COVER STORY

Hope Springs Eternal

The agencies served by the Foodbank provide food for a broad cross-section of households:
- 36.6 percent of the members of households served by the St. Louis Area Foodbank are children under 18 years old;
- 8.2 percent are children ages 0 to 5 years. Children are our greatest hope for the future, and yet too many of them are lacking in the nutrition they need to reach their full potential.
- 12.0 percent are elderly
- Approximately 56.6 percent of clients are white; 39.6 percent are African American; and the rest are from other racial or ethnic groups.
- 28.1 percent of households include at least one employed adult.
- 69.8 percent have a monthly income below the offical federal poverty level.
- 5.9 percent are receiving Temporary Assistance for Needy Families at 0.8 percent are receiving General Assistance.
- 4.1 percent are homeless.

For more key findings, please click here.

While hunger indeed has always been with us, hope for eliminating hunger springs eternal whenever someone in our community reaches out to those in need.

Throughout our 27 years of operation, the St. Louis Area Foodbank has seen the difference compassionate citizens have made in the lives of those who are hungry. The Lincoln County Cupboard in Elsberry, Missouri, is a great example of what individuals who are committed to helping the less fortunate in their community can accomplish. The food pantry, which serves all of Lincoln County, closed last September, leaving those in need without a safety net. The work of volunteers and community donors, in conjunction with the St. Louis Area Foodbank, has led to its successful reopening. "It’s all being done by volunteers," says Terry Martin, a volunteer with the Lincoln County Cupboard. "We’re doing it not because we need the assistance ourselves, but because we recognized the need in our community — especially for seniors and people with disabilities. Some of our seniors are trying to get by on as little as $430 a month in income. I just don’t see how they can do it without help. We’re trying to assist any way we can so they don’t have to choose between things like food and medicine."

"The Lincoln County Cupboard also is there for people who find themselves in an emergency situation," notes Martin. "Imagine when a construction worker who is his family’s sole breadwinner gets injured and is laid up for a couple months. It doesn’t take long for that family to find themselves in a dire financial situation. The food pantry helps them keep food on the table until he can get back to work."

In this season of renewal, we ask and hope that you will renew your commitment to the St. Louis Area Foodbank and the people we serve.

Your generosity not only provides people with food — it also gives them hope that tomorrow can be better.