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Hunger Matters
The Second Harvest Heartland Blog
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Advocacy Spotlight: Interview with Volunteer Ben Savin
July 27, 2022 By: Maren Guptill - Public Affairs Intern   
This spring, Second Harvest Heartland hosted an advocacy training session where volunteers and employees came together to learn more about how to get involved in important food policy work. After the sessions, we interviewed participants to gather feedback on what people learned. Here is an interview with Ben Savin, a CSFP and advocacy volunteer. 
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Thank You Donors!
July 26, 2022 By: Rachel Bittner - Direct Marketing Specialist
Donor support helps make everything we do at Second Harvest Heartland possible! That’s why we’re designating an entire week—August 1-7—to show our thanks and appreciation to the individuals, families, community partners and corporate donors who support Second Harvest Heartland’s mission to end hunger together.
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Preparing for the 2023 Farm Bill
July 19, 2022 By: Rachel Sosnowchik - Public Affairs Specialist
Every five years, Congress reauthorizes the Farm Bill, which sets funding levels and requirements for nutrition programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) and the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP). Second Harvest Heartland is working with partners across the state to strengthen these important hunger-fighting programs in the 2023 Farm Bill.
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Accessing Fresh and Local Foods with SNAP Market Bucks
July 13, 2022 By: Vicky Mendez - SNAP Outreach Specialist 
The Market Bucks program is an exciting way for Minnesota SNAP participants to receive additional funds to use at farmers markets, making fresh and local foods more affordable. Plus, it’s an easy way to support farmers and put more dollars right back into our local economy.
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5 Hunger-Fighting Reasons to Give Monthly
June 29, 2022 By: Rachel Bittner - Annual Giving Lead
As hundreds of thousands of Minnesotans face food insecurity and many food shelf partners are seeing up to 30% more visitors this summer, consistent support from monthly donations is more important than ever in the fight against hunger. Become a Monthly Giver by July 31 and your recurring gift will be matched for the first 12 months.
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End of Legislative Session Brings Missed Opportunities for Lawmakers to Address Food Insecurity
June 22, 2022 By: Rachel Sosnowchik - Public Affairs Specialist
The 2022 Minnesota legislative session has ended without needed investments in hunger-relief efforts. Learn more about what proposals were on the table and why organizations like Second Harvest Heartland are calling for lawmakers to come back and pass additional legislation.
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How Haven Housing Gives Food a Second Chance with Food Rescue
June 15, 2022 By: Samantha Solberg - Communications Specialist
Haven Housing is an emergency shelter and supportive housing program that serves women and women-led families in Minneapolis. As a meal program partner of Second Harvest Heartland, Haven Housing utilizes donations of excess food from restaurants and grocers to provide meals and snacks for their residents each day. 
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Five Food Donors Fighting Hunger in the Heartland
June 14, 2022 By: Samantha Solberg - Communications Specialist
Thanks to food donations from growers, producers, manufacturers and businesses, we delivered more than 120 million pounds of food to meal programs and food shelves across our region last year. Here are five of the food donation partners that helped make this possible.
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From Farm to Food Bank: Q&A with The Good Acre
June 3, 2022 By: Samantha Solberg - Communications Specialist
In 2021, we began partnering with The Good Acre to support Minnesota's diverse agricultural community and supply hungry neighbors with fresh produce. To date, 25 participating BIPOC growers have sold more than 197,000 pounds of locally grown produce to Second Harvest Heartland.
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Spotlighting Senior Hunger in Minnesota
May 26, 2022 By: Taylor Day - Senior Hunger Programs Manager
Seniors are currently the fastest-growing segment of the population visiting food shelves. At Second Harvest Heartland, we’re working hard to make sure all seniors in our community have the nutritious food they need to lead healthy, active and productive lives.
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Meet the Team Helping to Keep Food Distributions Safe and Accessible!
May 19, 2022 By: Sophia Ogren-Dehn - Agency Relations Communications Specialist 
Our Agency Relations team, who works directly with food shelf and community partners, has an in-house Compliance team, helping partners prioritize health and safety at every step of the hunger-relief journey. Get to know our Agency Relations' Compliance team members.
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Why Schools Across Minnesota Are Essential to Ending Child Hunger
May 18, 2022 By: Alauna Yust - Guest Contributor
Meeting kids and families where they are is an effective way to combat hunger, and schools have an important role to play when it comes to connecting families to reliable, healthy foods. With summer months fast approaching, schools will continue to play a vital role to ensure that kids have access to meals even when school is not in session.
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Our Team is Varied, Our Team is Strong: Get to Know the Second Harvest Heartland Staff
May 10, 2022 By: Justin Pelegano - Internal Communications and Engagement Specialist
It’s safe to say each of our employees has their own unique reasons for working at Second Harvest Heartland, both personal and professional. By sharing our stories, we’re bringing each other closer together while putting our names, faces and histories to this organization’s mission.
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4 Reasons Why People Need Food Assistance This Spring and Summer   
May 9, 2022 By: Rachel Sosnowchik - Public Affairs Specialist  
While we fought back the worst of predicted pandemic-era hunger, still more than 800,000 individuals reached out to our network of food shelves and meal programs last year. To address and end hunger, we need to understand why it exists, so here we detail four reasons Minnesotans might be facing food insecurity right now.
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Saint Paul Public Schools Celebrates their School Lunch Heroes Year Round
May 3, 2022 By: Hannah Keuler - Child Hunger Specialist
To recognize School Lunch Hero Day on May 6, the Child Hunger Team talked with Jill Westlund, nutrition coordinator at Saint Paul Public Schools, about their innovative School Lunch Hero engagement campaign.
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Today’s Harvest Opens Second Location
May 3, 2022 By: Sophia Ogren-Dehn - Agency Relations Communications Specialist 
Christian Cupboard Emergency Food Shelf (CCEFS) has opened a second Today’s Harvest location, which provides low barrier, fresh-focused food support that acutely meets community needs.
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Minnesota Central Kitchen Offers Halal Meals to Muslim Communities During Ramadan and Beyond
May 2, 2022 By: Samantha Solberg - Communications Specialist
Since its inception in the early days of the pandemic, Minnesota Central Kitchen has distributed more than 2.5 million meals. We are grateful for the first two years of this work, and excited for what’s next, which includes providing even more culturally-connected meals.
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Volunteer Spotlight: Prime Digital Academy Student Cohort
April 27, 2022 By: Myrtle Turnquist - Volunteer Writer
We’re celebrating our Second Harvest Heartland pro bono volunteers! For one recent pro bono project, a Prime Digital Academy student cohort used their final project to promote Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at Second Harvest Heartland.
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Get to Know Some of Second Harvest Heartland’s Volunteers
April 21, 2022 By: Maya Jackson - Volunteer Experience Ambassador  
For Volunteer Appreciation Month, Volunteer Experience Ambassador Maya Jackson had the opportunity to sit down with Posa, a first-time volunteer, and Jacky, a long-term volunteer, to learn about their experiences.
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Minnesota Central Kitchen is Creating Chef and Neighborhood Powered Meals
April 18, 2022 By: Samantha Solberg - Communications Specialist
A prepared meal can be a powerful thing – especially when that meal is sourced from and prepared in your own backyard. That’s why Minnesota Central Kitchen is by community, for community.
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