Many tend to think of world hunger as being “over there” across an ocean or two. It is. But is also likely to be right in your own neighborhood, and certainly in the city where you live. I was confronted with this reality myself when I went home for my 10th high school reunion years ago. One of my classmates confided in me that she often only had bread for lunch--two slices of bread put together to look like a sandwich with something in between. There she was. I had grown up with her first grade through 12th and I never knew that she had hunger as a constant companion all that time we were growing up together.
I thought about her this morning as I delivered some produce from the Garland Community Garden and saw one of the volunteers from Good Sam’s. I love the feeling of being connected to others who are playing a part in eliminating hunger. It helps me to quell that voice inside that tells me I may as well give up -- there is no point in trying because the problem of hunger in the world is so huge.
Around the world, 690 million people regularly go to bed hungry, according to a 2020 report from the United Nations food agencies. Globally, about 8.9% of the world’s population — 690 million people — go to bed on an empty stomach each night. And no, as individuals we can’t single-handedly solve this problem, but working together, community by community, we can.
Those who garden at the Garland Community Garden donate 50% of their produce to Good Sam’s. This week our offering included 1 gallon packet of Swiss Chard, 8-quart bags of mint, 10- quart bags of kale; 4-quart bags of green beans; 5 peppers, 7 cucumbers and two-gallon bags of basil. Next week we will likely be adding a lot of tomatoes to our delivery as well as blackberries.