Sunday, May 31, 2015

Lobby Day 2015 (Part 1) A Retrospective--Walking Through the Halls of Power

Lobby Day with Larry and Ellen Buelow (Photo courtesy of Robin Stephenson)
Bread for the World's Lobby Day is just about a week away, and I would like to take this opportunity to offer a retrospective about my trips to Capitol Hill over the years as a New Mexican.

I have been to Rayburn and Cannon and Longworth House Office Buildings and Hart, Russell and Dirksen Senate Office Buildings many, many times. I still get a bit of a rush while walking through the "halls of power," although the process is now very familiar to me.

Counting Cards
How many times have I been to Capitol Hill as a citizen advocate? Let me count the business cards. I have kept the cards of almost every congressional aide that has met with me, mostly in Washington (but also in Albuquerque). Would you believe I have close to 70 cards? A few are duplicates. so let's say I have about 60 different names.

Here's a representative sample: James Stein (Rep. Steve Schiff), Kathy Keith (Rep. Bill Richardson), Jaime Castillo (Rep. Joe Skeen), Ashlie Warnick (Rep. Bill Redmond), Vivek Gopalan (Rep. Harry Teague), Lennea Shane (Rep. Heather Wilson), Jeanette Lyman (Rep. Tom Udall), Terri Nikole Baca (Rep. Ben Ray Lujan), Jonathan Shuffield (Rep. Steve Pearce), Alma Acosta (Rep. Michelle Lujan Grisham), Tony Samp (Rep. Martin Heinrich and Sen. Martin Heinrich), Jeffrey Phan (Sen. Jeff Bingaman), Elizabeth Turpen (Sen. Pete Domenici) and Matthew Padilla (Sen. Tom Udall).   

There is also a card from Alice Grant of the Senate Budget Committee. How did I get that card? I tagged along on a meeting that former Government Relations director Barbara Howell had scheduled with Ms. Grant, who worked closely with  Sen. Pete Domenici. Sen. Domenici was a key player on this committee, and I was his constituent.

Many times, I went to the congressional meetings solo, and I think I handled them fairly well. Yet, I was often jealous of the large delegations of Bread members who came to Lobby Day from states that are not so far away from Washington. (Hint, hint: Pennsylvania, New York, and even Michigan).

Still, there have been years when  motivated and knowledgeable companions have formed part of our delegation. Larry and Ellen Buelow from Albuquerque have joined me the last couple of years on the trips to Capitol Hill. Other New Mexicans who have lobbied with me at least once are Rev. Art Meyer from Farmington, Connie Mirabal from Pojoaque Pueblo, Marcia Fitzner from Estancia, Ruth Hoffman from Santa Fe and fellow Albuquerque residents Karen Navarro, John Foley, Ann Sims, Hank Bruce, Vicky Scheidler Wood, Emily Thorn, Andrea Lucero Watje, Gladys Evans, and Graham Golden. Albuquerqueans Alicia Sedillo and Debbie Ruiz went on Lobby Day visits on their own as part of their Hunger Justice Leaders training in 2010.

Sometimes We Do See the Legislators!
A meeting with Rep. Tom Udall
And did you know that I have lobbied with actor Beau Bridges in the 1990s? As a representative of the Hollywood-based End Hunger Network, the actor joined us on a visit to Rep. Joe Skeen's office. The late Rep. Skeen, who at that time was chair of the House Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee, was present at the meeting--just so he could meet with our star anti-hunger advocate.

While it's easier to meet with a member of the House than a senator, we've had some luck in having the legislators from both houses of Congress present at the meetings. Sen. Jeff Bingaman sat in a couple of times in my meetings with Randy Soderquist and Jeffrey Phan, but this was before he rose to chair or minority leader of the Energy Committee. It helped to have a great relationship with Sen. Bingaman's office. Rep. Heather Wilson and Rep. Tom Udall met with me or with our delegation to discuss the issues directly.

A meeting with Rep. Heather Wilson in 2004
We have also seen Sen. Pete Domenici, Rep. Martin Heinrich, and Rep. Harry Teague in Washington, and have  chatted with Sen. Tom Udall at a couple of his constituent coffees. Rep. Steve Schiff showed up at the Lobby Day reception in 1994 (as did Sen. Bingaman).

I will be going on my Lobby Day visits solo this year. A big reason is that there is no National Gathering (normally held every other year), to draw New Mexicans to Washington this year. I will be Washington for the Bread board meeting, and Lobby Day has always been a big part of our activities in June.

And although I will be in Washington by myself,  I urge other Bread members in New Mexico to join me in advocacy through a Virtual Lobby Day by phone or social media. This is what we did last year, and I suspect we will do something similar this year. We will also check out the possibility of visits to local offices. Stay tuned for more details on both these options in Part 2 of Lobby Day 2015. 

