As stated in a recent article in The Washington Post, corporate giving to the Capital Area Food Bank is down by 20 % from fiscal year 2010 to fiscal year 2011. This is of great concern since businesses in past years have played a pivotal role in closing the meal gap in the DC area. [...]
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Blog post submitted by Amy Menzel Arlington County Department of Human Services has worked diligently for many years to bring much needed public assistance benefits to the Arlington community. Over the last couple of years amidst a challenging economy and increased need for food assistance, Arlington has stepped up to make the SNAP/Food Stamp [...]
The Capital Area Food Bank recently teamed up with The Virginia Federation of Food Banks to bring Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell and Virginia State Delegate Mark D. Sickles to CAFB partner agency ALIVE Inc. in Alexandria, Virginia. The Governor and Delegate Sickles volunteered packing food as a part of the state wide legislator volunteer day for [...]
I recently had the opportunity and honor to represent the Capital Area Food Bank at the second White House Community Leaders Briefing Series. This event is hosted by The White House Office of Public Engagement, and is an opportunity for the White House to share information with community leaders from across the country on the [...]
Help Protect Against Budget Proposals Threatening SNAP, Other Safety Net Programs
By Brian Banks
May 19, 2011
The 112th Congress is currently debating the 2012 federal budget and we need your help to encourage our elected officials to protect nutrition assistance and safety net programs. Programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (formerly the food stamp program) are being threatened with cuts by several members of Congress, which would affect low-income [...]
SNAP Outreach in NOVA By Amy Menzel Have you ever spoken to a group of people and felt like they had no idea what you were talking about? This happened to me last week, as I went into a community area of Fairfax County in Northern Virginia. I went to one of the many Capital [...]
What a day! On Wednesday, October 19th I was fortunate enough to visit the White House for First Lady Michelle Obama’s White House Kitchen Garden Fall Harvest. While I waited for the first lady I had the rare opportunity to look into the Oval Office and see President Obama at work, as well as watch him [...]
The Community Food Security Coalition held their 14th Annual Conference in New Orleans and the theme of the conference was “Food, Culture, Justice, The Gumbo That Unites Us All.” Food, Culture, & Justice. What does it all mean? In a nutshell it simply means there is enough food across our great country for everyone, however, because [...]
On the morning of Friday, September 17, 2010 I woke up not wanting to attend what I assumed to be just another conference. I knew that receiving a personal invite to attend D.C.’s Department of Human Services, Income Maintenance Administration’s 15th Annual Food Stamp Payment Accuracy Conference, was an honor and privilege that few outsiders get. I [...]
When I first received the e-mail to host the President’s Young African Leaders, my first reaction was how to sufficiently host the group with so much on my plate. I went on vacation and the first question that was posed as soon as I arrived back to the food bank was, “Brian, any idea on how [...]