State Employees Stepping Out To Support Hunger Awareness

NASHVILLE – Employees with the Tennessee Department of Human Services and other state agencies are helping raise awareness of the problem of hunger in Tennessee with a hunger and wellness walk through downtown Nashville. Participants will be easy to spot wearing the color orange to recognize Feeding America’s Hunger Action Month, which runs through the end of September.

You are invited to cover the event.

What:                   Hunger and Wellness Walk

When:                  Friday September 28, 2018

                                10 AM – 12 PM

Where:                Citizens Plaza Terrace

                                400 Deaderick Street, Nashville

Friday’s walk coincides with TDHS’ daily efforts in administering food programs. Statewide, roughly one in five children and one in seven adults don’t have access to a sufficient quantity of affordable and nutritious food.

To combat this problem, TDHS runs several programs:

·          Tennessee’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) helps supplement the monthly food budgets for more than 900 thousand Tennessee residents.

·          Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) provides reimbursements for meals at child and adult care institutions and family or group day care homes.

·         Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) provides meals and snacks to children throughout the summer months when they are out of school.

“This walk allows us to put our mission into action,” said TDHS Commissioner Danielle W. Barnes. “Many families don’t know where their next meal is coming from and we need to do our part to raise awareness of that problem. Our work building a thriving Tennessee starts with ensuring families get the daily nutrition they need.”

Hunger Action Month was created by Feeding America in 2008 to help raise awareness and encourage action on hunger and nutrition concerns across the country.  Nationwide, one in 8 people struggle with hunger.                                          

Learn more about the Tennessee Department of Human Services at https://www.tn.gov/humanservices.html

CONTACT:  Sky Arnold
OFFICE:  615-313-5551