The Heart Wrenching Hunger Crisis In Newark, NJ

The tale of hunger is quite grim and you can never expect yourself to listen to all the worries that people have to go through in order to get a morsel of good. Considering the growing number of soup kitchens and food banks in and around Newark, you can guess the number of homeless and needy that are going through the hunger crisis in this state. The community programs of the State of New Jersey are definitely trying to alleviate hunger and poverty struck people. However, you will note that only a small number of people are really benefitting from these programs. Still, a huge number of people need to be brought under the shelter of these programs that are being operated by nonprofits.

Most of the soup kitchens are serving food six days a week to about 500 people every day. Apart from the homeless, there are women over 50 who consistently visit the soup kitchens for food. Even veterans and working families are finding their regular meals in these food kitchens. Then, there are many people who are visiting the food banks on a regular basis to get their supply of food. Even though they are not getting all of the fresh produce and what they are able to get is only a small quantity of humble food, it still helps them in surviving. You will be heartbroken to know that every 1 in 5 children living in New Jersey is hungry. This means that almost 20% of our youngest population have to sleep hungry and wake up without food served to them.

There is a lot of boxed and canned food that is being served to the people in food pantries which can help one sustain for about 3 days with 9 meals. There are food stamp programs that are feeding another section of the hungry living in New Jersey. However, programs like ‘More Than Bread’ are now providing freshly produced high-end groceries in their food pantries so that food also comes with taste and ample nutrition for the body. There are many ways in which we can help the community of Newark overcome the most disastrous crisis of them all- hunger. We can donate food, volunteer for different non-profits working towards this cause or simply donate money in order to help these soup kitchens and food pantries function. It is time that we take a step to strengthen our community and make it completely hunger free.

To help assist with the hunger crisis in Newark, you can volunteer your time or make a donation to  St. John’s Feed the Hungry.