When I went to school kids got naughty and threw foods when no teachers were looking. A bizarre idea of fun for sure. I keep thinking about why I am spending my life with Jeffco Eats as a retirement age person. When Deacon Bethany Thomas of church in Golden cried out – we are going to end hunger in Golden together …. the force of her spirit broke me. She is normally a very low key person. Well think about our city of Lakewood Colorado for example as a place we are having a food fight. Some spend money on fancy extravagant meals every week and throw lots of expensive foods in their trash. They call themselves “foodies”. As I was an organic farmer full time for five years I was growing foods for those fancy restaurants. We have always had the haves and the have nots but today the number of people who do not have enough money to buy just adequate foods to not be hungry is truly skyrocketing. $32 an hour to live in Jefferson County is a non fiction book. To cover expenses you need to earn as a person or family $60 K. Food fights happen when the first basic need of food is met at an irregular basis. This means in any week or month you can have to stretch food, not eat meals, have family members eat less than what they need to be full not stuffed. Your psychological self freaks out when this happens for awhile. You go on “high alert” trauma syndrome. This means even when you get done eating something you are looking for your next meal with stress and striving and not happiness or peace.
When living with lack in most of the hierarchy of needs your life is like that circus character with the spinning plates.
life that feels like all the plates are spinning
Follow these posts for your giving us feedback about why you or your family might want to develop a habit weekly of generosity for the unmet needs of our neighbors who are hungry.
Back to school time after school supplies in place opens door for people to help feed the children weekly. Our 22 sites our totally Volunteer led and run. Please consider helping with operations for snacks, produce and or food drives . The work required each week is two to five hours. We need leaders and team members. We buy most of our foods from Food Bank Rockies.
Snacks – Jeffco Eats provides snacks in the seven item food share bags we pack each Friday. We put two snacks a week in bags. Snacks are also what we provide high school students who want snacks and not canned foods. Snacks are what we give some sites that get shelf stable foods from other non profits weekly. We serve from head starts to high schools. Snack leaders or team can help on Wednesday or Thursday morning. We need people who are spread sheet savvy but not everyone needs to do those.
FOOD DRIVES – We need a leader and teams to do monthly food drives at stores like King Soopers for four hours with two hour shifts. You ask shoppers to get a can or item while they are shopping for the children who are hungry.
PRODUCE – We get produce from Food Bank Rockies Push program and local community gardens and we grow some veggies ourselves. We need team to sort , clean and pack veggies for mobile deliveries. We do more shelf stable produce like onions, potatoes, sweet potatoes and carrots short life items like peppers, tomatoes. Many families get the produce as we give it to those signed up to get food shares each week and to the whole school or apartment complex. This is a key area we need to raise up a team to meet these needs. We follow USDA food safety regulations of course.
Produce can be delivered by Thursday drivers and other supplemental drivers. We are working on getting a truck donated to us as we only rent U hauls now and use volunteers vehicles to deliver weekly.
Please email : [email protected] to find out more of the details. We truly need your help.
How Much You Need To Make An Hour To Rent In Jefferson County
The National Low Income Housing Coalition recently released its annual report, Out of Reach. See how Jefferson County fared.
By Amber Fisher | Aug 20, 2019 10:08 am ET | Updated Aug 20, 2019 10:17 am ET
The typical household in Colorado must earn $25.33 per hour to afford a modest, two-bedroom apartment at fair market rate, according to the National Low Income Housing Coalition. In the report, “Out of Reach,” Colorado is said to have the 10th highest housing “housing wage” in the country.
According to the recent study, fair market rent for a two-bedroom apartment in Colorado is $1,317.
There are more than 65,000 renters in Jefferson County. To afford a two-bedroom here, a typical household has to earn $29 an hour.
Here’s the breakdown for Jefferson County:
Studio: $19.79
One-bedroom: $23.15
Two-bedroom: $29
Three-bedroom: $40.75
Four-bedroom: $47.33
The national housing wage is $22.96 for a modest-two bedroom apartment, whereas the estimated average wage for a renter in the United States is only $17.57 per hour.
The five metro areas with the highest two-bedroom housing wages are:
Oakland-Fremont, California — $40.88
Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, Massachutetes — $42.19
Santa Cruz-Watsonville, California — $46.90
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, California — $54.60
San Francisco, California — $60.96
California has four of the top five most expensive urban areas, but Hawaii is actually the costliest state to rent a two-bedroom apartment in.
The five most expensive states are:
Hawaii: $36.82
California: $34.69
Massachusetts: $33.81
New York: $30.76
New Jersey: $28.86
The five least expensive states are:
Alabama: $14.92
Kentucky: $14.84
Mississippi: $14.43
West Virginia: $14.27
Arkansas: $14.26
“A worker earning the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour must work nearly 127 hours per week (more than 3 full-time jobs) to afford a two-bedroom rental home or 103 hours per week (more than 2.5 full-time jobs) to afford a one-bedroom rental home at the national
average fair market rent,” the study said.
