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Perhaps you are one of the many who fast during Lent. But what about people who do not eat because they have no food or money to buy food? Everyday on my ride to work, I see a billboard that reads “1-5 children face hunger” in the United States.
As a child, I was hungry daily. My brother and I had one meal a day at home. Though we were eligible for free lunch at school, I let my pride get in the way and didn’t use the coupon for the free lunch.
When I was a child, food pantries were uncommon. Now, there are several in our area. Hunger is on the rise, and in our township, more than 30 percent of the residents needed to drive 30 minutes to the nearest food pantry.
That’s why my son and I started a food pantry at our church. No one should have to go to bed hungry. Please pray for the pantries, food banks and volunteers that we continue to follow the words in Matthew 25:35 “for I was hungry and you gave me food.”
This message is excerpted from “No one should go to bed hungry” by Anissa Canova from the March 3, 2016, blog of the Women of the ELCA.