bring them to her immediately. We also gave her the telephone numbers of additional food providers, a local family resource center, and community-based organizations focused on moving people out of poverty.

A man called from Arizona who had ended his military service after being stationed in Afghanistan and Iraq. He was suffering from physical injuries and the emotional challenge trying to reintegrate himself into civilian life. He had no family and no savings. As he was going through a long round of paperwork waiting for his benefits to begin, he found himself skipping meals and going hungry. We connected him with local emergency food providers and veterans support organizations.

A Spanish-speaking mother called from New Jersey who had just escaped an abusive relationship. She was pregnant and also a mother of a young child. She needed food, clothing and furniture. We connected her to three local food pantries as well as an organization that provided her with clothing and furniture. We also gave her information about a local office for WIC, to provide her with nutritious food for her child.

An elderly woman called from St. Petersburg, Florida, whose daughter recently died of AIDS, leaving four grandchildren in her care. She did not have enough food to feed them adequately, nor did she have the resources to buy them new clothing or school supplies. First, we connected her with a number of emergency food providers and other social service agencies, as well as her local office of the Department of Children and Families. We also connected her to a family counseling service and an organization that supports families of AIDS victims.

We are proud to provide these services to our fellow Americans who are most in need and not connected to any local resources. We are thankful that the U.S. Department of Agriculture has been the major funder of the hotline since its inception.

WHY found out late last year that the Bush Administration cut our $166,000 contract out of the budget. There was no criticism of WHY or the hotline. In fact, the USDA has given us high marks. This is simply one of those government bureaucratic penny wise and pound foolish budget cutting measures.

WHY is launching a campaign to save and expand the hotline. You can help by making a
generous donation and by asking your state's members of Congress and the USDA to put this small amount of money back into the President's 2005 federal budget.

Thirty-three million Americans experience hunger or food insecurity. Your donation will help us expand the much-needed service of the hotline:

1. To make it available 24/7 in English, Spanish and other needed languages.


2. To expand our network of emergency food providers and especially our network of grassroots organizations that promotes self-reliance.


3. To work with states and municipalities that do not presently have a hunger hotline and help them create one.

WHY faced many demands in 2003 due to the recession. We met those challenges with the help of people like you. We are confident that we can rise to this challenge as well as help thousands more hungry Americans move beyond emergency food to self-reliance and human dignity. WHY fights hunger.