Interfaith Hunger Coalition Participates in End Hunger in New Mexico Summit

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The Interfaith Hunger Coalition was present at the End Hunger in New Mexico summit this past Wednesday and Thursday.  Ellen Buelow (Holy Rosary Catholic Community) led a workshop  with the help of Judy Messal (All Saints Lutheran Church) and Kathy Freeze (Catholic Charities of Central New Mexico). The workshop presented the history, goals and mission statement of the IFC as well as some data on hunger in New Mexico (courtesy of our partner New Mexico Voices for Children.

While most of our work has been in Albuquerque, many of the participants in the workshop were from communities elsewhere in New Mexico, including Roswell, Ruidoso, Cloudcroft and the Navajo Nation. In addition to learning about the IHC, participants shared their experiences and challenges working with people who are vulnerable to hunger.  For the members of the Chaves County  J.O.Y. Centers (pictured at left), a main concern was hunger among seniors.

 We also had a display table coordinated by Bert Scott (Central
United Methodist Church). Most of the materials for the display were designed by Jeanne Elmhorst (Albuquerque Mennonite Church).  Many people volunteered to staff the table, including Joy Dinaro (Immaculate Conception Catholic Church) and Ian Wood (Archdiocese of Santa Fe), pictured at left, Carole Everton (Holy Rosary Catholic Community), Kathryn Arndt (Community of Hope) and others . We hope that our presence at the summit allowed more people to know about us, which is an important step in the growth of our coalition.

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Impressive Group of Speakers to Address End Hunger Summit

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Krista Kelley, is seen as a visionary in the design and implementation of numerous projects that have changed the course of New Mexico communities through hunger, healthcare, employment and access to vital services... Albuquerque kindergarten teacher Sonya Romero has gained international recognition for her generosity toward students at Lew Wallace Elementary School....Since 1984, Pastor John Hill has served his fellow man in the non-profit sector, focusing on individuals coming directly out of the prison system, with drug and alcohol addictions, or with employment challenges...Rev. Jack Bunting is currently serving as the President/CEO of the St. Felix Pantry, Inc. in Rio Rancho, and continues to be passionate about serving the needs of the poor, hungry and hurting within Sandoval County and the State of New Mexico...Sherry Hooper took over as executive director for The Food Depot, Northern New Mexico’s food bank in September, 2001. Ms. Hooper co-founded the Santa Fe Food Policy Council and served on the Council as a City of Santa Fe appointee for four years...Crystal Fitzsimmons leads FRAC’s work to increase participation the federal school, summer, and afterschool nutrition programs. She analyzes policy to advocate for legislative and regulatory... improvements to increase low - income children’s access to the nutrition programs...Veronica Garcia became New Mexico Voices for Children’s executive director in 2012... As New Mexico’s first Cabinet Secretary of Education, she pushed for funding for programs such as school - based health clinics, breakfast in the schools, and elementary physical education.

The Second Annual End Hunger in New Mexico Summit, scheduled for Sept. 23-24, will feature an impressive group of keynote speakers. [Archbishop John Wester of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe was originally scheduled to address the event, but something came up (Pope Francis visit to the U.S.!)]. The Albuquerque Marriott, 2101 Louisiana Blvd. (map), will be the site of the summit. Two of the keynote speakers lead organizations that have endorsed the Interfaith Hunger Coalition (IHC): Adelante/The Storehouse and New Mexico Voices for Children. The IHC will have a display at the summit and will also be presenting a workshop on Wednesday, September  23, !;45-2:45 p.m. in the Acoma Room. Here is a description of our workshop

Faith In Action: An Introduction to the Interfaith Hunger Coalition

* Ellen Buelow, Interfaith Hunger Coalition
Our interactive workshop introduces participants to the vision and activities of the Interfaith Hunger Coalition focused in three areas; education, advocacy and direct action. Here’s an opportunity for faith communities to collaborate in a common place. Explore how you and your organization can join forces without duplication of services.

