Fresh News from Foodshare (selected Items)

Foodshare is now one of 22 food banks from across the country represented on Feeding America’s national Policy Engagement and Advocacy Committee (PEAC). PEAC was formed to create a systematic, consistent, and strategic way to engage the network in public policy and advocacy efforts.

Foodshare’s President & CEO, Jason Jakubowski, was recently selected to join this committee. We look forward to collaborating with our peers to advance strong public policies that help the people we serve. Learn more about how public policies help increase access to healthy food and fight hunger.

Beatrice Maslowski, Foodshare’s Community Network Builder, will be retiring in early 2019. Bea’s mission at Foodshare, since joining us in 2013, was to build strong Hunger Action Teams (HATs) and bring people together to develop and work on local solutions to hunger.

A few of Bea’s amazing accomplishments:

Established the Newington and East Hartford HATs
Re-energized the Enfield HAT and expanded the Vernon HAT to include Tolland and Ellington
Helped establish the South Windsor, Hebron, Andover, Marlborough and Columbia (AHCM) HATs
Brought six state legislators into HATs and oriented them to our Mobile Foodshare sites
Increased her HATs participation by 200 members

Bea is a tireless advocate for getting more food to kids in collaboration with End Hunger Connecticut! She was instrumental in getting more kids school breakfasts in Enfield, Marlborough and Newington. Her HATs in Vernon and East Hartford became involved in pilot activities that allowed for free breakfast and lunches at schools based on the Community Eligibility Provision. This past year the Newington HAT helped launch a backpack program that brought 1,700 meals to kids at 7 sites. In Vernon, a backpack program was expanded to all public schools providing more than 8,400 meals!

It is clear that the communities served by Beatrice Maslowski made real and lasting progress in helping to end hunger. Bea will be missed by many, especially her friends at Foodshare. Foodshare wishes Bea a wonderful and exciting retirement as she moves her passionate advocacy to new projects in the community in the years ahead. Thank you, Beatrice!

The 2019 Foodshare Walk Against Hunger is Saturday, April 27th at Dunkin’ Donuts Park, home of the Hartford Yard Goats. Email Carrie Titolo at [email protected] to learn how you can help us knock hunger out of the park!