See "The Hunger Games" and Help St. Mary's
One of the most anticipated films of the season, Hunger Games premieres in the Valley on Mar. 23. From Mar.23-29, UltraStar Cinemas in Surprise and Scottsdale will give you some popcorn for a donation of canned food.
For more info, visit www.ultrastarmovies.com.

A Food Drive of Note - PHX Symphony Holds Drive for St. Mary's

Again this year, the PHX Symphony is holding a food drive for St. Mary's Food Bank. Bring canned food items and join the Symphony on Mar. 22 and 24 (Elgar's Enigma Variations) or on March 30, 31, or Apr.1 (the Music of Rodgers & Hammerstein).

It's Time to Get in Bed With Mark and Help St. Mary's

Join Mark Mayfield of KSLX as he gets in a Sleep America bed to raise food and funds for St. Mary's Food Bank. Now in its 6th year, Mark will be in bed in front of the Sleep America store at Paradise Valley Mall from Mar. 21-23. In addition, KSLX will also be at Albertsons stores in Phoenix, Scottsdale, and in the East and West Valley. For a list of these locations visit http://www.kslx.com/ or http://www.firstfoodbank.org/. Last year, Mark raised enough food and funds to supply over 160,000 meals. And he's raising the bar for this year.

Curves in Surprise Holds Drive to help St. Mary's
A long-time supporter of St. Mary's Food Bank, Surprise Curves is holding its 14th Annual Food Drive for the Food Bank. From Mar. 19-31, prospective members who bring in a bag full of canned food will not have to pay a sign-up fee, based on a one-year contract. Current members who bring a bag full of canned food will be entered into a raffle for Curves merchandise. For more info, call 623 875-2575, or visit Curves at 14291 W. Grand Ave. Ste. 110.

St. Mary's Kids Cafe Delivers Nutritious Meals - Smiles Result

Kids Cafe delivers over 2,000 meals daily to schools, community centers, and Boys & Girls Clubs throughout the Valley. Many of the kids qualify for free or reduced rate breakfasts or lunches at their school. The KC often provides the evening meal for many of the kids. These after-school programs often combine sports and/or homework instruction with the meal, resulting with smiles on the faces of the kids, and their teachers.

Find Out What it Means to be Hungry
Over 800,000 Arizonans live at or below the poverty line, and hunger effects them almost every day. This weekend (March 9,10,&11) the Tumbleweed Center will be presenting "Food for Thought", describing what it means to be hungry - physically, mentally, and spiritually. Performances, part of the Phoenix Fringe Festival, take place at Warehouse 1005, 1005 N. 1st St., Phoenix. Info and tickets at www.phxfringe.org.

St. Mary's Kids Cafe Provides Nutritious Meals to "At Risk" Kids

Over 25% of kids in Arizona live below the poverty line; this means that many of those kids miss at least one meal every day. St. Mary's Kids Cafe program provides up to 3,000 meals daily to kids at over 40 sites throughout the Valley. Volunteers prepare brown bag meals (sandwich, fruit, milk) which are then delivered to schools and community centers where kids participate in after-school programs, doing sports or homework. The program will soon introduce hot meals service, and ultimately hopes to increase overall production to 4,ooo meals daily. There is no cost to any of the host sites. You can help Kids Cafe by donating funds, or by volunteering to prepare meals or by conducting site visits.