Check out the full schedule of events, including descriptions of all the workshops and more information about the keynote speakers. You can register on site at the summit on September 22-24. The registration fee is $20. Participants are encouraged to bring non-perishable food items, which Desert Harvest will distribute to feeding sites in Albuquerque.

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Year End Accounting

2:24 AM in accounting, Aqua, end, year

When the end of the year rolls around, many folks look to balancing their accounts, making sure pennies and receipts are all accounted for.  We do something similar, but with our marshmallows and chocolate.  If we didnt use them up eating Smores in the summer, we make a big batch of Christmas fudge with the leftovers.  (Ok, sometimes we get marshmallows and chocolate just for making fudge, but we use up the leftover ones first.)

It took a little digging to find a recipe that didnt call for marshmallow fluff or corn syrup, but we found what we were looking for in Loris Best Ever Fudge.  (Thank you, Lori, whoever you are!)  Weve made several variations over the years, with many different kinds and combinations of chocolate and sugars.  Its a pretty robust recipe, as long as we respect two factors: first, dont cut down on the sugar or it wont set up right, and second, the flavor is much better if a variety of chocolate types are used (i.e., dont use just milk chocolate).  Weve made a couple variations to the process, too, so we decided to document our first batch this year.

All it needs is six simple ingredients.  Butter, sugar, marshmallows, milk, vanilla, and chocolate.  Hard to go wrong with that combination!

Add the butter, milk, and sugar to a big pot and start it heating.  The sugar can be brown, white, or anything in between.  (We wait to add the vanilla until later.)  In the meantime, grease a cookie sheet (11" x 16" or thereabouts) and count out 25 marshmallows.

If you greased the cookie sheet first, tearing the marshmallows into quarters will be less sticky.  If not, you can challenge Katie to a thumb war afterwards.

When the milk, sugar, and butter have heated up and been boiling for 2 minutes, add the quartered marshmallows.  We dont remove the pot from the heat at this point since it cools down too quickly and we want all the marshmallows to melt.

Almost there!

When the marshmallows are all melted away into the mixture, turn off the stove and add a heaping 4 cups of whatever chocolate youve got on hand--chocolate chips, old M&Ms, discount chocolate chunks from the Amish grocery store--just make sure youve got about half that is semisweet or unsweetened.

Stir until the chocolate meets the same fate as the marshmallows.  There might be a few bubbles, but thats ok.  Add the vanilla extract now.

Pour the whole shebang into the greased cookie sheet.  Make sure to scrape the pot out with a spatula.

Put it in the fridge overnight or until it sets up nice and hard.  The background isnt overexposed in this photo; thats just what heaven looks like.

The recipe:
1 stick butter
1 cup milk
2 cups sugar
25 marshmallows, quartered
4 cups chocolate, about half semisweet or dark, and half milk chocolate
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Heat butter, sugar, and milk together until boiling, boil for 2 minutes or so, then add marshmallows.  Stir until marshmallows are melted, then turn off stove and add chocolate.  Stir until chocolate is melted, then add vanilla extract, mix well, and pour into greased 11" x 16" cookie sheet.  Chill several hours, or until fudge is firm.  Cut into 1" squares if other people are around, into 3" squares if not.

What is your favorite fudge recipe?  What ratio of chocolate types do you like?  Let us know in the comments section below!

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FRAC Unveils Plan of Action to End Hunger in America

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The 2016 election debate has already begun. It will help frame the issues that the next President and Congress, as well as state and local officials, will address. Hunger — its causes, its impact, and its solutions — must be part of the debate and agenda for all parties and all candidates. Polling shows Democrats, Independents, Republicans, men, women, and voters from all parts of the country think that hunger is a serious problem in this country, and the government needs to invest and lead more to address it. This commitment of American voters must become part of the election discussion, and every candidate at every level of government should be asked to issue a plan to address hunger.  -Food Reasearch and Action Center

The effort to shine the spotlight on hunger during the 2016 presidential campaign is under way on many fronts. Vote to End Hunger, an effort led by six anti-hunger organizations--The Alliance to End Hunger, Bread for the World, Feeding America, Meals on Wheels America, No Kid Hungry-Share Our Strength, and RESULTS--officially launched its campaign this past week.  This campaign focuses on the target of ending hunger in our country and globally by 2030.

