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Salvationists create new organization to combat hunger.
My first experience with serving starving people was in, of all places, Acapulco, Mexico.
I was there on a mission trip, and had gone with our host to watch the sunset at the beach. A small group of us geared up for a spectacular evening. Not long after we sat down to watch, a group of young children appeared out of nowhere, and began a mini concert for us. I couldn’t understand the Spanish language, but I couldn’t miss the beautiful smiles and sincerity of their mission. I asked our host why they were doing this, and she replied, “the children are hungry.”
Being an over-the-top, “let-me-fix-this” type American, I immediately reached for my wallet. My guide stopped me, indicating that the children were likely not singing on their own, but had been sent by an out of sight adult, who would be the true recipient; the children would not benefit. She suggested, and I readily agreed, that we buy food and give it directly to them.
It was a profound moment in my life. My first experience of feeding children on a global basis. There would be others: Albania, Costa Rica, Haiti, Jamaica, Turks and Caicos Islands, to name a few.
Fast forward 14 or so years, and now my wife and I founded “The Global Hunger Expedition.”
After living and working in the Caribbean for three years, two of them in Haiti, Vicki and I knew it would not be possible to return to business as usual. Our lives had been forever changed, and we knew that our next adventure would need to include feeding people, especially children, on a global basis.
The Global Hunger Expedition is just as it sounds: An expedition to end hunger. It is, however, much more than sending food to starving people. It is about empowering people in less developed countries to find solutions to care for themselves, and to help provide the necessary resources to become self sufficient. Our work includes packaging food in the U.S.—and hopefully other locations soon—to be sent abroad. This food is highly nutritious, and designed to be culturally appropriate.
The food is sponsored by donors (35 cents for one serving), and packaged by volunteers. It is then sent to various locations around the world, which are both willing and able to receive it. Because Vicki and I are Salvationists, we have a special affinity for Salvation Army programs where food is desperately needed. We work hard to see to it that we are aware of the needs, and in communication with the leadership in that area to determine the best course of action.
Each serving of Global Hunger Expedition food also represents local empowerment, since five cents from each package is devoted to a project somewhere in the region where the food is being served. From digging a well, providing a kitchen at a school, or a micro-enterprise project, these are designed to be part of an overall strategy to end hunger in that specific area.
Contact Bob to host a food packing event in your corps and community.
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