Ending hunger starts with community.
Partners are neighbors, first.
Our food pantry has a Priority Service Area that includes 15 villages in Cook County. Much like our nation, those 15 villages are connected by commerce and community, by neighborhoods and neighbors. Most especially, they are connected by business leaders and civic leaders who understand the importance of these connections.
Ours is region of wide-ranging income disparity.
According to the 2021 U.S. Census, over 7,000 of our neighbors live below the poverty line. Most live in just seven of the 15 villages in our pantry’s priority service area. But even in our better-off villages, hundreds are experiencing food insecurity.
What does this say about the challenge our collective communities face?