First Things First:  People Need to Eat 

My career has been devoted to solving poverty, helping communities raise more than $200 million to support families and to drive systemic policy change. Now, as a semiretired baby boomer, I’m focused on inspiring and equipping others to take on leadership roles in addressing poverty and its related challenges. 

Let’s put first things first. It is urgent that you, as a fellow baby boomer, or any-age ally to those struggling in poverty, use your time, talent, and resources to make a difference. Together, we can create a world where poverty is a thing of the past. 

Feed the Kids, Feed the Adults 

This must be every community’s top priority. If kids in your community are going hungry, how can we stand by? What’s our community doing to fix this? How is feeding hungry children not the community’s number one focus? 

Food insecurity is a massive crisis, but the solutions are within reach. Here’s the reality: 

The Scale and Impact of Hunger 

In the U.S., 9 million children go hungry every day. These kids are trying to learn and grow while struggling with empty stomachs. 

Hunger devastates children in three critical ways: 

1. Cognitive and academic struggles: Hungry kids can’t concentrate, fall behind in school, and face lower graduation rates. 

1. Health challenges: Malnutrition leads to chronic illness, weakened immune systems, and mental health issues such as anxiety and depression. 

1. Generational poverty: Food insecurity locks children into cycles of poverty, limiting their potential and opportunities. 

A Community Making a Difference 

In Arkansas, the Arkansas Foodbank is tackling child hunger head-on with its Backpack Program, which provides food-insecure students with weekend meals that are easy to prepare, kid-friendly, and nutritious. 

At England Elementary School, teachers noticed two kindergarten siblings losing weight and taking leftover food home from the cafeteria. Through the Backpack Program, these children now receive food to support them over the weekends, alleviating their hunger and allowing them to focus better in school. 

Thanks to the dedication of local schools, community organizations, and volunteers, the program has made a significant impact, reducing food insecurity among children and showing that collaborative efforts can change lives. 

Systemic Solutions 

This crisis can be solved: 

• Expand federal nutrition programs: Fully fund and expand the supplemental nutrition assistance program (SNAP, also known as food stamps) and school meal programs to ensure every child gets the food they need. 

• Support working families: Raise the minimum wage, expand tax credits, and strengthen family support policies to reduce hunger. 

• Invest in local food systems: Support local farms, food banks, and community programs that provide affordable, healthy food to everyone. 

What You Can Do 

You can’t change federal policy overnight, but you can make an impact today: 

Help One Child 

• Sponsor meals for a child through local schools or organizations. 

• Join a backpack program that sends healthy food home with kids over the weekend. 

Help a Small Group 

• Donate to or volunteer at your local food bank. 

• Organize a community meal program through schools, churches, or civic groups. 

• Fundraise to make sure every child in your local schools has access to healthy meals. 

Help Many Children 

• Push for change: Contact elected officials to demand universal free school meals and expanded SNAP benefits. 

• Partner with national nonprofits such as Feeding America or No Kid Hungry to amplify your efforts. 

• Speak up: Use your voice to raise awareness and rally your community to take action. 

A Final Call to Action 

Feeding kids isn’t just the right thing to do—it’s an investment in a better future. A well-fed child has the chance to grow up and thrive. 

So, what’s your community doing to ensure no child goes hungry? Whether you help one child, a group of children, or work for systemic change, your actions matter. Start today. No child should ever go hungry. 

The Poverty Solution is dedicated to helping communities build new systems to support people completely out of poverty and reduce poverty rates. Based on forty years of research and development in communities across North America, the Poverty Solution brings best practices, new programs, training, consulting, and technical assistance.  

 - Scott C. Miller 

Founder, The Poverty Solution