Saturday, May 30, 2015

Children Ask Rep. Michelle Lujan Grisham and Sens. Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich to Protect Child Nutrition Programs

April 19 was Children's Day at two churches in New Mexico. All Saints Lutheran Church and St. Andrew Presbyterian Church not only had their adults write a total of 149 letters to Congress that day to ask our legislators to protect and expand child nutrition programs. The two churches also offered the opportunity for children to send the same message to Rep. Michelle Lujan Grisham, Sen. Martin Heinrich and Sen. Tom Udall. Eight of these paper plate letters came from All Saints and 10 from St. Andrew.

The paper plate messages contained in this blog post were drawn by the children at St. Andrew. Patty Emord, who organized the overall offering of letters at the church, provided the photographs..The messages from the children ranged from a simple request to "End Childhood Hunger"  to more complex messages  urging Congress to take action to ensure that children have access to nutritious meals. A handful of those paper plates are posted here along with the sample letter provided by Bread for the World as of April 14, 2015.

April 19, 2015
Dear Rep. Michelle Lujan Grisham:

As you consider the 2016 budget and renewing child nutrition programs this year, I urge you to make sure children at risk of hunger can get the healthy meals they need to learn and grow.


Specifically, I urge you to protect child nutrition programs from cuts and harmful policy changes and improve children's access to these programs while not cutting other safety-net programs. SNAP (formerly food stamps), serves nearly 21 million children. I urge you to protect SNAP and other anti-poverty programs from harmful budget and funding cuts.



Nutrition programs serve as a lifeline for America's vulnerable children and their families. As your constituent, I urge you to protect and improve child nutrition programs.

Sincerely,
The Children of St. Andrew Presbyterian Church 
5301 Ponderosa Ave.
Albuquerque, N.M. 87110
 


P.S. We also ask Congress to take a longer-term view at addressing hunger in our country and around the world while protecting the environment.

Friday, May 29, 2015

A Honey of a Weekend in Santa Fe

The City Different will be buzzing this weekend, with two events scheduled for the Santa Fe Railyard on Saturday and Sunday. Let me start backwards by highlighting Honey Fest 2015, starting at  6:00 p.m., on Sunday.

The event will celebrate music, honey, bees and beekeepers. And there will even be a contest for the best bee costume.

Those of us who are gardeners (or have at least dabbled in gardening) know how important bees to the process of  growing food on a small and large-scale basis. There are many reports that bees are dwindling in numbers (Read report about a research project by New Mexico State University and the U.S. Department of Agriculture ).

Come out and celebrate New Mexico bees on Sunday--not just honey bees, but all members of the bee family that help us put food on our tables.

Speaking of bees and gardening, a free workshop entitled Gardening for Pollinators will be offered tomorrow, Saturday, May 30, at the Railyard Park from 10:00 a.m. to Noon.

In this design workshop, Loretta McGrath, top-bar beekeeper and Director of the Pollinator Partners Program at Farm to Table, will offer strategies for planting pollinator forage for a range of pollinators. Participants will learn about specific plants that attract pollinators as well as how to integrate plants into a garden that produces successful blooms through the seasons.

The workshop includes a tour of the pollinator gardens in the Railyard Park and a discussion of specific plants that attract a range of pollinators from hummingbirds, bats and butterflies to honeybees and native bees of the Southwest. Come discover what habitats you can create to increase the beauty and bounty of the spaces you share with these essential pollinators.

Meet at the Community Room in the Railyard Park. Admission is free. For more information contact Loretta McGrath (loremcgrath@gmail.com)

Tuesday, May 26, 2015

Hands Cross America: 29 Years Later

Kansas City held a Hands Across America event in solidarity with the national event
Remember last week's Red Nose Day campaign to raise money for 12 charities that work with children in our country and around the world?

Exactly 29 years ago (plus a day), on May 25, 1986, over 5 million Americans participated in another high-profile campaign. This campaign was not on television, and Facebook, Twitter and other social media did not yet exist.

On that date, participants linked hands to make a 4,125-mile human chain that stretched from New York City to Long Beach, including Albuquerque. Several communities that were not on the route held their own events in solidarity with the main chain.

At the time I was living in Kansas City, which was not on the route of the chain (although our other big city in Missouri--St Louis--was part of the chain).  And the chain went through Albuquerque, where I would eventually end up moving six years later.

Here is how Hands Across America worked: Each volunteer on the chain contributed $10 to $35 for the privilege of joining the line. There were also massive corporate contributions.  Actors Lily Tomlin and Harry Belafonte, Gov. Mario Cuomo, Mayor Ed Koch and Cardinal John O'Connor were part of the link of the chain that started n New York

In New Mexico, organizer Velia Silva said the state needed  50,000 volunteers were needed to make a solid chain across the state but, "calls have been coming in like crazy," said a United Press International article. Among the members of the task force was food activist and author Mark Winne, who is now a resident of Santa Fe, but at that time represented the Harford Food System.

The event not only raised $41 million but increased awareness about the growing problem of hunger in our country and the continuing crises of poverty and lack of food in parts of Africa and around the world (USA for Africa was a lead organizer of the event.

"They weren’t just big hand holding enthusiasts," said the online site Mental Floss on the 25th anniversary of the event. "They were participating in Hands Across America, a massive charity event and fundraiser that hoped to raise money for and draw attention to homelessness and hunger."

