{"id":16368,"date":"2023-12-06T23:43:46","date_gmt":"2023-12-06T23:43:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/state.nokidhungry.org\/california\/?p=16368"},"modified":"2025-04-30T17:04:28","modified_gmt":"2025-04-30T17:04:28","slug":"2023-end-of-the-year-champions-p2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/state.nokidhungry.org\/california\/2023-end-of-the-year-champions-p2\/","title":{"rendered":"Meet Some Of The No Kid Hungry Champions Who Inspired Hope And Fed Kids In 2023 (Part 2)"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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In the face of ever-evolving challenges, there are stories of hope – among them, the heroic efforts by educators, school leaders, child nutrition professionals, community organizations, government partners and others.<\/span><\/p>

Champions have banded together across the Golden State and worked tirelessly to ensure kids have the food they need to dream of a brighter and more caring future. There are thousands of examples we could point to, and though we can\u2019t list them all here, our gratitude goes out to each and every hunger hero who worked for kids this year.<\/span><\/p>

Meet some of the heroes who have joined our movement to fight childhood hunger.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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6. The Power of Food, Culinary Advocates on Capitol Hill Using Their Voice to Protect and Strengthen SNAP<\/b><\/h3>

This spring, fifteen culinary champions from across the country converged onto Congress to advocate on behalf of hungry kids. One Californian who was part of this year\u2019s delegation was Chef Nelson German, executive chef and owner of\u00a0<\/span>alaMar Dominican Kitchen & Sobre Mesa in Oakland, CA. Our chefs were on <\/span>Capitol Hill advocating for a smart SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) policy<\/span><\/a>. Congress has the opportunity to protect and strengthen SNAP in the Farm Bill, a roughly once-every-five-years piece of legislation that governs a wide array of food and farm programs. Research shows that <\/span>SNAP<\/span><\/a>, also known as CalFresh here in California, is our nation\u2019s most powerful tool to end childhood hunger and poverty. The food provided by SNAP does more than fill a child\u2019s empty stomach – it affects their education as well as their health and well-being. Join Chef Nelson by <\/span>encouraging your Members of Congress to protect and strengthen SNAP<\/span><\/a>!<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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7. Raising Awareness and Feeding Kids During The Hungriest Time Of The Year<\/b><\/h3>

For kids and teens who rely on school meals, summer can be the hungriest time of year. While summer meal programs are available and free to any kid or teen who needs a healthy meal when school\u2019s out, many families don\u2019t know about them or have the adequate time and resources to get to a summer meal site. In rural areas, it can be difficult for children to access centralized meal sites due to extreme weather conditions, transportation challenges and geographic barriers. Sometimes they may live far from schools and community centers, parents may be at work and unable to bring them to the meal site or must travel in temperatures that can soar up to 125 degrees.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

Last year, Congress passed a bill that allows non-congregate summer meal options for rural communities. This is a significant victory for millions of children and families because instead of requiring children to gather in one central location to receive their summer meals, the meals are distributed in a way that allows for children to eat at home. Community groups can deliver meals directly to family homes or parents or caregivers can \u201cgrab-and-go\u201d bagged meals to take home. In California, we partnered with school districts and county agencies like the <\/span>Butte County Office of Education<\/b> and <\/span>Needles Unified School District<\/b> (along the Arizona border) to ensure they had the resources to feed kids in the most remote parts of California. Deep gratitude to our partners on the ground feeding kids during the hungriest time of the year!<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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8. An Evening with No Kid Hungry, the Return of the Los Angeles Dinner<\/b><\/h3>

This year marked the return of the Los Angeles No Kid Hungry Dinner with fourteen of LA\u2019s best tastemakers and culinary talents coming together to raise funds and awareness for No Kid Hungry. The magical evening buzzed with excitement as we honored<\/span> No Kid Hungry Champions<\/span><\/a> P!nk, Alice Waters, Sherry Yard and Williams-Sonoma. A big thank you to the event chairs and Share Our Strength (the organization behind the No Kid Hungry campaign) board members Jeanne Newman and Mary Sue Milliken, chef\/co-owner of Border Grill Restaurants , plus the chefs, mixologists, restaurant and service staff and volunteers who shared their talents and passion to end child hunger. The<\/span> LA Dinner<\/span><\/a> hit a milestone for Share Our Strength, raising over $1 Million to help end childhood hunger – that\u2019s 10 Million meals!<\/strong>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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9. Meeting Families Where They Are, Meet\u00a0 Some Of The No Kid Hungry Fleet In Action<\/b><\/h3>

Food trucks and transport vehicles are crucial tools used to help feed kids.<\/span> Distributing well-balanced, nutritious meals that include protein, vegetables, fruit and grains, these vehicles remove the barriers that prevent kids and their families from accessing school and summer meals. These are some of our partners who utilize trucks to feed kids and raise awareness.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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