A second effort, led by the Circle of Protection, Sojourners and Bread for the World, asked the presidential candidates to produce a video answering the question, “What would you do as president to offer help and opportunity to hungry and poor people in the United States and around the world?” As of Oct. 17, nine candidates (six Republicans and three Democrats) had submitted videos. 

Eight-Point Plan
Another prominent anti-hunger organization, the Food Research and Action Center, has put together a blueprint to end hunger in the United States by 2030. The Plan of Action to End Hunger in America, suggests the timing is right to make an all-out effort to eliminate hunger in our country.  Earlier efforts, including President Barack Obamas campaign pledge in 2008 to tackle hunger in America, were hampered by a major downturn in the U.S. economy.

"When Mr. Obama became President, he inherited an economy suffering the most drastic downturn in three-quarters of a century. Giant banks and businesses teetered on the brink. Unemployment leapt up and wages fell. Hunger and poverty both rose rapidly. In 2007, 36 million Americans lived in food insecure households. In 2009, that number was 50 million."

"Now, seven years after Mr. Obama made his anti-hunger pledge, the economy is in considerably better shape, though far from fully recovered. While hunger in this rich nation is unacceptable, even in the worst of times, the recovery changes the dynamic, making American hunger both more unacceptable and more solvable," said the FRAC report.

The Plan of Action to End Hunger in America, offers eight essential strategies for decisively attacking hunger.

1. Create jobs, raise wages, increase opportunity, and share prosperity;
2. Improve government income-support programs for struggling families;
3. Strengthen SNAP;
4. Strengthen Child Nutrition Programs;
5. Target supports to especially vulnerable populations;
6. Work with states, localities, and nonprofits to expand and improve participation in federal nutrition programs;
7. Make sure all families have convenient access to reasonably priced, healthy food;
8. Build political will.

The eighth point is very important, and the discussion can begin in the context of the Presidential, US Congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial campaigns.Vote to End Hunger and FRACs campaign are important tools to discuss federal initiatives, particularly in light of the U.S. presidential and congressional elections. The issue is also important in state legislative and gubernatorial campaigns and elections for city council or county commission. So, go to town halls and candidate forums, write letters to the editor and organize discussion groups in your church or community group.  Its all important work.

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My Dream is to End World Hunger

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Through photography children share their innermost feelings. The opportunity to reveal their dreams in photographs shows each child how much their dreams MATTER! Their hopes and dreams captured in quiet moments tell a story that few adults can imagine. "When you show children that you care about what they dream for in life, perhaps a child who never felt he or she had self worth, now will."  -Linda Solomon

When Emily, then 7 years old,  she was presented the opportunity to express her dreams via a photograph. Her dream was the very grown-up goal to end world hunger.

Emily was one of 19 homeless children in Albuquerque who were afforded this opportunity back in 2012. Darrionte, then 8 years old, is featured in an article published in The Albuquerque Journal on Sept. 6, 2012.

With the support of local car dealership Galles Chevrolet, the pictures were made into a set of greeting cards, which the Barrett Foundation  sold in 2012. Even though the cards were created three years ago, they still touch our hearts and are still very relevant today.

A national project
Project director, renown photographer Linda Salomon, has brought  Pictures of Hope to children living in shelters in Tucson, El Paso, Philadelphia, New York City, Flint, Michigan, Tulsa, Raleigh, Fayetteville, Charlotte, Kansas City, St. Louis, Washington, D.C., Minneapolis and Albuquerque.

