Preparing 60K meals to fight food insecurity goal of Rotary Clubs of Ann Arbor
- Updated: Nov. 11, 2024, 1:08 p.m.
|Published: Nov. 11, 2024, 1:01 p.m.
A photo from a previous Send Hunger Packing event in Ann Arbor Photo Courtesy Rob Shiff
- Makayla Coffee | mcoffee@mlive.com
- ANN ARBOR, MI - Fighting food insecurity is becoming a tradition for Ann Arbor’s three Rotary Clubs.
Send Hunger Packing is happening for the third year in a row from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, Nov. 16 at the Ann Arbor Pioneer High School Cafeteria, 601 W. Stadium Blvd. The Rotary Clubs of Ann Arbor, Ann Arbor North and Ann Arbor West are putting on the event in partnership with Kids Coalition Against Hunger. The event hopes to raise $21,000 this year.
The annual event has been able to produce over 62,000 meals for those in need since it began in 2022. This year, the group is doubling its efforts to pack 60,000 meals to send to states in the Southeast that have been impacted by hurricanes Helene and Milton.
“People’s hearts are for each other and when they see a need ... they want to roll up their sleeves and get involved in helping out,” said Mike Burwell, Kids Coalition Against Hunger executive director.
Volunteers will work in an assembly-line to put together packets of rice, soy, dried vegetables, spices, vitamins and flavoring with each meal costing 35 cents to make. Every bag can feed either six adults or 12 kids.
This year’s meals will have different packaging with a QR code that gives 50 different recipes to make with the ingredients.
The space for volunteers has filled up, but anyone wanting to help can still donate towards these meals online.
This year the group is also receiving help from Skyline, Pioneer and Saline high schools and their Interact Clubs, groups affiliated with Rotary. The University of Michigan’s Rotaract Club will also help.
Adarsh Nadgir helps with the communications side of Send Hunger Packing and is the president and founder of Skyline Interact. It was actually a Send Hunger Packing event that inspired him to start a club focused on volunteering at his school.
“Not only do you get to volunteer with your friends, but you also understand what kind of difference you’re making,” he said, adding this event showed him how much he loved helping others.
Julie Dunbar, the event’s chairperson and member of Rotary Club of Ann Arbor West, said she was blown away by how quickly the participating Interact club members were ready to help and lead this event.
“They’ve really been invested in it, and we have been very impressed with their level of commitment and their understanding of the responsibility that they’ve taken on to do these roles,” she said.
Dunbar said this year’s Send Hunger Packing event is building on the success of its previous years and has a strong team behind it. Burwell describes it as a “Rotary tradition,” and is hopeful it continues for years.
“It goes back to the old adage that by ourselves we can run very fast, but together we can run far,” he said. “As we keep doing this over and over ... I think we’ll be able to feed the needs of a global community and run very far with whatever project we decide to back.”
Anyone with questions about Send Hunger Packing may reach out directly to sendhungerpacking@a2rotary.org.
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