Monday, September 19, 2011
Challenge Accepted!!
I have some friends that put on a fundraiser once a month that I go to. I started out going to support my friends and it was a way to catch up with everyone but the fundraiser in me really became invested in attending and learning about different local charities.
In August, the charity of the month was SF Food Bank, while there I learned about the Hunger Challenge. Basically the Food Bank challenges people to live off the equivalent of food stamps for the week which was quoted as $4.72 per person per day. Having grown up in a working class household, endured a college diet, and currently living on a non-profit budget I thought that this would be an easy thing to do.
The Hunger Challenge was September 11th - 17th. Listed below are some snapshots for the week:
1. It is NOT EASY or NUTRITIONAL to live on the budget that is given out. I was constantly hungry and found myself thinking about food nonstop from day 5 on.
2. I cried MANY times on days 4-7. It took a lot of will power not to chuck the challenge and just eat something, ANYTHING. As thankful as I was to know that I could do that at any moment, it made me that much more determined to stick it out for people that don't have that opportunity.
3. The SF Food Bank drives a hard bargain. I was suffering pretty hardcore but the rules for the Challenge seemed a bit condescending. The diet that I was on didn't allow me to turn down free food or FREE CAFFEINE. For the Food Bank to suggest that I should because people on a food stamp allowance would not have the opportunity is retarded!!!
4. The people in SF actually get $7.14 per person per day. I didn't think to look it up and just took the word of the SF Food Bank but a co-worker looked it up for me after learning about the challenge. I found this out on the last day. I took that extra money which was sorely needed eat my last meal on the challenge.
5. I highly recommend that everyone try the challenge. You can do it any seven days out of the year. It just has to be a week where you live off of the food stamp wages offered in your city.
All in all, I'm happy that I took the challenge. It's a humbling experience that I won't soon forget.
In August, the charity of the month was SF Food Bank, while there I learned about the Hunger Challenge. Basically the Food Bank challenges people to live off the equivalent of food stamps for the week which was quoted as $4.72 per person per day. Having grown up in a working class household, endured a college diet, and currently living on a non-profit budget I thought that this would be an easy thing to do.
The Hunger Challenge was September 11th - 17th. Listed below are some snapshots for the week:
1. It is NOT EASY or NUTRITIONAL to live on the budget that is given out. I was constantly hungry and found myself thinking about food nonstop from day 5 on.
2. I cried MANY times on days 4-7. It took a lot of will power not to chuck the challenge and just eat something, ANYTHING. As thankful as I was to know that I could do that at any moment, it made me that much more determined to stick it out for people that don't have that opportunity.
3. The SF Food Bank drives a hard bargain. I was suffering pretty hardcore but the rules for the Challenge seemed a bit condescending. The diet that I was on didn't allow me to turn down free food or FREE CAFFEINE. For the Food Bank to suggest that I should because people on a food stamp allowance would not have the opportunity is retarded!!!
4. The people in SF actually get $7.14 per person per day. I didn't think to look it up and just took the word of the SF Food Bank but a co-worker looked it up for me after learning about the challenge. I found this out on the last day. I took that extra money which was sorely needed eat my last meal on the challenge.
5. I highly recommend that everyone try the challenge. You can do it any seven days out of the year. It just has to be a week where you live off of the food stamp wages offered in your city.
All in all, I'm happy that I took the challenge. It's a humbling experience that I won't soon forget.
Labels: challenge, food bank, fundraising, hunger
Comments:
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I am still so amazed that you signed up for this, AND completed it successfully. Thank you for sharing your insights post challenge. I am eager to try it out myself sometime in the near future so that I can truly understand what those in need are feeling on a daily basis and reflect on how we, as a society, might go about helping others who are living on this budget.
-Mala
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-Mala
# posted by 
: 9/21/2011 3:35 PM
: 9/21/2011 3:35 PM << Home