In Jefferson County, a worker earning the minimum wage of $11.10 would have to work 73 hours a week to earn enough to pay for a two-bedroom apartment.
In the report, U.S. Representative Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, discussed the importance of safe and affordable housing.
“Affordable housing promotes healthy living and provides low-income people a chance at upward mobility,” said Pressley. “Without it, families are destabilized, productivity suffers, and entire communities suffer.”
Pressley added, “For too long, too many people have been left out and left behind when it comes to federal housing policy and it’s time those practices come to an end.”
Interested in renting an apartment of your own? Check out realtor.com to search for one, two or three bedroom apartments.
Patch reporter Gus Saltonstall contributed to this report.
We highly recommend this book and author Jeremy Everett is hosting a hunger conference through his work at Baylor University and Barbara Moore Executive Director of Jeffco Eats will be going October 2 to 4 in Waco Texas
AGENDA
Wednesday, October 2, 2019
11:15 – 12:15
Buses run
11:45 – 1:00
Plenary I & Lunch
1:20 – 2:20
Breakout Session I
2:20 – 3:00
Networking (coffee and snacks provided)
3:00 – 4:00
Breakout Session II
4:15 – 5:30
Plenary II
5:30 – 7:00
Dinner Together
Thursday, October 3, 2019
8:15 – 9:15
Buses run
8:45 – 10:00
Plenary III with Coffee & Pastries
10:20 – 11:20
Breakout Session III
11:45 – 1:00
Plenary IV & Lunch
1:20 – 2:20
Breakout Session IV
2:20 – 3:00
Networking (coffee & snacks provided)
3:00 – 4:00
Breakout Session V
4:15 0 5:30
Plenary V
Dinner on Your Own
Friday, October 4, 2019
8:30 – 9:30
Buses run (dependent on location)
9:30 – 11:00/11:30
Work Session I or Field Trips
11:00/11:30 – 1:00
Lunch on Own
1:00 – 2:30
Work Session II or Field Trips
Together at the Table Breakout Sessions are led by prominent scholars and practitioners and include sessions addressing issues such as public policy, community organizing, health and nutrition, federal nutrition programs and food-security research. This agenda is tentative, and speakers and sessions are subject to change.
Texas Hunger Initiative Diana R. Garland School of Social Work 811 Washington Avenue Waco, Texas 76701
Below you’ll find information about some of the exciting breakout sessions we’ll have at this year’s summit. Check back often as we’re adding sessions regularly!
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 2
Shifting Cultural Narratives Around Hunger Together Wednesday, October 2 | 1:20-2:25 Kristen Castree, A Place at the Table
Part of the reason hunger and poverty have become a crisis in America is that prevailing narratives about the issue are flawed. There is a widespread lack of public understanding about root causes and a notion that our charity response is sufficient (and the only way individuals can help.) A Place at the Table will present key findings from a message framing study conducted with FrameWorks Institute. This study provides the foundation for a messaging and partnerships strategy created to fuel public support for effective, anti-hunger policy, systemic change, and greater economic equity.
A Hidden Crisis: Food Insecurity Among Teens and College Students Wednesday, October 2 | 1:20-2:25 Katie Thompson, Center for Public Justice’s Shared Justice; Dr. Stephanie Boddie, Baylor University; Ana O’Quin, Baylor University; Shannon Que, Abilene Christian University
Drawing upon their research for the Center for Public Justice in Waco and Abilene, undergraduate student Ana O’Quin (Baylor ‘20), graduate student Shannon Que (Abilene Christian ‘20), and Baylor’s Dr. Stephanie Boddie will discuss the state of food insecurity among teens and college students and explore the role of SNAP and civil society institutions in addressing this often-overlooked population.
The 2020 Census in Texas Wednesday, October 2 | 1:20-2:25 Cassie Davis, Center for Public Policy Priorities
An overview of the 2020 Census, including a Census 101 section, the road to the 2020 Census, and updates on its current status. An overview into what is at stake for Texas in the 2020 Census and a look into who is Texas’s hard-to-count populations, and solutions to “Get out the Count”.
The Power of Leadership in Collaborative Response Wednesday, October 2 | 3:00-4:05 Dr. Terry Hockenbrough, Collin College
It takes a power team of diverse leaders from all areas of the community to bring effective change! These successful leaders know the power of inspiration, motivation, focus and collaborative response in addressing real community need. Join us to learn how to build a team that fuels trust, innovation and creativity, resources, and community partnerships.
