Friday, December 4, 2009

$1 Feeds 4



What can you buy with a single dollar? A candy bar? A soft drink? One might be able to purchase a song to play on an MP3 player, if it’s on sale. For many of us, a single dollar doesn’t amount to much.

A commercial aired recently furthers this concept. In the commercial, a man strolls around town, a single dollar in hand. He wanders into a hotel, and asks what he can get for one dollar. The attendant gives him a tiny plastic palm tree. He then climbs into a cab, asking how far he can go on one dollar. He is asked to leave. During his adventure, he also visits a tanning salon with the same question, and receives a silver-dollar-sized spray tan on his cheek.

Obviously, popular opinion states that a single dollar doesn’t mean much this day in age.

So, when I stumbled across a statement made by the North Texas Food Bank, I was impressed. Okay, not just impressed; I was shocked. Amazed. What was the statement?

$1 Feeds 4 Hungry North Texans.

Really?

I’ll admit: I had to take a moment to digest the true impact of that statement. Although I strive to feed my family on a budget, there’s no way I can provide a complete meal on a single dollar. Feeding four people on a dollar – that same dollar that doesn’t amount to much – is truly an accomplishment.

The North Texas Food Bank does amazing things. They obtain large quantities of donated food from food wholesalers, manufacturers, distributors and retailers which is then distributed to more than 1,100 feeding programs. To round out the food pyramid, they purchase large volumes of food, and do so at a rate that is far below what the food would cost at retail price. What truly amazes me? They manage to distribute this food out to local area food pantries with such efficiency that their overhead costs are as low as possible. Ninety-four percent of every dollar donated goes directly to the hungry. Ninety-four percent. Now that’s efficiency!

That efficiency is much-needed this holiday season. As the economy struggles to rebound, many North Texans, who last year were buying toys for their children for the holidays, are now wondering how they will survive with an empty table this year. This holiday season, the North Texas Food Bank is working to provide 20 million meals to North Texans. We can all help to reach this goal.

The North Texas Food Bank makes it easy to contribute. You can make donations online or by mail, or you can participate in any of the many events occurring throughout the metroplex. You can even make a donation in someone’s honor or in memory of a loved one. Check out their site for more details. Just $20 provides 80 meals. A single dollar does mean something after all – for four hungry North Texans, it brings a nutritious meal. I can’t think of a better way to spend my dollar!

5 comments:

  1. Beautiful project. Great job getting the word out!

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  2. I think it's great to help poor people and especially during the holiday season...very generous and giving of you. I will check out their site.

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  3. Alta - I think it's fabulous that you're raising awareness about the needs in North Texas. It's so flashy here that it's easy to forget that there are people that are going hungry. I have seen the billboards about feeding four people for $1 and it's incredible that they can do so much for so little. Instead of buying a cup of coffee, my $2 could feed 8 people dinner.

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