A Recap of 2024 Hunger Action Day
On February 1st, we had the privilege of representing Rainier Valley Food Bank at Hunger Action Day as a part of the Anti-Hunger & Nutrition Coalition. Our goal was to engage with our legislators about creating a hunger-free Washington State.
We gathered alongside our fellow advocates at Olympia's iconic State Capitol building. All Hunger Action Day advocates were welcome to gather as a group at a nearby church to gear up for our meetings with legislators. The Anti-Hunger & Nutrition Coalition provided us with printouts outlining the legislative priorities and an agenda for the day. We were also given orange scarves to wear as a symbol of solidarity worn by all Hunger Action Day advocates. The morning presentations introduced the day’s agenda, shared advocacy tips, and reviewed the bills we were advocating for, including:
Free School Meals for All Kids
Summer EBT
Emergency Food Assistance Program for Food Banks
Fund Senior Nutrition Programs
TANF & Housing
After the training, we broke out into smaller groups based on our Legislative District so we could connect with our neighbors from Harvest Against Hunger, Hunger Intervention Program, Northwest Harvest, and United Way of King County and organize a plan for our legislative meetings. Together, we shared stories and discussed these initiatives' impact on our organizations and communities. With legislative meetings typically lasting only 15-20 minutes, we made intentional choices about which priorities to focus on, assigning one constituent to cover each topic and emphasizing storytelling and data.
In District #36, our first meeting was with the legislative aides of Rep. Liz Berry and Rep. Julia Reed. Both Rep. Berry and Reed are co-sponsors for the Free School Meals for All Kids (HB 2058), so we began our meeting expressing gratitude for their support. We emphasized how these issues are intersectional and stressed the importance of addressing all the anti-hunger and anti-poverty initiatives. We about additional ways to support these priorities, and the aides provided valuable suggestions:
Signing in "Pro" on the issues you support when a bill goes to a Committee hearing
Attending the committee hearings to provide testimony in person or submitting written testimony
Sending emails and leaving voicemails for your representatives – these are counted by the aids and give a data representation of the number of supporters
For more details about how to take this action, please refer to the WA State Legislative website here.
In the afternoon, our district met with Senator Noel Frame in the Senate gallery. We shared some antidotes about how inflation has affected our ability to source and purchase food and the lapse in Covid financial support from the federal government has increased the need for resources.
While the legislators we met with are already supportive of initiatives to combat hunger and poverty, our stories reinforce their efforts to help them gain more support from their colleagues for these important laws. Our stories shed light on the real challenges faced by our communities and highlight the urgency.
As I reflect on my experience at Hunger Action Day, I'm reminded of the collective power we hold as advocates and the importance of coming together to create positive change in our communities. From meeting with legislators to sharing stories with fellow concerned neighbors, every interaction highlighted the importance of amplifying the voices of our community in shaping public policy.
If you're inspired to join us in advocacy efforts or want to learn more about how you can support Rainier Valley Food Bank, we'd love to hear from you! Your involvement can make a real difference in our mission to combat hunger.