Heres how it works. Solomon presents a photo tutorial to the children at each shelter. At the conclusion of the tutorial, the children are surprised with digital cameras donated by Walgreens and given their first photo assignment as young photojournalists. Each child has a Picture of Hope card showcasing one of their photographs. All the children in each city celebrate with their mentors at the "Meet The Young Artist" receptions when the Pictures of Hope cards are launched. Its a special day no one will ever forget.

On her website, the photographer explains her motivation. "The numbers of homeless children in the US are the highest in our history, 2.5 million. One out of thirty children are homeless," said Ms. Solomon. "The mission of Pictures of Hope is to change lives, one life at a time. We show each child there is hope and they are not forgotten. Pictures of Hope touches the soul of each child we meet."

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Bread for the World Member Rick Steves Invites You to Join Him in Helping to End Hunger This Christmas

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"...Im one of thousands of Christian Americans who really see Bread for the World not as a charity but as a service. Together, we want to fight hunger, and Bread for the World represents that, and does our work right here in Washington, D.C."  excerpt from Rick Steves address at the Bread for the World national gathering, June 2014

Rick Steves loves Bread for the World. Every Christmas season, he puts together a special appeal to raise funds for our organization. The beloved television travel host and author has an offer for you again this year.

"Heres my challenge to you," Steves says on his Travel Blog. "Make a gift of $100 or more and as a thank you, Ill match your gifts (up to $250,000) and send you my European Christmas gift package or my Complete Collection 2000-2016 DVD Box Set (all 100 of my travel shows)."

This video tells you more about the European Christmas Gift Package


If you make your gift by December 10 (thats next Thursday!),  you’ll get everything in time for Christmas. "I’ll happily pay for the cost of these gifts and postage so that Bread can use 100 percent of your donation for their work," said Steves.

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End of Tomato Season Deliciousness

3:55 PM in Aqua, deliciousness, end, of, season, tomato

At the end of the gardening season (in places with seasons, anyway), a gardener always has to make a decision on when to call it quits.  At some point, the summer veggies slow way down and have to be babied to keep them from getting frostbite, providing an annual test of a gardeners patience.  What is the cutoff?  Wed like to say we have some fancy algorithm figured out, where we take the derivative of the day length multiplied by the angle of the suns trajectory which is divided by the number consecutive nights with frost forecast for the coming week or something, but we dont.  It usually works out that if weve had to cover things at night for more than about a week, the next available weekend day is slated for putting most of the garden to sleep for the winter.

On said weekend day, we usually find ourselves with a large pile of tomatoes in varying stages of ripeness.  From the nearly ripe and softball-sized beefsteaks all the way down to completely green cherry tomatoes that are probably only a few atoms in diameter, we do our best to rescue them all from direct sacrifice to the compost pile. (We also save some whole plants to let ripen on the vine in the garage, but mostly we pick the tomatoes straight away.)  Whats our protocol for dealing with the sudden influx of tomato refugees? Read on and well reveal the methods to our madness. (Or at least, convince you of our madness.)

First, we sort everything into three categories: "Use now, has spots/cracks/etc," (Slytherin, top), "Use now, perfectly ripe," (Gryffindor, lower right), and "Let ripen on counter," (Hufflepuff, lower left). Peppers also have their names thrown into the sorting hat.

Among the Slytherins, we trim any bad spots off the greenest ones, and start converting them into one of a few end products.  Our current favorite is a green salsa-type sauce.  Other options weve considered are green pasta sauce, and any of these.

For our salsa-sauce, we boil the green tomatoes in a little bit of water until they start to soften, blend em up with the stick blender, and season with salt, pepper, cayenne pepper, dried oregano, dried chives, and garlic.  A guess at how much we added to around 3 lbs tomatoes (also a guess) is 1 tablespoon each of salt, pepper, oregano, and chives, 3 tablespoons garlic powder, and 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper.  Katie says thats too much cayenne.  Jake says its about right for a salsa in the hot category.

The key is to keep adding spices until it tastes right.  Lots of testing and empirical recipe development make for a fun and filling night!

