Hunger 101 at SUNY Potsdam

Today, a group of GardenShare volunteers joined me to present Hunger 101 to a class at SUNY Potsdam.

This is the third time I have presented the program at SUNY Potsdam and has been the case in the past, there were students in the room had some real life experiences with programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and food pantries.  This enriches the conversation as students are able to open about these experiences and help others realize that this is real and happens right here among us.

One of these students said, "I've had some experience on SNAP before so I know that it can be very tricky.  But I have not had to use SNAP in a while so this helped give me some basic perspective."

Here are some other comments from students in the class:

• I didn't realize how hard it can be for someone to get enough food for their family.
• I changed my mind about SNAP - I realized that SNAP is given to people actually need it!
• It was kind of comfortable, but that was the point.

If you would like to schedule a Hunger 101 session for your group, please get in touch!

Hunger 101 at SLU

Yesterday, I presented our Hunger 101 program for a class called "Literary Harvest" at SLU.

Since the students have been doing a lot of reading about food system and hunger issues, it was an engaged and lively group.  But despite their advance knowledge of the topics at hand, they learned a lot, as evidenced by some of the comments that came back on the evaluation forms...

• The most important thing that I learned is that SNAP doesn't provide all that much money.  I think a big misconception is that people try to live off from SNAP, but it's not enough.
• The most important thing I learned is how limited the options are for people to get help.
• It was challenging and eye-opening to try to figure out how to feed two people on $3 a day!
• I really liked how the offices (DSS, food pantry) were not consistently open.  This really shows how inconvenient it can be for people to apply for help.
• Opened my eyes as to how hard it is for low-income people to have access to fresh, quality foods.

And, as I like to remind the students, they got to do all of this by walking around in one classroom.  Imagine how hard it could be when the services are all in different buildings, potentially in different towns.

If you are interested in a Hunger 101 presentation for your group, get in touch!

Hunger 101 with the GardenShare team

Participants work on their budgets

Last evening, 20 people gathered for a Hunger 101 presentation, including GardenShare Board members, volunteers, and our staff.  Some of us had never taken part in a Hunger 101 simulation before and some were back for a second time and tried out a different role this time.

In looking through the participant comments from this session, it was striking to see the level of emotion reflected from this group of people who already know something about the issues around hunger.  Here's just a sample of the comments:

Applying for SNAP

• I felt like I had a lot of the same emotions and feelings that someone in that situation would have - hope, frustration, embarrassment, failure, etc. 

• The very uneasy feeling I got when interacting with the social services personnel - this is a powerful program to demonstrate that!

• I didn't like feeling helpless!

Read more about Hunger 101 here and contact us if you would like to schedule a Hunger 101 program for your group.

A line forms at the food pantry

One more time... Hunger 101

It's been a busy couple of weeks for our Hunger 101 program and we presented it again last evening for the SUNY Potsdam Sociology Club.

Fifteen participants were very engaged and kept talking as a group for a good half hour longer than usual for this program.

Here are a few of their comments on the evaluation forms...

• I learned that college student hunger is a bigger issue than I thought.
• This presentation was hands on and opened the eyes of the participants
• This program made clear what SNAP is, who can qualify for it, and what the program is about
• I knew about SNAP but never realized how hard it really was to get them
• This was an eye-opening experience - itneractive and you really get to feel what it's like

If you would like to know more about Hunger 101 or schedule a presentation for a group, please get in touch, 315-261-8054

Hunger 101 at SUNY Potsdam

Last evening, we presented our Hunger 101 program to a class at SUNY Potsdam.  While the students in the class have been learning about various social service programs all semester, some of them were still surprised by the experiential nature of the Hunger 101 program and feeling what it might be like to be in need themselves.

Here a just a few of their comments:

• Even though there were multiple programs to ehlp people, they ended up with very little food and or money
• I realized before the exercise that SNAP benefits were minimal, but during the exercise I realizsed (almost) realistic frustration.
• I like having to budget the monthly expenses because it showed how difficult it may be for someone to manage their money.
• I learned how difficult it is to get aid and how hard it is to provide for a family on a low food budget.
• It really simulated what people go through and actually put me in that situation.
• I liked that Hunger 101 opened a lot of people's eyes to real life situations that families actually go through.

And from one student who has experience using SNAP benefits in real life and who played the role of a grocery store cashier:  "I didn't like having to treat people the way I was treated at grocery stores because they were using SNAP or were undocumented."

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.

12 days - 12 ways GardenShare is making a difference - day 10

As we look back on the year, we had to highlight our new Hunger 101 program.

Hunger 101 is an interactive, role-playing exercise where most participants play the role of a head of household trying to get enough food for the family.  After figuring out the households budget for food, the participant can visit a grocery store, the farmers market, the social services office, and the food pantry in this quest for food.

As part of our Hunger Action Month activities in September, we scheduled Hunger 101 workshops at Clarkson University, the Unitarian Universalist Church in Canton, and the Little River School.  We have also presented the program to students at St. Lawrence University in more than one class.  To date, about 100 people have taken part in a session and we are actively seeking to do more.

Here are just a few comments from recent participants:

• It gives you an idea of the frustrations people feel when trying to get help
• Having theresponsiblity of feeding a family when on a low-income is a lot of pressure
• It was horrifying to see the real application for SNAP
• More people should come!

Want to schedule a Hunger 101 for your organization?  Get in touch!



Read the rest of our 12 days series here.

Hunger 101

Have you been thinking about bringing a Hunger 101 workshop to your school, place of worship, or other organization?  It's a great tool to learn, experientially, about the issue of hunger.

A sampling of comments from SLU students who recently took part in a Hunger 101 workshop:

• A significantly accurate depiction of the real situation
• I liked how realistic it was with the scenarios given
• It was engaging and thought-provoking.  It put me in the shoes of others and I liked how it opened my eyes to these issues
• We had to slip into another person's shoes - made the exercise quite powerful and personal
• Showed some the realities and frustrations of being poor
• It was a fun activity that shed light on a serious topic!

Hunger 101 presentation at Little River School

On Friday afternoon, I presented GardenShare's Hunger 101 program at the Little River School in Canton.  The participants included high school students from Little River and St. Lawrence University students from Commons College.

Hunger 101 is an interactive, role-playing exercise that allows participants to experience some of the challenges of trying to feed a family on a tight budget.

Here are are few of the responses students gave to the question, "What is the most important thing you learned from Hunger 101?"

• How pervasive the issue of hunger is and the number of obstacles folks face
• That the issue of hunger is systemic, but there are small things we can do to help create change on a local level
• There are more hunger issues in St. Lawrence County than I thought
• How hard it is to get by, even with SNAP
• How hard it can be to acquire nutritious food on a limited budget
• That volunteering our time is a step in the right direction
• 20% of St. Lawrence County families do not make enough to provide sufficient food

Would you like to have a Hunger 101 presentation at your church, school, or other organization?  Get in touch!

Gloria