So what was the domestic situation regarding hunger in 1986?  According to the House Select Committee on Hunger, 13.9 million, or 41%, of the 33.7 million Americans eligible for food stamps were not receiving this assistance And more than 70% of the 20.4 million who are eligible for the Women, Infants and Children Supplemental (WIC) Feeding Program were not being served.

And who remembers this quote from then President Ronald Reagan? "I don't believe that there is anyone that is going hungry in America simply by reason of denial or lack of ability to feed them," Reagan said. "It is by people not knowing where or how to get this help."

So how do the numbers in 1986 compare with current times? "[Our] 2014 study reveals that each year, the Feeding America network of food banks provides service to 46.5 million people in need across the United States, including 12 million children and 7 million seniors,"  said Feeding America (which in 1986 was called America's Second Harvest). The methodology to address hunger in the US might have differed from 1986, and there are certainly more people aware about the programs.  Regardless, the increase in the numbers of hungry people is threefold in almost 30 years.

So what are politicians saying about hunger in our times? Stay tuned for blog posts about that issue as the presidential campaigns gear up. In the meantime, check out these videos from Barack Obama and Mitt Romney during the 2012 presidential campaigns.

Monday, May 25, 2015

An Additional Message from Letter Writers at First Presbyterian Church


There are many ways to get the letters from your Offering of Letters to Congress. The preferred and most common method, of course, is to have each writer put his or her letter in a white envelope and address the letter to their congressperson in their own handwriting. A second option is to put all the letters in one big manila envelope and hand-deliver or mail them to the local congressional office. This is what First Presbyterian Church in Albuquerque did with the 70 letters that the congregation wrote on May 3-10.

Kirsten Marr, the head of the Missions Committee at the church, organized the letter-writing activities at the church on the two Sundays. She had an additional message for our members of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. She reminded them that Bread for the World members were going to be on Capitol Hill on Tuesday, June 9, which is Lobby Day (and that constituents from New Mexico would be calling on that day to ask them to protect and expand child nutrition programs).

"I wrote that note on the back of each of the manila envelopes that I mailed to the two senators and the representatives," said Ms. Marr. "Anything to catch their eye and get them to open our letters. I mail all the letters to each individual p in one large envelope to the local addresses."

Incidentally, as of May 23, six churches in New Mexico had written a total of 786 letters to Sens. Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich and Reps. Michelle Lujan Grisham, Steve Pearce and Ben Ray Lujan. The totals from a seventh church were pending. Three churches in Albuquerque,and one each in Gallup and Truchas are planning their Offering of Letters during the summer months (two for the first time). Two others in Santa Fe were planning their letter-writing Sundays on a weekend in early fall (date TBA). We are hopeful that more churches in New Mexico (especially those that have organized an Offering of Letters in the past, will participate in the Feed Our Children campaign. It's not too late to plan a letter-writing Sunday! See full schedule.

Sunday, May 24, 2015

'The Fast That I Choose'

On May 21, the New Mexico Interfaith Dialogue (formerly the Jewish-Christian Dialogue) held its monthly meeting at the Islamic Center of New Mexico. This marked the official start of  a dialogue among our three Abrahamic faith traditions in Albuquerque. In between our conversations, we were invited to experience the Asr Prayer (late afternoon). We might have differences in our culture and tradition, but our indisputable common belief is in the supremacy of the Creator, who must be honored for providing all the good things are part of our lives. This is reflected in our views on fasting (and the reasons for fasting), which was one of our topics of our dialogue facilitated by Imam Shafi Abdul Aziz and Gail Rubin, president of the Interfaith Dialogue.

'A Merciful and Compassionate Sustainer'
Although fasting is intended to eliminate distractions in our path to connect with God, we have a common belief that our Creator requires an additional step in this act of worship: caring for our neighbors, particularly those in need. "By cutting oneself off from worldly comforts, even for a short time, a fasting person gains true sympathy with those who go hungry as well as growth in one's spiritual life," said the site IslamiCity.

In the Quran, Chapter 2, verses 183-185, addresses the practice of fasting during the holy month of Ramadan. "Fast for a specified number of days; but if any among you is ill or on a journey, let him fast the same number of days later. For those of you who can only fast with extreme difficulty, there is a way to compensate--the feeding of a needy person. But he who does good of his own accord shall be well rewarded; but to fast is better for you if you only knew." -Verse 184

"We realize that we are not alien to other beings," said Islamic scholar Yamina Mermer. ".We all belong to the same Merciful and Compassionate sustainer."

'A Shared Struggle'
The concept of self-purification and atonement are important in Judaism, particularly in Leviticus 23. The practice is not only personal but communal. "The act of fasting is believed to result in the spiritual transformation of the individual or community. Fasting is claimed to influence God to act graciously toward Israel," wrote Rabbi Arnold Bienstock.

For most Christians, fasting is most frequently associated with Holy Week. Some spiritual leaders suggest the emphasis has too often centered on deprivation and not on other important elements of the spiritual practice. "Fasting has never been about punishment or deprivation. That is why Orthodoxy has never embraced the popular American Christian idea of giving up favorite treats for Lent," wrote Father Anastasios Gounaris. "That would somehow imply punishment—and would certainly be contrary to the concept of 'shared struggle' that a common Lenten regimen reinforces."

