When John van Hengel volunteered to cook soup for needy people, little did he know he was creating Feeding America!

However, what is this initiative? Find out what Feeding America is and how you can benefit from this program:

Feeding America is a network of more than 200 food banks spread across the country. Thus, the function of these banks is to receive, store and donate healthy food to needy people.

Today, this non-profit organization serves 46 million people and generated more than $3 billion in revenue in 2021. However, this story began much more simply over 40 years ago.

John Arnold van Hengel, a Roman Catholic, volunteered to help needy and homeless people in Phoenix, Arizona.

Solidarity, he mainly provided services in the kitchen, responsible for preparing soups that were distributed to needy people.

However, Hengel wanted to do more and thought of a way to get food to more people. The idea of ​​how to do this came about by accident.

Hengel met a mother of 10 who fed on leftover food he found in household dumps on the streets of Phoenix.

She said the food was of good quality, but she wished there was a place where they were stored in better conditions.

Thus “a lamp shone in Hengel’s head.” With some money and space offered by the church, she started to receive and store food that would be discarded by local producers and traders.

Thus, needy families now have a suitable place to receive healthy food for free. In a few decades, the initiative grew, and today it is spread across several cities in the United States.

Feeding America receives food or money donations from companies, the government, and individuals.

The food received is stored in food banks across the country and later transferred to projects that distribute food to the population.

In addition to fresh foods, ready-to-eat soups and other ready-to-eat meals are offered.

The money received is fully used to buy food or maintain the structure of banks, transport, and other distribution programs. Those who cannot donate money or food can volunteer their own time.

However, can you count on this support? Find out in the thread below!

In fact, most food banks do not serve households directly. In fact, the food is distributed to hunger relief agencies. Thus, these are responsible for the final transfer of food to families.

That way, you can consult agencies in your region or rely on Mobile Food Pantrys. These are trucks where anyone can get boxes of healthy food.

In these, it is not necessary to register or prove income. So anyone who needs these foods can get them.

Those who prefer can also buy food at low prices in these cars. In addition to food, these transports also have basic hygiene materials, such as soap.

In fact, there is likely a Feeding America partner agency near you. So just locate it to get free food without traveling long distances.

Thus, the official Feeding America website helps you find places where food is distributed. To do so, simply access the enterprise’s official website and access the map “Find your Local Food Bank”.

Just enter your zip code, and you will find several distribution points in your neighborhood. You can use this same map to find the email or phone number of the agency that can serve you.

So you will be able to get secure information about opening hours and what kind of food you can get there. In these units, you can also volunteer to help with the work.

After all, this is a non-profit organization that also depends on this kind of help.

Indeed, Feeding America is one of the most important charities in the country. In 2018, this was one of the charities that moved the most money that year, according to Forbes.

In fact, Feeding America (formerly America’s Second Harvest) is a reference model for fighting hunger.

Furthermore, this initiative has always played an important role in catastrophic events such as hurricanes and other tragedies.

Even if you can count on this organization, you may still need more help ensuring your family has food on the table. That way, you can turn to some of the federal welfare programs.

Regarding nutrition, the biggest and most important of these is SNAP, also known as food stamps. However, you must know if you are eligible to count on this additional support.

For this and other information, take a look at the article below!