Paige DeLeon, Sr. Director of Volunteer Resources, and nurse

The Food Bank cares about the well-being of everyone we serve, including our staff. This morning, and as part of American Diabetes Month, our Wellness Committee organized free on-site diabetes testing. 

Two nurses from El Buen Samaritano (a CAFB Partner Agency) generously donated their time and services. They encouraged participants to fast prior to their test. With a quick prick and a one-minute wait time, each person was tested and given their results. The nurses were extremely nice and helpful, providing each participating staff member with a comprehensive explanation of their test results.

“I appreciate this free service and am so thankful to work for an organization that supports our health. It [the test] was quick, and the nurse was friendly,” said Delta Garcia, Agency Relations Representative.

Quick Links from The American Diabetes Association:

Basic information about the disease

How to eat a healthy diet with diabetes

A quick test to determine if you are at risk

Want to stay connected? Join a social network for people touched by diabetes.

Lisa Goddard
Advocacy and Online Marketing Director 

Returning to work a little more than two months after maternity leave after each of my sons were born was certainly a shock to my system.  The intimate quiet moments I enjoyed to feed my newborn was replaced by a quick dash (well within the speed limit and driving safety guidelines, of course) home during my lunch break.   I feel like I’m one of the lucky ones because I have a private space to pump if I choose, or can go home to nurse, as well as the finances to take an unpaid maternity leave for three months.  Across the nation, and especially in Texas, many women are not as “lucky.”

According to an Institute for Women’s Policy Research study, paid parental leave is still not standard, even among the best U.S. employers. While no federal or state law mandates paid maternity leave, the Pregnancy Discrimination Act and Family and Medical Leave Act provide some protection for pregnant women and new families.  This powerful report released by Texans Care for Children made me realize how lucky my family is, and how so many children in Texas have the odds stacked against them. Did you know:

• Texas ranks last in the number of children without health insurance.
• Texas has one of the country’s highest rates of births to teenage mothers (49 out of 50 states).
• Infant mortality rates have steadily climbed in Texas, this decade, while remaining unchanged in the nation as a whole.

And then there’s cost. 

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that mothers feed their babies only breast milk for the first six months, with some additional nursing as solid food is introduced and continuing at least for the baby’s first year. I again, was one of the lucky moms who didn’t have a great deal of difficulty nursing or maintaining supply. As this Babble.com article points out, breastfeeding isn’t exactly free for everyone, especially moms who return to the workforce. With my second, more than my first boy, work and life responsibilies sometimes got in the way of my desire for breastmilk-only babies, and I needed to suppliment my hapazard supply with formula.

So what happens when you live in a country that doesn’t create laws that make it easy to meet pediatric guidelines, in a state with the odds stacked against you for growing healthy children, and where the cost of breastfeeding while returning to work could cost a small fortune?  I’ll tell you –

Guilt.

I’m sure, I’m not the only mom who experienced this after returning to work, wanting to at least make it to one year exclusively breastfeeding.  A  New York Times article explains this breastfeeding class divide and says that on average, lower-income mothers have less time, fewer resources and less employer support for breastfeeding.  And before anyone thinks I’m going down the path of “formula is poison,” I, like many mothers, clearly made the informed decision that supplementing with formula is good enough. 

Over time, and with the support of my loved ones, I have made peace with my choice. In the end, guilt serves no one. 

For many moms, breastfeeding is a sore subject (no pun intended) which is why we need your voice. Your advocacy for the Child Nutrition Reauthorization Act and WIC can help moms have more real choices about how they feed their new babies.

One of the major goals of the Women Infants and Children (WIC) program is to improve the nutrition of infants, and encourage breastfeeding. They do this by offering support and resources that consider the real-life challenges of low-income moms:

• Breastfeeding mothers receive follow-up support through peer counselors
• Breastfeeding mothers are eligible to participate in WIC longer than non-breastfeeding mothers
• Mothers who exclusively breastfeed their infants receive an enhanced food package
• Breastfeeding mothers can receive breast pumps, breast shells or nursing supplementers to help support the initiation and continuation of breastfeeding

WIC is one of five programs under the Child Nutrition Reauthorization Act that is not an entitlement program.  This means that Congress does not set aside funds to allow every eligible individual to participate.  Each state has a yearly food expenditure goal and must meet at least 97 percent of its food grant or face penalties in the form of reduced funding for the next year.  Funding does not keep up with rising food costs and increased caseloads from the poor economy.

We need your support to ensure:

• Adequate funding in the FY 2010 budget to meet the growing need
• Combat pay from income for the purposes of determining eligibility (S.581) is excluded

My two boys -

CAFB staffers like their biz books. Here’s an inside look into some of our book shelves.

Kerri Qunell, VP Communications recommends:
Not Everyone Gets a Trophy: How to Manage Generation Y
By Bruce Tulgan

“Generation Y, whose members were born between 1978 and 1990, can be difficult to manage. Bruce Tulgan, a writer and management training consultant, offers not only a colorful portrait of this unique group, but also shows companies how to harness its power.