In its Daily Verse and Voice, Sojourners addresses this concept of fasting as a "shared struggle."

Verse
Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? - Isaiah 58:6

Voice
When I give food to the poor, they call me a saint. When I ask why the poor have no food, they call me a communist.-Dom Helder Camera, former Archbishop of Olinda and Recife in Brazil

Prayer
O Lord, may we never stop asking why the poor have no food. Amen.

The quotes of Yamina Mermer, Rabbi Arnold Bienstock, and Father Anastasios Gounaris are contained in three essays on fasting in the Interfaith Conversations booklet, entitled Fasting and Feasting in Three Traditions: Judaism - Christianity- Islam, published by the University of Indiana in 2006. 

"When people committed to different religious traditions come together to discuss common themes, they often find their own practices and understandings enriched and enlightened. In conversation with Jews and Muslims, Christians get better at the practice of Christianity, Jews at Judaism, and Muslims at Islam," editor Kevin Corn said in the introduction to the booklet.

Saturday, May 23, 2015

Interfaith Hunger Coalition Moving Forward in Albuquerque



The Interfaith Hunger Coalition has been working to build a forum where members of the faith community in New Mexico can find a space to come together to address hunger and poverty in our state.  A group of us met in the fall of 2013 to lay the groundwork for the coalition, and we launched our first event in February 2014 to solicit input from members of local faith communities on what issues and actions were important to them.

From that consultation at First Presbyterian Church, we came up with a mission statement and created three committees to work on advocacy, direct service and education/outreach. Each of those committees, along with the steering committee, has continued to move forward on some projects that reflect the suggestions and proposals from that initial meeting.
The Interfaith Hunger Coalition collaborates on addressing hunger issues in our communities through networking, education, public policy advocacy and direct service. Our goal is ensure that all New Mexican families have access to healthy and nutritious food.-    Mission Statement
The Education/Outreach Committee organized a second Hunger 101 event at Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary Catholic Community. The Advocacy Committee, in the summer of 2014, hosted a series of conversations with candidates seeking election to the State House of Representatives (including incumbents) to discuss our vision and get their views on the best way to address hunger and poverty in our state. The Direct Service Committee, among other things, offers providers a space to network. The IHC includes several direct service partners: The Storehouse, Roadrunner Food Bank, Catholic Charities, the Rio Grande Food Project and the St. Vincent de Paul Ministry at Holy Family Church.. Three other organizations have also become direct partners in our efforts: The New Mexico Conference of  Churches and Turkish Rainbow House/Dialogue Institute of the Southwest  (education/outreach) and the Lutheran Advocacy Ministry (advocacy).

We are also networking with other groups addressing other aspects of our mission: Share New Mexico (outreach); the New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty (advocacy) ;Seed to Need and East Central Ministries (direct service). Some of these organizations have provided speakers for our general meetings. We have also connected with other interfaith groups in Albuquerque: the Ecumenical Commission of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe, New Mexico Interfaith Power and Light; the New Mexico Faith Coalition for Immigrant Justice and The Interfaith Dialogue.

The Steering Committee is working on a number of projects to bring our efforts to the next level, including the development of a website and the recruitment of other faith communities to join our efforts. We are  grateful to Terry Richey for donating his graphic design skills to create our logo. We are in the process of obtaining formal endorsements from congregations, organizations and agencies, which we will publish on the website. We have applied for a grant to help build the website. For now, our presence on the web is via a Facebook page.

The individuals who have helped build our coalition come from a number of congregations in the Albuquerque metro area: Albuquerque Mennonite Church, All Saints Lutheran Church, Central United Methodist Church, Congregation Albert, Community of Hope, First Presbyterian Church, Immaculate Conception Catholic Church, Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary Catholic Community, St. Michael and All Angels Episcopal Church, and St. John XXIII Catholic Community.

The local church bodies and congregations that support our mission are the Episcopal Diocese of the Rio Grande, the Catholic Archdiocese of Santa Fe, Congregation B'nai Israel and La Mesa Presbyterian Church. We are working to expand connections with other Christian and Jewish congregations as well as the Muslim community in Albuquerque. We hope to expand our efforts statewide, but for now we are focusing on Albuquerque. If your congregation, faith community or organization wants to be part our coalition, please drop a note to nminterfaithhungercoalition@gmail.com or breadnm@gmail.com

Friday, May 22, 2015

An Ecumenical and Interfaith Approach to Anti-Hunger Efforts in North Carolina

(Bread for the World members around the country are dedicated and creative in the ways they promote an Offering of Letters. We saw this with Cathy Brechtelsbauer in Sioux Falls, South Dakota;,Ed Payne and the leadership team in Minneapolis-St. Paul;Beth Lepinski in Appleton, Wisconsin (and the Coral Gables, Florida,  United Church of Christ); the leadership team in Indianapolis, and Lucretia Tippit and her team at All Saints Lutheran Church in Albuquerque. To the list, we add the efforts of grassroots team in North Carolina).

