The "Challenge" is Met . . . and St. Mary's Benefits

"The Biggest Loser" Pound for Pound Challenge is now history, and St. Mary's supporters more than met the challenge. A total of 2,571 supporters pledged 77,389 pounds, putting the Food Bank in 17th place among over 60 food banks entered. Those pledged pounds will earn $10,834 for the Food Bank.

Churches Step Up to Aid Local Food Banks

A coalition of Valley churches held a special Fathers Day food drive to fill the shelves of area food banks, including St. Mary's. New Life Community Church, Scottsdale Bible Church, and Christ's Church of the Valley collected the equivalent of 270,000 meals for the Food Bank. Even though they've helped to "Send Hunger Packing", many of the participants are planning another massive food drive in the Fall.

AMEX Helps Food Bank Provide for Emergency Food Boxes

While the local economy is still in recovery mode, the demand for EFBs this FY is up over 30%. American Express is helping to "Send Hunger Packing" by giving St. Mary's a $30,000 grant to be used for EFBs. The attached photo shows Christa Burkhalter presenting a check to St. Mary's CEO Terry Shannon.

Help "Stamp Out Hunger" on May 8
This Saturday the National Association of Letter Carriers is holding their annual food drive. They'll be collecting non-perishable food for donation to area food banks. Leave your donation at you local mailbox that morning and the postman will do the rest. Last year's drive generated over 400,000 pounds for St. Mary's, just in time for Summer, our period of greatest need.

State's Effort to Cut Access to Health Care Could Cost Billions
In an effort to reduce the State's deficit, the Republican-dominated Legislature has reduced or eliminated health insurance for over 300,000 low-income residents. But those measures have apparently run afoul of new rules in the just-signed health reform bill. Unless the reductions are reversed, Arizona could lose almost $7 billion in Federal funds. For more information on this, visit http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2010/03/23/20100323kids-care-cost-arizona-billions.html.

Help St. Mary's "Be More Humble"

Channel 8 PBS is honoring non-profits throughout Arizona by sponsoring the Be More Awards. St. Mary's has entered the competition on behalf of its Community Kitchen program. Among the awards to be presented is the "Be More Humble" Award, given to the non-profit that gets the most votes in an on-line poll. So you can go to www.azpbs.org/bemore every day through April 12 and vote for St. Mary's; tell your friends, relatives, business associates, etc. to join you in voting.

A Good Source for Info On Poverty & Obesity

The Food Research & Action Center (FRAC) is a good resource for information on obesity, especially as it relates to children. It quotes Census/USDA data showing that 16.7 million children (22.5% of all children) in America live in food insecure households, and 25% of kids aged 2-5 and 33% of school-aged kids are overweight or obese. A visit to http://www.frac.org/ will provide more info, as well as highlighting government programs that help keep children healthy. For a local (Arizona) organization fighting childhood obesity, visit http://endchildhungeraz.org/.