Tulgan says Gen Y-ers were raised in overprotected environments with parents who respected their every word and deed. He says Gen Y employees tend to have high expectations for themselves, don’t necessarily respect authority, and often take a short-term view on paying their dues. These factors can create generational tension, especially with older workers.

Go here for more info on the book, including the fourteen most common myths about Generation Y in the workplace, and Tulgan’s actionable best practices to bring out the best in today’s young talent.”

Glenda Shayne, VP Community Programs recommends:
8th Habit, From Effectiveness to Greatness
By Steven Covey

“I love this book because it’s all about supervision. He emphasizes the need to know your own voice and inspire the people you supervise to find their’s, so they can become great leaders.”

Kim Willis, Communications Coordinator recommends:
Groundswell
By Charlene LI and Josh Bernoff

“LI and Bernoff define groundswell as ‘a spontaneous movement of people using online tools to connect, take charge of their own experience, and get what they need — information, support, ideas, products, and bargaining power — from each other. The groundswell is broad, ever-shifting, and ever-growing. It encompasses blogs, and wikis; podcasts and YouTube; and consumers who rate products, buy and sell from each other, write their own news, and find their own deals.’

This book explains social technology, what to do about it, as well as offer ways to use it succesfully in your company. Join the global phenomenon they call groundswell – it’s so much fun.”

Aimy Steadman, Online Development Coordinator recommends:
Texas Organic Gardening
By Howard Garrett

“This book is an easy-to-read reference for plants and plant care in Texas. This was a much more useful tool to me than many other gardening books as the pests, heat and land that we deal with in Texas call for special measures not usually discussed. The book includes:

• Which varieties of vegetables can survive the Texas summers
• An easy to make organic pest solution that can be used in most cases
• Tips on working with the land and water resources you already have available 
   

And it’s great for Texas gardeners looking for a good resource for organic food gardening.”

Molly Robbins, Community Events Coordinator recommends:
Basic Black: The Essential Guide for Getting Ahead at Work (and in Life)
By Cathie Black

“Basic Black encourages you to take every day and be as creative with it as possible.  Cathie Black, president of Hearst Magazines, encourages you to look for ways to stand out from the crowd and gain the trust of those around you in order to get ahead in your career and in life.  This book is stacked with significant tips and humorous stories to illustrate her point and is definitely a fun read.”

Chelsea Cates, Agency Relations Representative recommends:
They Don’t Teach Corporate in College
By Alexandra Levit

“This is a great book for those new to the work force (i.e., recent graduates) or those who want to brush up on professionalism in the workplace. It has information that, once read, seems obvious but is practical to develop professionally. This book addresses the basic human resources topics my business degree didn’t cover. It also includes sample documents and funny stories of do’s and don’t's.”

Lisa Goddard, Advocacy and Online Marketing Director recommends:
School Lunch Politics: The Surprising History of America’s Favorite Welfare Program (Politics and Society in Twentieth Century America)
By Susan Levine

“School Lunch Politics is a history timeline of the beginnings of nutrition science and the establishment of the National School Lunch Program in 1946.  Learn about the politics and culture of food, and how federal priorities have shaped what school children eat.  If you enjoyed Fast Food Nation, you will probably enjoy this book as well.

Factoids:

• The desire to assimilate immigrants into American culture shapes the foods that were available (and are still served) through the school lunch program.
• Federal focus on child hunger did not become a priority until the World War I draft resulted in candidates being turned away due to poor nutrition.”

The following is a letter to the editor of the Austin American-Statesman by David Davenport, President & CEO of the Capital Area Food Bank.  Similar letters were sent to newspapers in our 21-county service area. It is re-printed here in its entirety:

Over the past year, social service providers in Travis County supplied by the Capital Area Food Bank have noticed an unsettling trend – the rates of both child hunger and child obesity are rising.

Last week, a national report confirmed the worst: Texas has the highest rate of child hunger in the nation.

Thankfully, the Texas Legislature just approved a measure that could help.

HB 1622, the “food bank bill” passed unanimously in the Senate this week, promising to distribute $20 million in nutritious food to at-risk children across the state. HB 1622 is an opportunity for food banks and the state to work together, but the bill is only a promise – in order to work it must be funded by the budget conference committee, including local Senator Steve Ogden.

HB 1622 can supply the nutritious food needed by hungry children in Travis County, and provide a crucial link in the fight against child obesity. Our state budget offers tough decisions this year, but in this economy it is more important than ever that hungry children receive top priority. After all, if the health of our children isn’t “basic,” what is?

Susan Baughman, CAFB Board Member with Bruce Springsteen. Susan was the lucky winner of two ticket packages.

Bruce Springsteen rocked the stage Sunday, April 5.

Wanna hear something cool?
He offered to give the Capital Area Food Bank a Meet and Greet package if we raised more than $10,000. He also agreed to match the funds raised, up to $50,000.

