As we celebrate the holiday season with family and friends, let us also pause and acknowledge that many of our neighbors are struggling to make ends meet and put food on the table.

President Obama is calling on all of us to come together to solve hunger in our communities. In this spirit, the Corporation for National and Community Service launched the United We Serve: Feed a Neighbor initiative, in partnership with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, in November 2009.

Here’s the challenge:

• Seventeen million households, or 14.6% of all households in America, were food insecure in 2008 and had difficulty putting enough food on the table at times during the year.
• About 1 in 5 Americans participate in nutrition assistance programs.
• In 2008, there were more than 500,000 families in which a child experienced hunger multiple times over the course of the year.
• Requests for emergency food assistance are up 30% compared to last year.

Here’s the opportunity:
 

There are many ways for you to help combat hunger through service.

• Find a volunteer opportunity (you can use the "Find a Volunteer Opportunity" search box at the top-right of this page)
• Download the USDA anti-hunger volunteer toolkit (PDF) – it provides detailed information and resources on additional ways to get involved in your community and help ensure that your neighbors have access to nutritional food.

For more information...

• Read the press release
• Read the fact sheet (PDF)