Call To Action

A member of

A member of

Congress is expected to bring up legislation in the next few days to help address the economic downturn and prepare for the new federal fiscal year, which begins October 1st. We need your help to press Congress for aid to help low-income people with their food needs. House leadership and members of the House Appropriations Committee need to hear from Food Bank supporters like you as soon as possible to ensure they respond to the urgent needs of hungry Americans.

Talking Points When Calling Members of the House of Representatives Please contact Representative Virgil Goode (202) 225-4711 and make the following points: With Congress about to go out of session for the November elections, I am deeply concerned that federal food assistance programs will be underfunded. Before Congress leaves, it should take action to ensure enough funding for these programs, which will help the increasing number of hungry Americans. It is critical that the full authorization level ($100 million) be provided for the Emergency Food Assistance Program. That funding will help state and local feeding agencies with the soaring costs of storing and transporting commodities. Food Banks depend on private donations to keep pace with worsening economic conditions and to offset insufficient federal funding. However, these tough economic times are drastically reducing the amount of funding we are receiving from everyday Americans. Therefore, we desperately need additional help from the federal government. It also is essential that sufficient funds be appropriated to maintain participation in the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP) so that low-income seniors, mothers, or young children maintain the benefits of this important program. Over 92 percent of CSFP recipients are seniors with incomes below 130 percent of the poverty level. Many of these recipients are frail, or unable to access the food they need, because of poor health and mobility. Funding for additional food stamp benefits to stimulate the economy and stop the erosion of food purchasing power is critically important. Fully funding these important programs will help my local Food Bank meet the growing need for food assistance in my community. Please support full funding of $100 million for TEFAP storage and distribution grants and funding sufficient to maintain participation in the CSFP. SOUTHWESTERN VIRGINIA SECOND HARVEST FOOD BANK email: [email protected] website: www.swvafoodbank.org Roanoke Valley Branch 1025 Electric Road Salem, VA 24153 (540) 342-3011 Fax: (540) 342-0056 Alleghany Highlands Branch 118 S. Lexington Avenue Covington, VA 24426 (540) 962-6328 Fax: (540) 962-8877 Appalachian Branch P.O. Box 2579 Abingdon, VA 24212 (276) 628-9266 Fax: (276 628-3947