Huffington Post, Mario Batali Food Stamp Challenge: Chef Spending $31 On Food For One Week
May 14, 2012
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/15/mario-batali-food-stamp-challenge_n_1517572.html

The chef, his wife and their two teenage sons are eating for a week on the equivalent of a food stamp budget in protest of potential cuts pending in Congress to the benefit program used by more than 46 million Americans.

That’s $31 per person for the week, or about $1.48 per meal each.

Goodbye restaurants, free nibbles on his talk show “The Chew” and all the luxe offerings at Eataly, the high-end New York City market he co-owns. Hello Trader Joe’s, Jack’s Dollar Store, Gristedes and Western Beef, a low-cost supermarket chain.

The Batalis have been joined on the weeklong challenge by wholesale meat purveyor Pat LaFrieda, who has a new Food Network series, “Meat Men,” Margarette Purvis, who heads the food bank, as well as more than 200 others who registered to complete the challenge. And anti-hunger groups in Las Vegas, Philadelphia and parts of Maryland and Ohio have led similar challenges over the last several months.

“Nearly 3 million New Yorkers have difficulty paying for the food they need,” Purvis said. “They live in every single neighborhood. We’re not trying to compare the food stamp challenge to the very real challenges people face. We’re just trying to raise awareness that it’s no longer just the homeless. It’s working families who use the food stamp program. It’s seniors. It’s a lot more children, in every single neighborhood.”

Sunday, May 20, 7-9 pm

Folk musicians Kevin Pakulis and Amy Langley and Michael Dues, Ray St. Clair and Bill Ronstadt.
Tickets: $10/person to benefit the Community Food Bank.

Blue Raven Gallery & Gifts in Tucson, Arizona, is located in Many Hands Courtyard at 3054 N. 1st Ave. between Ft. Lowell and Glenn on the east side of the street, south of the CODAC Center. The Gallery is through the gates and on the right.

on May 19 and 20, 2012

 The Tucson Street Rod Association’s Swap Meet and Car Show will be held on Saturday, May 19 and Sunday May 20, 2012 at the S.I.R. Dragstrip off Houghton Road, south of I-10 exit 275.  The Swap Meet and Car Show are open Saturday from 6:30 AM to 8:00 PM and Sunday from 6:30 AM to 2:00 PM.

Participants may swap/sell new and used autos, trucks, boats, bikes and relates items.

Contact Nick at (520) 887-5642 or Chuck at (520) 883-5229 or log on to www.tucsonstreetrodassociation.com for more information on purchasing space for the two day event.

A Lotta Storage Mail & U Haul
7651 N. I-10 EB Frontage Rd
Marana, Arizona 85743
phone:  520-572-8881
fax:  520-572-0042

marana@a-lottastorage.com

This A Lotta Storage Location is offering $1.00 credit for every 3 items of non-perishable food donated during this time.
On June 2^nd, a Garage Sale will be held at this location, along with the food drive.

The Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona is partnering with Feeding America in support of the Farm Bill and we need your help:

Help us generate 20,000 comments in support of strengthening and protecting hunger-relief programs!

On April 26, the Senate Agriculture Committee passed the Farm Bill out of committee.  The House must do the same.  Right now, members of the House Agriculture Committee are working on developing their version of the Farm Bill and seeking public comments to inform their decisions.  In April, that same committee approved a proposal to cut SNAP by $36 billion as part of the budget reconciliation process.  The full House is expected to vote on this measure later this week.  While the budget reconciliation votes are non-binding, they show how serious the threats to hunger-relief programs like SNAP and TEFAP really are, particularly in the House.

As a result, we need to send a strong message about the importance of protecting and strengthening these programs by generating comments from anti-hunger advocates throughout the country.  If every food bank can mobilize 100 people to make a comment on the House Agriculture Committee’s website, we can generate more than 20,000 public comments and show real grassroots support for hunger-relief programs.  Urge your volunteers, donors, partners, board members, social media followers, and other community supporters to post a comment and help us show Congress that Americans want their elected officials to stand up against hunger in America!

For more information please see the Farm Bill’s Website.

Here’s what you can do:

1. Go to the House Agriculture Committee Website

2. Post a comment:  You can post your own comment or use our sample.  The more local and personal your comment is, the more impact it will have.

I am a supporter of the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona.  Right now, many families in our community are struggling.  With increased demand for emergency food assistance, high food and gas prices, and declines in TEFAP commodities—a major source of the food we distribute—our food bank is having difficulty meeting the needs of our community.  We need a strong Farm Bill to make sure that struggling families can put food on the table.  I ask that you pass a Farm Bill that protects and strengthens programs like SNAP, TEFAP, and CSFP.  Our community cannot afford cuts to these programs.

3. Spread the word:  Help us reach our goal of 20,000 comments by sharing this call to action.  If every food bank successfully mobilizes 100 people, we can generate 20,000 comments!

If you have questions, please contact Brett Weisel at bweisel@feedingamerica.org.

The Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona has announced that one new member and one returning member have been added to its Board of Directors.

Susannah Myerson, Director of Strategic Initiatives with Watermark Retirement Communities was elected to the Board at the March 23, 2012 meeting and will serve a two year term.  Ms. Myerson heads the strategic planning team at Watermark Retirement Communities and is responsible for budgeting, operational analysis and product positioning for Watermark communities throughout the country. She holds a BS in Economics from The Wharton School at The University of Pennsylvania and a Master of Public Administration from the University of Arizona.

