Agency Conference
Successful
Joining together, the
Tri-State Food Bank, local agencies, State and local community leaders from
Illinois, Indiana and Kentucky, networked and trained on hunger issues in
the tri-state on Friday, June 8. Over one hundred people, including
local pantries and on-site feeding organizations, attended the event to
gather information on hunger awareness in the tri-state and course of
actions to reduce the number of people falling prey to food insecurity.
Held at Bauer's Grove
Bauerhaus, many in attendance commented on the enchanting surroundings and
delicious food.
Keynote speaker Dennis Brown,
Manager of State Public Policy and Faith-Based Initiatives at America's
Second Harvest-The Nation's Food Bank Network, talked about the America's
Second Harvest "Blue Print to End Hunger" and faith-based
initiatives and how it relates to advocacy. He discussed the influence our
local agencies can have from contacting their legislators and how it can
impact our efforts to eliminate hunger.
Laura Palmer, a nutritional
specialist for Purdue Cooperative Extension gave a presentation on spending
calories and related it to budgeting money. It is important to plan
calories the same as major expenses. Staying within your calorie budget and
offsetting with physical activities now can have a huge bearing on your
medical costs in the future.
Dave Schutte, the project
coordinator of Safe Schools Healthy Students and 21st Century
Community Learning Centers, informed the group about the Summer Feeding
Program in Evansville and encouraged agencies to learn more about summer
feeding programs in their individual communities to help supplement services
to their clients.
Addressing the issues of
Health Care for children in low-income families, Lisa Lant provided outreach
information on how agencies can help parents enroll their children in state
Health Care programs.
Adding to the wealth of
information tendered to the audience, Maddison Seib, with the Indiana Board
of Health revealed the challenges disaster responders will face if the
Pandemic becomes a reality. Not the most agreeable topic for lunch, but
very informative.
Emergency Food Program
managers from IL, IN, and KY facilitated USDA workshops, giving TEFAP
agencies a great opportunity to ask questions and to comply with annual
training requirements.
Presented by Candi Ott, the
Chapter Services Specialist for Southwestern Indiana chapter of American Red
Cross, Together We Prepare, offered information and steps needed so
that agencies and individuals can be prepared if a disaster strikes.
Civil Rights training, given
by Mary Blair, Tri-State Food Bank director covered the dos and do-nots that
directly affect our agencies, both faith-based and community-based. Annual
training is required for all organizations that received assistance from the
federal government.
Lastly, much deserved
congratulations go to the Together We Can committee, Truda Hartmann
who solicited and obtained many wonderful door prizes and items for the
overstuffed goody bags, John Hillenbrand, Barb Tonkin, and John Strain.
All coordinated and worked hard to make this year's event a great
success. Also hugely appreciated are the volunteers who helped with setup
and registration.
Mary Blair
Door Prizes