When the sauce finally tastes right, it goes in jars in the fridge, to be used on chips, nachos, eggs, potatoes, pork, and other things.  It might also go into containers in the freezer, if we have any handy at the time.  The red and partly-red tomatoes in the Slytherin basket get a similar treatment, but the sauce might be more of a pasta sauce, depending on our mood when were dumping in the spices.  Any spotty peppers also end up in one of the two sauces.

For the Gryffindor basket, were likely to turn the tomatoes into a pasta sauce straight away.  The good peppers go in here, too, along with an onion, and they get boiled up as for the Slytherins.

Blended up, too.

But for a thicker sauce, we like to save some time and energy with the old t-shirt-inside-a-colander-inside-a-bowl trick.  This way we dont have to boil off all that water.

We keep scraping the t-shirt with a wooden spoon to keep the water going through, and before long the sauce is nice and thick.

The filtrate is a nice tomato-ey juice (or a V-3 juice in our case, since we added peppers and onions), and can be drank directly, or mixed with Mary seasonings to provide refreshment during the next death match breakfast.  For what its worth, if we have an electric stove (at 65% thermal efficiency) and pay $0.10/kWh for electricity, were saving more than $0.09 per quart of tomato juice recovered.*  Booyah!

The filter cake goes back in the pot with some seasonings (salt, pepper, oregano, and lots of garlic, to taste).

Mix in some browned up hamburger meat, slap it on some spaghetti noodles, top it with a little parmesan, and weve got something tasty to go along with some roasted potatoes!  (Dont forget to top the taters with sour cream and some of that green sauce from up above.  Ketchup is for heathens.)  The Hufflepuffs we can wait patiently for as they ripen on the counter.

*Calculation assumes vaporizing water at its boiling point (2260 kJ/kg), 8.34 lb/gal of water, and standard conversions of 2.204 lb/kg, 3600 kJ/kWh, and 4 quarts/gal.


What do you do with your end-of-season tomato influx?  Let us know in the comments section below!

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Vote to End Hunger Campaign Launched

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Vote to End Hunger (VTEH), a broad coalition of individuals and organizations all committed to ending hunger in the U.S. and around the world by 2030, officially launched its campaign on Tuesday, October 13. "We believe that it will take the combined public and political will to do this by 2030 and are working together to elevate the issue of hunger with candidates during the 2016 election cycle," said the coalition.

The goal to end hunger by 2030 is compatible with Target 1 (No Poverty) and Target 2 (Zero Hunger) of the Global Goals for Sustainable Development, a commitment that world leaders made through the U.N. earlier this month.

Here are more specifics for VTEH
.
Goal
Use the 2016 election process to make hunger, poverty and opportunity a higher political priority, so that the next President and Congress take action that will put our nation and the world on track to end hunger by 2030.

Vision
End hunger in the United States and around the world by 2030.

Principles

1. Ending hunger in the United States and worldwide by 2030 is possible;
2. Ending hunger requires strong commitment and leadership from the U.S. government;
3. Ending hunger means fulfilling the right to food by ensuring all people at all times are able to access enough food for an active, healthy life;
4. Ending hunger is the shared responsibility of individuals, communities, the private sector, non-profits, faith-based organizations, and government;
5. Ending hunger is not a partisan issue;
6. Ending hunger requires both a strong safety net and policies that expand opportunity and reduce poverty;
7. The 2016 election provides an exceptional opportunity to make ending hunger, poverty and opportunity a higher political priority;
8. Therefore, we plan to work together to engage voters and candidates around the goal of ending hunger by 2030.

Get Involved 
Individuals: Sign the Pledge and Keep Informed (scroll down to bottom of page to sign up for newsletter)
Organizations: Join the Coalition

Steering Committee
The Alliance to End Hunger
Bread for the World
Feeding America
Meals on Wheels America
No Kid Hungry-Share Our Strength
RESULTS

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