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Are you concerned about these issues?
Contribute today to help Partners
for a Hunger-Free Oregon continue our work.
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Feast Portland: A celebration of Oregon bounty 2013, Sept. 19-22, benefits Partners for a Hunger-Free Oregon.
Read Feast Portland's newsletter for exciting updates. |
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State Legislative update and action alert
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 ACTION ALERT: SUPPORT TANF!
Messages:
- We should protect Oregon families with children by helping them get back on their feet.
- Re-invest $10 million in the JOBS program so that more families can connect to employment (currently the JOBS program serves just 16% of families on TANF).
- Fund HB 3440 - this bill will help families make a successful transition off of TANF. It will also help those families that need a small amount of cash assistance, but not full TANF support. Learn more.
Successful Hunger Hearing: an informational hearing on hunger with the House Human Service and Housing Committee brought together advocates, human service providers, families and legislators to share their experience with hunger. Many thanks to all who bravely told their stories!
Earned Income Tax Credit Hearing: An excellent hearing on the Oregon EITC provided a forum for Oregonians and legislators to discuss the benefits of this important tax credit for low-wage Oregonians. Rep. Jason Conger, R-Bend benefitted from the tax credit many years ago. "It seemed like a small amount of money," Conger said, "but that money makes a big difference when you're dealing with small amounts and counting pennies every month.
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Federal update: SNAP cuts loom in farm bills
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 The Senate continued to work on the farm bill this week, with a proposed $4.5 billion in cuts to SNAP. The House version of the farm bill includes $20.5 billion in cuts and is expected to go to the House floor in mid-June. Learn more.
SNAP in the news
Discussions about the wisdom of SNAP cuts is gaining momentum with many people questioning why Congress would take food away from struggling families and children.
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| Generous donors help feed kids all summer long |
 PHFO offered another round of critical summer meal grants to programs that feed kids across the state, thanks to generous donations from Oregon businesses and philanthropic leaders. This year we raised just under $50,000! We are grateful for the public and private partnerships that make such a big impact. Grants were awarded to 17 organizations across 13 counties. We look forward to visiting them and celebrating as children enjoy a hunger-free summer. Look for stories and photos in future editions of the newsletter. A sincere thank you to donors of this year's campaign:
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| Help promote the summer food program! |
Summer is almost here! You can make sure the kids in you  r community don't miss out on the nutrition they need for healthy minds and bodies.
Site providers: Do you need help getting the word out? Partners for a Hunger-Free Oregon has outreach materials to help promote summer meal programs.
Everyone: Help us promote the statewide website SummerFoodOregon.org. This important resource provides info on more than 700 summer food sites across Oregon, including serving times and public transportation info. Families can also call 211info to find local sites. Tell friends and neighbors, and share this on Facebook. Thank you!
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| Fighting child hunger in Tillamook |
Organizations and community members gathered in Tillamook for the County Child Hunger Summit, held at the United Methodist Church, and hosted by the Oregon Food Bank.
Rose Walker attended and shared info about organizing to feed children outside of school hours. Read more about ideas and discussions from the summit.
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Remembering Greg: child nutrition champion
| | PHFO was sorry to hear of the passing of a long-time child nutrition champion Greg Lynch, who served as Nutrition Services Operations Director for the Estacada School District, and previously as a specialist with the Oregon Department of Education's Nutrition Services Department.
 Greg's commitment to serving summer lunches to Estacada's children led him to convert a school bus into a mobile lunch delivery service with help from a PHFO mini-grant in 2010. Some of us had the pleasure of riding the bus with him, watching dozens of children greet the bus when he pulled into mobile homes, parks, playgrounds and apartment complexes.
Greg's dedication to feeding children, while urging others to do the same, was inspiring and he will be missed.
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| Thanks to donors, we can help prevent child hunger |
In addition to awarding small grants to summer meal sites, our staff provides year-round consulting services to help increase the effectiveness and sustainability of feeding programs. This work is critical to ensuring meal programs are successful for years to come.
In May, we were grateful to receive several grants for offering these services through our Child Hunger Prevention project.
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