The Bread for the World convention in Raleigh, North Carolina, was a collaborative effort, with a couple dozen  churches, businesses, faith organizations joining with Bread to put on this big anti-hunger event at Highland United Methodist Church on March 28. More than 200 people from different corners of North Carolina attended the event, which included a panel discussion entitled "Responses to Hunger from the Christian, Jewish and Muslim Traditions"

A central theme of the event was Feed Our Children, Bread for the World's 2015 Offering of Letters, (generating 223 letters to House and Senate members from North Carolina). The discussion touched on many aspects of hunger in the United States and in North Carolina.

"Our goal in Raleigh was to pull folks in from what is called the Triangle area, which includes Raleigh, but also Durham and Chapel Hill, two smaller university communities, both with strong progressive communities," said Patrick O'Neill, one of the organizers of the event.  "The convention did draw folks from throughout the state, but we focused on getting those who lived closer to Raleigh, which is the Capital, and the hub of the state's political infrastructure."

"Of most importance to us was to target people (many from area churches) who were already invested in hunger-relief efforts such as soup kitchens, food pantries and other direct service. By tapping them we were targeting people who already saw this work of eliminating hunger as important. We wanted them to see how much more could be accomplished through advocacy," added O'Neill. "We gave folks the opportunity to start that day with an offering of letters, and connecting them with Bread."

'The Marriage of Service and Advocacy'
The keynote speaker was Gene Nichol, professor of law and Director of the Center on Poverty, Work and Opportunity at the University of North Carolina. Nichol addressed the overwhelming statistics that dominate the poverty culture of North Carolina.

Other prominent speakers also offered significant insights, including Bread for the World President David Beckmann; Jill Bullard, executive director of Inter Faith Food Shuttle; and Rev. Steve Hickle, Faith Outreach Director of Stop Hunger Now. See this link for full lineup.

We used an array of presentations to make our point -- speakers from many disciplines, drama, first-person accounts of personal poverty/hunger, first-person stories of how government programs made a difference in people's lives -- all with an inter-faith message. Our goal was to keep things moving and keep the program interesting so people would want to stay until the end," said O'Neill.  "The drama also infused humor in the program, and a spot-on specific message from the Rev. Steve Hickle (of Stop Hunger Now) about the marriage of service and advocacy really set the tone for making that crucial connection."

Kiara, Miles and Terrance Ruth
Featuring Two 2010 Hunger Justice Leaders
Bread activists Terrance and Kiara Ruth, graduates of the 2010 Hunger Justice Leaders training, also spoke of  had speaking roles at the convention.. "I highlighted the link between hunger and education, said Terrance Ruth, who is principal at AMIkids Infinity in Raleigh.

"I discussed how my school of suspended high school students is filled with the same demographics year after year," said Ruth, who also serves as school and policy education and communication Specialist at The Friday Institute for Educational Innovation. We have minority male, criminal history, poor, and academically struggling students on free lunch.  Read more thoughts about Terrance Ruth's thoughts on education and society in his series of  Letters to My Son, which describe the  reality of African-American students and express hope as Miles grows up

Kiara Ruth also addressed the Bread event, speaking about her direct experience with food stamps in her home state of Arkansas.  

The Hunger Justice Leaders program not only helped strengthen the commitment of Terrance and Kiara to anti-hunger and social justice efforts, but it also brought them together.  Read more in Bread Blog from freelance writer Patricia Bidar.

Bread member Bryan McFarland, whose band Jacob's Join has performed at the Wild Goose Festival in North Carolina 2012, provided the music for this year's Bread event in Raleigh.

The North Carolina model worked because of great planning and a lot of behind-the-scenes work."Our success had a key element -- we spoke with many people in advance, including those who had planned the two previous state conventions, and we assembled a committee of about two dozen people (who had a depth of commitment in their hearts and souls)," said O'Neill."Most importantly, we were able to match individuals with their areas of giftedness. Everyone did their jobs, and as the months, weeks and days wound down our excitement grew. We knew we had a winne.r"

Tuesday, May 19, 2015

Why is Kathy Chavez Wearing a Red Nose on Facebook?

Have you noticed lately that Kathy Chavez has been wearing a red clown nose on Facebook? The red nose not only fits with her personality as an all-around fun person, but it also demonstrates her commitment to addressing global poverty.

Kathy happens to be an Albuquerque-based peer advisor for New Mexico Oxfam Action Corps, and Oxfam America is one of the twelve organizations that will benefit from the first-ever Red Nose Day telethon in the U.S.A.

Even though this is the inaugural Red Nose Campaign here in our country, Comic Relief U.K. has held a Red Nose Day event in Britain for several years to raise money for organizations that work with underprivileged children at home and around the world. In fact, Red Nose Day has become the top television fundraising event in the UK.

The U.S. telethon will air on NBC (Channel 4 in Albuquerque) on Thursday, May 21, beginning a 7:00 p.m. Mountain Time (For other communities, check your local listings). The show will feature stand-up comedy, parodies, sketch comedy, musical performances and short films about the cause. Red Nose Day encourages viewers and participants to “Have fun, raise money and change lives.” 

