NO CHILD SHOULD GO HUNGRY IN NORTH CAROLINA
At No Kid Hungry North Carolina, we are committed to ensuring that every kid has 3 meals a day, 365 days a year.
We know what works, and we’ve made extraordinary progress for kids and families. That doesn’t mean ending childhood hunger is easy.
THE HISTORY
No Kid Hungry North Carolina was formed in 2011 in partnership with state leaders and the National No Kid Hungry campaign, which is a program of the nonprofit organization Share Our Strength. We collectively connect kids in need with nutritious food and teach their families how to cook healthy, affordable meals. The campaign also engages the public to make ending child hunger a national priority.
In 2014, No Kid Hungry North Carolina became an initiative based at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention, where the original NC team also formed the Carolina Hunger Initiative.
We’re working to end child hunger by connecting kids to effective but under-utilized federal nutrition programs like school breakfast, summer meals, and afterschool meals. This work is accomplished through the No Kid Hungry network, made up of private citizens, government officials, business leaders, and others providing innovative hunger solutions in their communities. These partners work together, implementing solutions that break down the barriers that keep kids from healthy food.
No Kid Hungry North Carolina does not provide food directly to kids. We support those who do through grant funding for innovative programs, marketing tools, technical assistance, and much more.
THE PROBLEM
We know hunger is a solvable problem, but every day it impacts children’s ability to learn and grow.
More than 19% of children in North Carolina 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 almost 1 in 5 kids who may be struggling with hunger in North Carolina. Learn more Hunger Facts from No Kid Hungry
We have plenty of food in the United States. And we have child hunger relief programs that work. The problem is that not enough kids are able to access them. That’s a problem we know how to solve.
THE SOLUTION
Together, with our partners, No Kid Hungry North Carolina works to ensure all children have access to the nutrition they need to grow and thrive. Our dedicated 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 and federal nutrition programs in their communities. Learn more about are areas of focus:
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.
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.
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.
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.