We raised $17,350 from the Meet and Greet package! And with Springsteen’s matching gift, $34,700 will help nourish hungry Central Texans. Amazing.

The package included: four concert tickets, four E-Street Lounge passes and a Meet and Greet with Bruce.

At the concert, he asked fans to help support the Food Bank by making a donation. We raised nearly $4,000 and more than 1,500 pounds of food.

Bruce Springsteen is a member of World Hunger Year’s Artists Against Hunger and Poverty Program, which supports the efforts of community-based hunger relief organizations across North America. He typically selects a hunger relief organization to be a beneficiary in the city in which he performs.

Were you there? Did you hear the Food Bank’s shout-out? Tell us about it in our comments section.

Lisa Goddard
Advocacy and Online Marketing Director

With the recent economic downturn, the face of hunger has evolved.  I met with our Partner Agencies and they’ve mentioned some disturbing trends. They’re serving more middle-class families whose savings are empty, more working-poor, more single mothers and more seniors.  Some families are visiting pantries for the very first time while others are relying on our services for longer stretches of time. Now, more than ever, the face of hunger looks very much like your neighbor, or mine.

Our Partner Agencies have seen an average of 50 percent increase in people needing assistance in the last year. One of our partners in South Austin says they are experiencing a 300 percent increase.  

Food banks aren’t in the business of operating food pantries, but one of our Partner Agencies in East Austin, Church Food Pantry, was in danger of closing last fall because of the growing need.  In November, CAFB took over the pantry, renaming it CAFB East Austin Service Center, where more than 800 households and more than 4,000 people receive food assistance each month.

East Austin Service Center

I share this to paint a picture of our community. The majority of our Partner Agencies are run by volunteers.  With the state of the economy, we are concerned that our Partner Agencies may not be able to keep pace with the growing need.

While we’re excited that the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will send approximately $1.8 billion in SNAP benefits to support hungry Texas families, we’re also concerned that this will not be enough to address the growing lines at our food pantries, soup kitchens and other Partner Agencies serving hungry Central Texans. 

Food Banks can no longer only feed the growing hunger line – we must also help shrink the hunger line if we are serious about ending hunger.

Help shrink the hunger line by taking action on Texas Legislation:

HB 1625  – Families applying for SNAP (food stamps) are penalized if they own a vehicle of moderate value or a second vehicle. The bill adjusts the vehicle asset exclusion criteria for eligibility determination in SNAP, as well as for other federal assistance programs.  Many families coming to food pantries for the first time are recently unemployed and may need a moderately priced vehicle or second car to broaden their options for work. 

HB 612  – Removes the lifetime ban on SNAP for individuals convicted of a drug felony.   As ex-offenders reintegrate into society, access to food stamps help these individuals get back on their feet as they look for work. Also, the provision unfairly targets drug felons since other types of felony convictions are not prevented from receiving SNAP.  Texas is one of 14 states in the nation that has not lifted the ban on drug felons receiving SNAP.

Choosing the perfect bowls

You’re invited to the 12th Annual Empty Bowl Project, Sunday, November 23rd, from 11 a.m. – 3 p.m. at the Mexican American Cultural Center.

One of Austin’s favorite, family-friendly events, Empty Bowl Project, has provided local potters, musicians and restaurants the opportunity to help hungry Central Texans for over a decade.

This year’s event is held in a new location and includes local artistry, food, music and fun. The restaurant line-up includes Cissi’s Market, La Madeline, Mandola’s, Guero’s and many more.

Charles Mays with Cafe Josie, and Susan Castle and Big Jye with KGSR serve up the soup

Here’s how it works: choose your favorite locally hand-crafted bowl(s) at $15 each, get your bowl washed and fill it with your pick of delicious soup and bread donated by local chefs.

Proceeds benefit the Food Bank. For more information click here.

See you there!

The Capital Area Food Bank not only provides food, we also provide manpower to our sister food banks. Miguel Barthe, CAFB driver, helped The New Orleans Food Bank serve western parishes of Louisiana affected by Hurricane Ike. He reports his experience:

Miguel Barthe

“As I started my trip to New Orleans it was a beautiful day. As I got into Houston I couldn’t help but notice the forces of nature and the devastation from Houston and all the way to New Orleans.

Trees were snapped like twigs, on top of homes, and there was water damage and debris everywhere. The water covered the streets. People were looking for friends, family, pets and even their personal belongings.

Flooding from Hurricane Ike

 

You can’t help but feel for the people that have lost so much. As an evacuee of Hurricane Katrina, my eyes are opened and I’m truly aware and saddened by this devastating reality.

During my stay, I helped the New Orleans Food Bank organize food and supplies and worked to distribute emergency packages as needed.

I’m amazed and thankful at the generosity of these communities and in working with the New Orleans Food Bank and the Food Bank in Austin, I’ve realized that this is such a great resource. The Food Banks really care.”