The U.S. Red Nose Day will benefit a dozen organizations: Boys & Girls Clubs of America, charity: water, Children’s Health Fund, Feeding America, Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, The Global Fund, LIFT, National Council of La Raza, National Urban League, Oxfam America, Save the Children, and United Way.  Here is a promo from NBC featuring actress Gina Rodriguez.


Red Noses at the Corrales Growers Market
 Kathy has been wearing the red nose to prompt her friends and acquaintances to watch the telethon. She also wore the prop at the Corrales Growers market, where she and other NM Oxfam Action Corps volunteers posed with merchants to bring attention to the telethon. "I've had a lot of fun with this," said Kathy.

Local New Mexico Oxfam Action Corps volunteers have also joined the Twitter campaign to promote #RedNoseDay. "Walgreens and Lift retweeted one of my tweets," said Kathy.

Sunday, May 17, 2015

A Skit on Child Nutrition Produces 60 Letters at All Saints Lutheran Church in Albuquerque

Image from OpenClipArt
(There are all sorts of creative ways to promote an Offering of Letters to members of  a congregation. The planning team at All Saints Lutheran Church in Albuquerque has been using skits to encourage people in the pews to stay of the the service to write to Congress. The team prepared skits in 2012 for the campaign on the Earned Income Tax Credit and in 2014 around food aid reform.

For 2015, Lucretia Tippit, Diana Lewis and their team created the skit below to encourage members to write letters to our members of the House and Senate urging them to protect and strengthen child nutrition programs. Rev. Pat Green, offered the sermon period on Sunday, April 19, for the Offering of Letters team to present the skit. The effort yielded 60 letters to Sens. Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich and Reps. Michelle Lujan Grisham, Steve Pearce and Ben Ray Lujan.  In addition, eight children wrote letters on paper plates). 

Bulletin insert for 2015 Offering of Letters
Script for 2015 Offering of Letters Skit

Cast: Senator Freeman, Sally the Senator’s Aide , Woman reading letter

Aide: Senator Freeman, tomorrow is the vote on the child nutrition programs reauthorization. You know, the school lunch program, WIC, summer feeding programs. How have you decided to vote?

Senator: (Hand on forehead) Sally, I am confused. I thought we voted on the food stamps last fall. Anyway, I understand that with the economy improving like it is, hunger isn’t such an issue now.

Aide: Senator, there are still 16 million children in the U.S. who are hungry. That’s one in five families who struggle to put food on the table. These food programs have to be reauthorized. Our own state is one of the poorest in the country. You’re up for reelection next year remember.

Senator: How can I forget? But these programs are very costly. We can’t ignore budget implications.

Aide: Senator, I’ve been reading through all these letters urging you to vote for reauthorization. But one letter got to me. Would you take the time to read it? It’s from a woman who has experienced hunger firsthand. (Hands senator the letter)

(Senator holds the letter while the woman speaks.)

Dear Senator Freeman,

I am a working mother with 2 children. Aiden is 7 and Leylanie is 9.During the recession I lost my job and was forced to use food stamps. It was a godsend. The food I bought through the SNAP program provided enough to carry us through3 weeks of the month. After that I struggled to find food for us until the end of the month. Sometimes I had to go without anything to eat so my kids wouldn’t go to bed hungry. Thank goodness my children received lunch at school under the School Lunch Program. During the summers things were really difficult until our city began to provide lunches at the playgrounds.

My children still qualify for both breakfast and lunch because the job I have does not pay enough to put us over the poverty line. I don’t like asking for help, but I don’t want my kids to be hungry either. People always think that we’re asking for a handout because we’re on welfare or public assistance. But what we’re really asking for is the opportunity to show them that we’re just like you. We’re smart, we have wants, we have needs, we have dreams. We want the best for our kids. We just grew up in different circumstances. I’m going to night school now and working toward an associate degree. Meantime, our family still needs to rely on the federal child nutrition programs. I hope you will vote to reauthorize them so that my family and others like ours can stop worrying about where our next meal is coming from and stop hearing our children say, “Mommy, I’m hungry.” That’s enough to break any mother’s heart.

Barbie Izquierdo

(Senator puts letter down and looks at Aide.)

Senator: That’s quite a letter, isn’t it?

Aide: It sure is. Does it help you to decide how to vote tomorrow?

Senator: Definitely. We need to reauthorize WIC and increase funding for the school lunch program, but not at the expense of food stamps. Nearly half of all SNAP recipients are children, and so Congress must no longer look to SNAP or any other safety-net programs to pay for investments in our children. No mother should have to see her children go without food when she is working as hard as this woman is to make their life better. Thanks, Sally, for showing me this letter.

Saturday, May 16, 2015

Why a Personalized Letter Still Has More Impact

Why are handwritten letters more important than emails or even typed letters? They are all practical vehicles to convey a message to your legislator.