Andres Valenzuela was re-elected to the Food Bank Board at the February 24, 2012 meeting and will serve a two year term.  Mr. Valenzuela previously served on the Board from October, 2011 to February, 2012.  He earned both BS and MS degrees in Nutritional Science from the University of Arizona.

“The Community Food Bank is very excited about the return of Andres Valenzuela and the appointment of Susannah Myerson to the Board of Directors,” said Bill Carnegie, Food Bank President/CEO.  “Both will bring exceptional expertise to the Board and will help guide the future direction of the organization.”

For more information, contact Jack Parris at (520) 882-3297 or cell at (520) 444-5412.

Interested in healthy food?

The Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona will present a five-part class series around the food system, family nutrition, healthy meal planning, preparation, budgeting, and more.

Healthy food samples with recipes will be provided at each class.

When: Wednesday evenings, June 6- July 3, 6:30-8:00pm

Where: Grace St Paul’s Episcopal Church, 2331 E Adams St., near Elm St. and Tucson Blvd.

This series is free, but class size is limited so sign up early!

Call Leona at (520) 882-3295 to register.

Students are strongly encouraged to attend all five classes.

 View Flyer

All Things Food!  Class Schedule

Wed June 6:  Understanding Our Food System

Wed June 13: Sleuthing Your Supermarket (We’ll meet at Albertson’s on Campbell Ave. for this class!)

Wed June 20: Family Nutrition and Healthy Meal Planning

Wed June 27: Budgeting and Healthy Cooking

Tues July 3:    Thinking Outside the Supermarket – Home Gardens and Farmers’ Markets

Bill Carnegie, Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona President/CEO has been named Feeding America’s Executive of the Year for 2012.  Mr. Carnegie received the award at the Feeding America 2012 National Summit on April 19, 2012 in Detroit, Michigan.

The Executive Director of the Year Award honors the most outstanding Executive Director/CEO in the Feeding America network for going above and beyond their everyday responsibilities in the fight against hunger. Award recipients contribute an extraordinary effort to the network’s viability and momentum, and demonstrate excellence in leadership at both local and national levels as the network works together to provide hope to millions of hungry Americans.

Bill Carnegie has been President and Chief Executive Officer of the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona, since January 2006.  He has over 20 years’ experience in food banking, previously working in South Bend, Indiana and Grand Rapids, Michigan.  Mr. Carnegie served in the United States Coast Guard as a Finance Officer, retiring in 1990 after a twenty-year career.  He holds a B.S. in Marketing from Hawaii Pacific University and a Masters in Nonprofit Administration from the University of Notre Dame.

“The board of directors is very pleased and proud of Bill for being named Executive Director of the Year,” said Fran McNeely, Board Chair. “This reflects not only on Bill and his extraordinary leadership, but also on all the staff at the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona—it really does take a team.  The Southern Arizona Community can rest assured our community food bank is in very capable hands.”

Feeding America is the nation’s leading domestic hunger-relief charity; the network’s 200 members supply food to more than 37 million Americans each year, including 14 million children and 3 million seniors.

For more information, contact Jack Parris at (520) 882-3287 or cell at (520) 444-5412.

Sunday, May 20th, 2012, benefit concerts and a food drive for the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona will be hosted by Allegro School of Music. The concerts will be held at the University of Arizona School of Music in Holsclaw Recital Hall (located at the SE corner of Park and Speedway) from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Students of Allegro will perform a variety of musical styles on guitar, piano, voice, violin, bass and drums.

Admission is free and food donations will be accepted at the door for the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona (www.communityfoodbank.com)

Food donations will also be accepted from May 1st through May 31st at Allegro School of Music (4641 N 1st Ave #5) during school business hours Monday – Friday 12:00 – 8:00 p.m. and Saturdays from 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

**Those who donate food items are eligible to enter a raffle to win a FREE MONTH of music lessons ($104.00 value).  Allegro School of Music will be giving a free month of lessons to five people who donate to the food drive.**

Allegro School of Music is one of Tucson’s fastest growing music schools, offering quality music lessons in Guitar, Piano, Voice, Violin, and Drums to students of all ages.

For more information, contact the school at 670-9162 or visit www.AllegroSchoolOfMusic.net

There is still time to support the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona in Walmart’s “Fighting Hunger Together” initiative to help fight hunger and make a positive difference.

The 200 US communities hardest hit by unemployment were identified to participate in the initiative and Southern Arizona is on that list.  The community with the most votes will receive $1 million to help fight hunger. The next 20 communities will each receive $50,000 for hunger relief.

The Food Bank is in the running to win the $1 million grant from Walmart.  The public can help by visiting Walmart’s Facebook page (www.facebook.com/walmart) and vote by clicking on “Arizona” and “Tucson Area.”  Only one vote per person per day is allowed, but the more people who vote, the better chance the Food Bank has of winning.  Voting ends April 30, 2012.  Those wishing to vote may also go online to www.communityfoodbank.org to vote and learn more about Walmart’s “Fighting Hunger Together.”

For more information, contact Jack Parris at (520) 882-3287 or cell at (520) 444-5412.