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Give it up for hunger

Week-long campaign focuses on struggling families

Hunger is a problem mostly associated with people in far away countries, but there are families who go hungry on streets in Canada.

About 900,000 Canadians rely on food banks every month, according to the Canadian Association of Food Banks (CAFB). CAFB recognizes the issue of hunger needs attention and hopes to inform people about the role of local food banks during Hunger Awareness Week, May 7 to 11.

In a press release, Powell River Action Centre Food Bank administrator Gina Kendrick asked locals to help raise awareness as part of the campaign week. “We are asking Canadians to ‘Give it Up for Hunger,’ to make a positive impact on the issue of hunger in our country.”

The food bank is asking people to “know what it’s like to have food out of reach,” to give up lunch or a food staple for a week and Give a Shout: share the experience by wearing a Hunger Awareness sticker. Organizers would also like people to Give it Out: donate food or funds to the local food bank to help families who rely on it.

Hunger Awareness Week started as a day-long initiative in 2006 and has now expanded to a week-long campaign to raise awareness about families close to home who go without food.

According to the Hunger Awareness Week website, the number of people who used food banks each month in 2011 is 26 per cent above levels experienced before the 2008 and 2009 recession.

For more information and to download a Hunger Awareness sticker from the website. To contact Kendrick, interested readers can call 604.485.9166.