Handwritten letters are a sign that you care  so much about the issue that you are taking time to write it down on pen and paper. Elected officials care that you have given thought to the message that you are sending, and legislative staff  members will corroborate this. Here are excerpts from an article that appeared on the Bread website.
"In late October 2010, a group of Bread members and faith leaders from the Indianapolis area met with the office of Rep. Andre Carson (D-IN). Carson’s district director...was impressed that the letters were all individually written rather than just signed form letters or postcards and emphasized that personal, handwritten letters make the most impact..."   Read more
Other advocacy organizations like the Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL) are hearing the same feedback from congressional offices. "What we at FCNL hear from most congressional offices is that they give higher priority to individualized communications from people who have a specific request, say something about themselves, write in their own voice, and make a local connection," said the organization. 

Typing your message
I must confess that I feel much more comfortable behind a keyboard than with a pen and paper. My handwriting is sometimes (but not always) is illegible and I can put my thoughts on paper better when I compose on a computer or a laptop.  So I often write my letters at home, print them, put them in an addressed envelope and and bring them on the day of the Offering of Letters.

Regardless of whether your letter is handwritten or composed on your laptop or desktop, the important thing is that you're using your own words to convey the message to your representative or senator.  And this gives you an opportunity to include a personal experience with your message..

Blessing your letters is important
The personal letters also represent an act of faith, and the Offering of Letters is a communal action on the part of your congregation.  As one Bread regional organizer mentioned recently, letters can be blessed or dedicated by the pastor and the congregation before they are put in the mail, which is something you cannot do with e-mails. (In the photo on the left, the pastor at Trinity United Methodist Church in Albuquerque holds letters that were written by members of the congregation that year).

What about e-mails?
We must not  discard e-mails entirely. This mode of communication is especially important for requests that require immediate action--particularly when a vote is about to take place in the House or Senate.

What about an e-mail with a personalized message for an Offering of Letters campaign? This could also be an effective way to communicate with your legislator, although a personal letter might have more value, depending on the congressional office. And there have been a few surveys that indicate that congressional offices see e-mails as the preferred  mode of communication.

If you must send an e-mail, the same rules apply as the handwritten and typed letter: send a personal note instead of simply adding your name to a prepared message (which is more useful for action alerts). E-mails require that you supply a mailing address to demonstrate that you are a constituent of the congressperson or the senator.

An electronic reply
Some congressional offices are using technology to send a reply to their constituents.  As an example, I received a reply from one of my senators via an e-mail letter instead of a postal letter. Below is an excerpt of his response to my letter for this year's Offering of Letters campaign about protecting child nutrition programs.

Child nutrition is a critical issue and touches a child's development in many important ways. Good nutrition is the key to a healthy childhood and to ensuring that children can reach their full capacity for learning and growing. Making nutritional food available to our children and teaching them at an early age about eating healthy is a first step towards developing good health habits. 

Providing healthy, nutritional meals at school can also ensure that our children do not go hungry during the school day. This issue certainly hits home in New Mexico, which has some of the highest rates of hunger and food insecurity in the nation. More than 16.2 millin children in the United States live in households where they do not know where their next meal may come from. In New Mexico, it is estimated that over 146,000 children do not have adequate and consistent access to nutritious meals.

Please be assured that I will continue to advocate for our nation's overall child nutrition policy, and that I will continue to support policies that make available healthy, nutritious food and increase the health and education outcomes of our children.  -Excerpts from a letter from Sen. Tom Udall

Tuesday, May 12, 2015

Óscar Rodríguez Maradiaga: Called to Serve One Another by Love

“The love of a Christian is not only a sentiment, no, it is the main reason for our lives. We live for faith, we live for love, we live for those who are suffering. The love of the heart can go beyond any and all borders to serve the poor. 

We are all called to serve one another by love.. The proof of our faith is our love for others. To take care of [the poor] in the amount that you do – is only through the biggest love, beyond the boundaries of your own heart.”. -Cardinal Óscar Andrés Rodríguez Maradiaga, archbishop of Tegucigalpa, Honduras, and president of Caritas Internationalis.  

(Reflections from a Mass for Food for the Poor in Miami in 2009)

Monday, May 11, 2015

Mark Your Calendars: Two Events in Albuquerque to Commemorate Beatification of Monseñor Óscar Romero

Westminster Abbey (Wikimedia Commons)
On Saturday, May 23, 2015, the Vatican will beatify Monseñor Óscar Romero. The archbishop of San Salvador was assassinated in 1980 for speaking out against poverty, social injustice, assassinations and torture. The Vatican bestowed upon Romero the title of Servant of God in 1997, opening the door for eventual beatification and canonization.

He was declared a Martyr of the Faith on Feb. 3, 2015. The step of canonization will be marked by a ceremony at Plaza Divino Salvador del in Rome in about two weeks

In Albuquerque, two ceremonies will mark this milestone event, one at Holy Family Catholic Church and the other at the grounds of the SouthWest Organizing Project (SWOP).  Here are details:

Youth Prayer and Action Delegation
The Youth Prayer and Action Delegation of the El Salvador Ministry invite you to celebrate the Beatification of Monseñor Oscar Arnulfo Romero on Saturday, May 23rd.

