Junior League of the Eastern Panhandle

Description

From March 20-27, 2022, we encourage all members of the community to join us in the #EPSNAPCHALLENGE to benefit the Boys & Girls Club of the Eastern Panhandle, while also raising awareness of food insecurity issues in the Eastern Panhandle. 

The goal is to raise $5,000 which will provide funds for the Boys & Girls Club to provide one extra serving of fruit and one extra serving of vegetables to their program recipients. Currently the Boys & Girls club is providing meals to 200 kids across Berkeley, Jefferson, and Morgan counties.

SNAP—Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program— provides nutrition benefits to supplement the food budget of families in need so they can purchase healthy food and move towards self-sufficiency. The current SNAP allotment is $5.24, per day, per family member. For this year’s campaign we want to put a special focus on nutrition incentive programs. These programs, like SNAP Stretch and West Virginia FresHealthy Bucks, use grant funding to provide SNAP participants with extra funds to purchase fresh fruits, vegetables and other healthy foods at local farmers’ markets. Since we have multiple nutrition incentive programs locally, SNAP participants can spend $5 to buy fresh produce at the farmers’ market, and then receive an additional $10-$15 in vouchers to purchase additional produce. Nutrition incentive programs not only benefit SNAP recipients by decreasing the cost of healthy foods and incentivizing a healthy diet, but they also benefit local farmers because they bring more customers and revenue to market all through the season.

How to be part of the #EPSNAPCHALLENGE:

SHOP

• Challenge yourself to go 3-5 days on a SNAP grocery budget of $5.24 per person, per day. Try to only eat the foods you can buy on this budget. Take pictures and reflect on how you feel and what you eat (condiments and spices don’t count). Share your experience on social media, tag #EPSNAPCHALLENGE, and encourage people to donate to the campaign.

COMPARE

• Eat the foods you normally eat, and calculate the rough cost of your food for the day. Or, try to shrink your daily food costs. Calculate and compare to the SNAP budget of $5.24 per person, per day. Share your experience on social media, tag #EPSNAPCHALLENGE, and encourage people to donate to the campaign

SHARE

• Whatever challenge you choose, please share your thoughts, meals, and reactions with your friends on social media and tag #EPSNAPCHALLENGE. Help us raise awareness about the ongoing reality of hunger in the EP and encourage friends to donate. You can also help spread awareness by changing your FB Profile Pic to use the #EPSNAPChallenge Facebook frame!

DONATE

• If you would like to donate or share a donation link with your posts, please use this URL: https://www.facebook.com/donate/650416792726527/