Hunger 101 at SLU

This week is Hunger Awareness at SLU and last night the Campus Kitchens students invited GardenShare to come in a present Hunger 101.

Hunger 101 is a role-playing, interactive workshop that helps participants better understand the challenges of feeding a family on a tight budget.

Some of the student's comments on their evaluation forms suggest that we achieved this goal:

• I really thought I was pretty good at budgeting and meal planning.  But I've realized that's because I'm able to shop around and buy in bulk for the best deals.  Not everyone has that opportunity or the means to cook the food they get.
• It's reality that people are trying to live on $1 to $6 per day and it's very difficult to get assistance.
• I was surprised by how the system fails many people who need help.
• I learned about the variety of resources available and how much effort it takes to plan and budget for food.
• It was really eye-opening to see how hard it can be to put 3 meals on the table for a family with so little money.
• I assumed that anyone who needed SNAP could get it and I learned that's not the case.