Fall is finally here. The days are getting shorter and cooler. What is the picture you just formed in your mind? Personally, I think of a nice bowl of soup or chili and crackers or peanut butter sandwich. In other words, comfort food. To so many in our community they might have the same vision, but don't know where it is going to come from. Even though we serve over 1000 individuals each month there are some in the city that don't know we are here ready to help.

North Texas Food Bank recently published an article on the Feeding America study "Hunger in North Texas" This is an even bigger than previously known. Research found that 187,000 children struggle with food insecurity. The CHISD stated there are over 4,000 right here in Cedar Hill. The article on poverty in the Dallas Morning News edition on September 14 commented that the Census Bureau reported the number of Texans living in poverty jumped to more than 4.6 million last year. for the second consecutive year the poverty rate grew to 18.4 percent. Our economy is relentless in seeing any numbers decline.

I can't imagine life without peanut butter or popping a can of soup. The Cedar Hill Food Pantry has found they are short of all the above items along with canned vegetables and meat products. In short, we are keeping our head above water by going to local grocery stores and purchasing what we can. In August alone we purchased $675 worth of two items, soup and peanut butter and watched it walk out the door as fast as we could put it on the shelf. Twelve hundred thirty units of food were given out in August alone. That consists of 1320 cans of soup, 1320 cans of fruit, 1320 cans tomato, 1320 canned tuna, 1320 bags of dried beans or rice and 2640 cans of vegetables plus frozen meat and pastries.

Besides food, we are finding ourselves short of volunteers to help stock the shelves and prepare "units" for distribution. If you have three hours free between 8:00am - noon once a week and would like to give yourself a lift, we an sure use you. Give Chris Grossner, Our Operation Manager,a call at 972-293-2822 and he will find a spot for you.