No Child in New York Should Go Hungry
At No Kid Hungry, we are committed to ensuring that every kid has 3 healthy meals a day, 365 days a year.
The Problem
We know hunger is a solvable problem, but every day it impacts children’s ability to learn and grow. Nearly 19% of children in New York live in food-insecure homes. That phrase may sound mild, but it means that those households don’t have enough food for every family member to lead a healthy life. That’s 1 in 5 kids who may be struggling with hunger in New York this year.
We have plenty of food in the United States and federal nutrition programs that work together to provide access to meals and groceries for those facing economic hardship; the problem is that not enough kids and families are able to access them. There are large gaps in the number of kids and families that qualify for benefits and those that are receiving them.
How We Can Help
Our dedicated New York-based team is working to end child hunger throughout the State. We partner with schools, community based organizations, and government agencies to launch and enhance programs providing healthy meals and expanding access to nutritious food. In collaboration with our partners, No Kid Hungry works to ensure all children have access to the federal nutrition programs in their communities.
Supporting Schools
We work with school districts, providing training, toolkits, and strategic grant funding to launch or enhance existing school meal programs – with a focus on breakfast and summer meals.
Building Community Partnerships
We collaborate with community based organizations and support innovative strategies to support summer meal programs and connect families to other critical federal nutrition programs like SNAP and WIC.
Advancing Equity
Childhood hunger is the product of longtime systemic inequities. We prioritize support to marginalized communities, seek out and share successful community based solutions, and work to address the root causes of hunger.
Advocating for Kids
We engage with elected and government officials to make sure that ending child hunger is prioritized by decision makers at all levels of government.
Our Team
Rachel Sabella (she/her), Director
Rachel leads the planning, implementation and evaluation of the No Kid Hungry campaign across New York with the goal of connecting more kids and families with meals. Rachel works with stakeholders across the state including elected officials, agencies, school districts, community organizations, culinary champions and advocates to help those facing child hunger and poverty.
Rachel is a lifelong New Yorker and currently resides in Queens, also known as the World’s Borough! An avid Yankees fan, Rachel also loves live theater, baking and spending time with friends and family.
Contact Rachel
Liz Lucas (she/her), Program Manager
Liz manages outreach and engagement with school districts around the implementation of school meal programs, including providing technical support, professional resources, grants, network-building or advocacy opportunities.
A resident of Buffalo, Liz loves the outdoors and when she’s away from her computer, she enjoys training for marathons, cycling with her husband and hitting the ski slopes in Western New York. She is a lifelong Buffalo Bills fan and firmly bill-ieves a Super Bowl win will happen this decade!
Contact Liz
Fee Pelz-Sharpe (they/them), Program Associate
In their role, Fee supports the New York team, creating and strengthening team operations, managing the state’s social media platforms, and ensuring internal and external deliverables are met.
Fee lives in South Philadelphia with their two cats. They love hiking and rock climbing. Fee is a proud Italian-American who is always trying to master their mom’s recipes!
Contact Fee
Habibah Abass (she/her), Program Manager
Habibah manages outreach and engagement with school districts and community organizations around the implementation of Summer EBT by providing technical support, professional resources, grants, network-building and advocacy opportunities.
A Brooklyn girl at heart, Habibah is passionate about expanding food access to children and families across the state!
Contact Habibah
About Share Our Strength
No Kid Hungry is a national campaign run by Share Our Strength, a nonprofit working to solve problems of hunger and poverty in the United States and around the world. After 25 years of successfully investing in local nonprofits and helping find the best approaches to eradicating poverty and hunger, Share Our Strength launched No Kid Hungry in 2010.
As a child hunger organization, ending childhood hunger is our primary focus, though Share Our Strength continues to invest in and develop other campaigns.
Learn more about Share Our Strength and our other work at ShareOurStrength.org.