Hunger Right in Our Backyards

Atlanta Organizations and Teen Volunteers Help Fight Hunger

Photo courtesy of Georgia Citizens’ Coalition on Hunger

By Latrice Williams / VOX Staff

Quick quiz: What do you do when you see a homeless man or woman living in the streets, relying on whatever’s in the trash for dinner?
 
Up until recently, my answer would have been to pass right by without thinking much about them, except maybe hope that they wouldn’t ask me for food or money.
 
But ever since I began volunteering for the Georgia Citizens’ Coalition on Hunger this past spring, my eyes have been opened to the real face of poverty and hunger in Atlanta — and it’s not just the homeless people downtown. As I’ve learned, the problems are widespread, both suburban and urban, both among adults and children.
 
“When most people think of the hunger problem, they think of poorly developed countries in Africa and Asia,” said Bill Bolling, founder and executive director of the Atlanta Community Food Bank, a local nonprofit that provides food and services to more than 300,000 people in the metro area and north Georgia every year. “But there is real hunger right here in Atlanta. Approximately one out of every four people suffers from poverty and hunger, and that includes kids in schools who get their only meal of the day through free lunch or breakfast programs.”
 
My Wake-Up Call
My first experience with the Coalition on Hunger came in May when my sister, Markita, and I volunteered so we could get free “Got To Give To Get” T-shirts and free tickets to a rap concert at the Fox Theatre — courtesy of the national youth community action program Boost Mobile Rockcorps. We were joined by thousands of other youth volunteers, including many from The New Schools of Carver, to help with various four-hour projects such as planting organic foods, sorting through and organizing endless bags of donations to the Coalition’s Umoja Thrift Shop, and doing general clean up. My sister and I were assigned to paint the soon-to-be office of Sandra Robertson, the Coalition’s executive director.
 
Markita had been a long-time volunteer for the organization, where she donated her time to answering the Hunger Hotline. I’m very proud of what she does, but personally, that line of work isn’t very appealing to me because I don’t have the patience for it. But when she urged me to get my hands dirty for a good cause and have some fun at the same time, I was in.
 
After my four hours of work were completed, the socializing with other teens was done and the concert came and went, I realized the biggest reward for my efforts was that I had a better first-hand awareness about the problems of hunger and poverty in Atlanta. They were no longer things that I could turn a blind eye to, and I wanted to learn more.
So, I turned to Sandra Robertson to find out more about the impact the Coalition has on hunger. After all, I had just painted her office, and she owed me a favor.
 
Fighting the Good Fight
Robertson has been the Coalition’s chief staff officer since 1979, and she is the founder of the Umoja Farmer’s Market, Thrift Shop and Organic Garden. On a day-to-day basis, she coordinates the Coalition staff and oversees its many programs. Robertson manages all of the organization’s fund-raising programs to try to raise $400,000 for its annual budget. And she is also the public relations contact, meaning she’s the face and voice of the Coalition.
 
It’s a demanding job, but she’s motivated by the love and passion of the people who work for her and the people her organization serves. “I came from a low-income home myself, so I know what it’s like to feel hunger,” Robertson said. “Women and children are the ones most heavily impacted by hunger, ranging from malnutrition to getting involved in gangs to earn money to put food on the table.”
 
Her organization is doing a lot to help end hunger and poverty in Atlanta, such as operating the Hunger Hotline that helps needy families deal with hunger emergencies by getting them food quickly. The Coalition grows its own organic fruits and vegetables, which are sold at the Umoja Farmer’s Market for a fair price. Other food is donated by corporations, individuals and other hunger organizations such as the Food Bank.
Right now Robertson’s organization is campaigning to increase the minimum wage from $5.15 to $7.00 an hour. “The Atlanta Living Wage Coalition effort won’t eliminate poverty, but it will help thousands of workers be able to better provide for themselves and their families,” she said.
 
The Coalition depends on the energy and passion of its teen volunteers, Robertson said. “A lot of them can help out in the thrift shop, and they’re invaluable in spreading the word about hunger issues and campaigning for our cause,” she said. “Not only do they help us and grow as activists, but they also can work toward earning their volunteer credit hours needed for graduating high school.”
 
Not the Only Game in Town
Like the Georgia Citizens’ Coalition on Hunger, the Atlanta Community Food Bank is working hard to erase hunger and poverty in the metro area. It operates as a supplier of food to more than 800 community organizations, including some 500 churches. “We also help organize community gardening, give away school supplies, teach people culinary skills and educate people about hunger issues,” said Executive Director Bill Bolling.
 
One of the biggest challenges of fighting hunger is that most of the effort is concentrated around Christmastime. “Many only lend their efforts to supply food for the needy around the holidays,” Bolling said. “But it’s important to provide food year-round, especially in the summer when kids are out of school. The Food Bank works 365 days a year to battle hunger, and since it was founded in 1979 it has served 23 million people.”
 
That’s a lot of work, but the Food Bank has more than 1,000 volunteers who donate their time and effort to the cause. “We get groups of teens from schools, service clubs, other nonprofit organizations and churches who pitch in to help,” Bolling said. Teens participate by gardening, stocking supplies and learning how to cook for others.
 
“Most people live isolated lives and hunger isn’t part of their normal experiences, so unfortunately the issue gets overlooked,” Bolling said. “But teens who don’t know hunger first-hand themselves can see it in their peers who have trouble concentrating in school because they’re hungry all the time or those who have low self-esteem because they’re embarrassed by their poverty.”
 
There shouldn’t be hunger in Atlanta because there is plenty of food, he said. But most people in need don’t think to look for help that’s readily available. One of the biggest challenges to solving the problem of hunger is spreading the word that help exists. But thanks to my experiences volunteering for the Georgia Citizens’ Coalition on Hunger and writing this article for VOX, I hope I’ve helped at least a little bit.
 
Latrice is 17 years old and home schooled.