The Great Breakfast Battle! – Engaging Students to Increase Participation Wednesday, October 2 | 3:00-4:05 Julie Farris, Dallas ISD
Dallas ISD students were challenged to increase breakfast participation at their campus through creative marketing plans. Dallas ISD Food and Child Nutrition Services worked with the CTE and NAF students at 4 campuses to assess low participation, devise and implement a marketing plan. Come hear how the Breakfast Battle was won!
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 3
Poverty in Perspective: the Myth, the Reality, and the Solution Thursday, October 3 | 10:20-11:25 Ronna Huckaby, Catholic Charities Fort Worth (CCFW)
The face of poverty in Texas might surprise you. CCFW will explain what it means to live in poverty, showcase our proven, poverty-ending solutions and lead an interactive game that highlights the unseen struggles people in poverty face each day.
Strategies to Increase Engagement with Community and Student Leaders Thursday, October 3 | 10:20-11:25 Jennifer Page, Texas Department of Agriculture
The Texas Department of Agriculture created engagement initiatives to help increase awareness and promotion of Child Nutrition Programs with the goal of increasing participation of school meals in efforts to reduce childhood hunger. You’re invited to learn more about the student initiative Health Ambassadors for a Ready Texas and the Healthy Community Network for elected officials while learning more about the programs promoted. Each initiative challenges leaders to make a difference in local communities.
Navigating Turbulent Futures: How to Promote Human Flourishing in a Shifting, Complex World Thursday, October 3 | 3:00-4:05 Dr. Andrew Hogue, Baylor University
Our world is full of bewildering forces we feel but can’t control: eroding social trust, rapid technological change, mounting inequality, and a general malaise of turbulence, complexity, and ambiguity. These forces daily affect our work, but even more important, they threaten the flourishing of vulnerable neighbors. Yet old habits die hard: path-dependent, we often use old strategies for a new world, expecting them to work, growing frustrated when they don’t. This session will explore what’s required and what’s at stake for a new kind of changemaker, equipped with rekindled imagination and the innovative capacities our turbulent future requires.
Convening and Launching Summer Programs in Rural Areas through Partnership Building Thursday, October 3 | 3:00-4:05 Barbara Fiese, University of Illinois; Brenda Koester, University of Illinois
Establishing and maintaining summer feeding programs in rural areas is difficult due to limited resources. This workshop will present a model of partnership building strategies to increase participation in summer feeding with local support.
Fighting Hunger, Feeding Hope
Thursday, October 3 | 1:20-2:25 Celia Cole, Feeding Texas; Eric Cooper, San Antonio Food Bank
Texas food banks are united under a common mandate: End hunger in Texas. Ending hunger means more than filling empty bellies today; it means ensuring families have the resources to be self-sufficient in the future. The speakers will share how food banks collaborate within their communities to ensure adequate nutritious food for hungry Texans, improve the health and financial stability of the people they serve, and engage all stakeholders in advocating for solutions to hunger.
Food Pantry Distribution: Understanding Implications of the timing and coordination of pantry visits
Thursday, October 3 | 3:00-4:05 Tammy Leonard, University of Dallas; Erika Garcia, North Texas Food Bank; Jesse Kramer Crossroads Community Services
The Community Assistance Research Initiative has been working in collaboration with community partners including Crossroads Community Services and North Texas Food Bank to better understand how the frequency and coordination of pantry visits impact client outcomes. We will lead a conversation with our community partners to discuss research findings and their implications for food pantry services.
Jeffco Eats is going to help together with others dedicated to end food insecurity . But looming is a giant of real estate with many loud voices calling it to bring everyone more wealth while others slip into their cars with their children in the night. This is wrong and has to stop. I designed a four season farmers market for the JSEL shopping center that was going to be built from modular units called storage containers.
We just rented two 20 ft storage containers to run our non profit to be a mobile pantry for over 2500 families each week. We will be learning more as we use them. I have a career background in building materials and construction. What if these units are an answer to a big percentage of our housing costs problems ? Minimalists are a trendy life style but does our Building Permit and City Councils know in Jefferson and Denver Metro area that many people in Louisiana are still living in those small containers dropped after Katrina. I was a crisis Chaplain on mission there and in Galveston. When I saw the devastation and that people lost their house and had no insurance I said they will be living in these many people for a very long time.
This is a skyline of storage container homes. I will be spending some of my spare time finding people who are building not luxury units but homes for families to stay home secure and food secure.
Please read this article and others and go to your city council and Realtors groups associations and find someone who will start a project .
![Slide 12 of 41: Described by the architects as a "micro-housing solution [for] the less fortunate", local residents would be enlisted to help with designing and building the new development to help create a sense of community. Disused containers from a local port an hour away from the site could provide the starting point for this innovative village.](https://img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/AAETVfe.img?h=416&w=799&m=6&q=60&u=t&o=f&l=f)