Pentecost Mass will be held at 4:30 PM at Holy Family Church, 562 Atrisco, Dr. SW (map)

Celebration begins on the Fiesta Grounds behind Holy Family Church at 5:30. Meet the fourteen members of the Youth Prayer and Action Delegates of August 2015. They are preparing Fiesta food. Newmanites, please note that Frito Pie is on the menu. Proceeds will help defray travel costs of the Youth Delegates to El Salvador.

El Salvador Ministry members will talk about the Importance of the Beatification of Oscar Romero.

Delegates will describe their efforts to raise funds for two projects, renovation of a Child Care Center and a Youth Project that promotes music and art in the impoverished communities where APRODHENI (The Association for the Promotion of the Human Rights of the Children of El Salvador) works, and where our Delegates will visit.  Visit Facebook Event to RSVP

Blessed Óscar Romero Community to Host Fiesta
Fun, Food, Family & Friends! Music, Entertainment, Culture. Sponsored jointly by SouthWest Organizing Project (SWOP) & Blessed Oscar Romero Catholic Community  The event will take place at SWOP, 211 10th SW (map)

Booths open at 4:30 pm   Mass 5:00 pmImmediately following Mass: Salvadoran Cuisine, Entertainment & Booths & Fun
Screening of the Movie Romero 6:30pm

This is a family event. Children of all ages welcomed! For your convenience, Child care will be available!
For more information, contact Rev. Frank Quintana via this Facebook Event

Sunday, May 10, 2015

Celebrating Mother's Day in Videos (Part 2)

On Mother's Day Weekend, we not only celebrate and honor our own mothers, but also the role of women around the world who work hard to make life better for  families, their villages and neighboring communities.  We celebrate those strong women with seven videos from non-governmental and church-related organizations.   

In Part 2 we highlight the role of mothers in Kenya, El Salvador, India and Palestine via videos from Church World Service,  Catholic Relief Services, Episcopal Relief and Development and Lutheran World Relief.  Because the message is timeless, these videos span several years.  In Part 1, we showed Mother's Day greetings from CARE (and a mother from New Guinea) and Oxfam and a video about the Bread for the World Institute's 2015 hunger report.

Church World Service, Women and Water in Rural Kenya (2010)


Lutheran World Relief  The women of Bihar, India (2013)

Episcopal Relief and Development, Dr. Daniella Flamenco, El Salvador (2014)


Catholic Relief Services, Intisar Mohammed Attalah, Palestine (2014)

Saturday, May 09, 2015

Celebrating Mother's Day in Videos (Part 1)

On Mother's Day Weekend, we not only celebrate and honor our own mothers, but also the role of women around the world who work hard to make life better for  families, their villages and neighboring communities.  We celebrate those strong women with seven videos from non-governmental and church-related organizations.   

In Part 1, we show Mother's Day greetings from CARE (and a mother from New Guinea) and Oxfam, and a video about the Bread for the World Institute's 2015 hunger report, When Women Flourish We can End HungerPart 2 will celebrate the role of mothers in Kenya, El Salvador, India and Palestine via videos from Church World Service, Catholic Relief Services, Episcopal Relief and Development and Lutheran World Relief.  Because the message is timeless, these videos span several years.

Care (2010)


Oxfam (2014)


Bread for the World Institute (2015)

Friday, May 08, 2015

Please Participate in the Nation's Largest Single-Day Food Drive



The National Association of Letter Carriers, Roadrunner Food Bank in Albuquerque, the Food Depot in Santa Fe and hundreds of food banks around the country would like you to participate in the nation's largest single-day food drive tomorrow (Saturday, May 9).

Since 1992, the second Saturday in May has been set aside for the NALC's Stamp Out Hunger campaign for the massive food-collection effort, which is held in 10,000 cities and towns in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and Guam. "With the extreme weather experienced this winter by much of the country, along with the economic struggles many Americans face, the Letter Carriers’ Food Drive never has been more important," said the NALC.

For the average postal patron, taking part in the food drive involves a couple of simple steps.
  • Visit your favorite grocery store, 
  • Purchase several non-perishable food items like peanut butter, canned tuna, canned vegetables, canned fruit, canned beans, 
  • Put them in a bag and leave them by your mailbox on Saturday before your postal carrier arrives
I usually spend about $10 or more at the grocery. And instead of leaving them by the mail box, I take the food directly to my neighborhood post office on Lomas near Tramway and deposit the bag (s) in a special bin.

There are many volunteers behind the effort, as Stephanie Miller wrote in the Roadrunner Food Bank's blog in 2013. "From the hardworking Letter Carriers who fit the food collection into their normal hours while on their routes that day, to volunteers who give up part of their Saturday to stand, schlep, sort and sweat, to Food Bank staff who put in an extra day that week, to the US Postal Service who approve delivery of the collection bags and use of their facilities, to sponsors like Campbell’s Soup Company and AARP and the coordination of our national organization Feeding America and, most-importantly, to donors across the country who take the time to put food out that day." 

Roadrunner Food Bank tweeted this photo this week to promote #StampOutHunger
And the Food Depot made this appeal for volunteers via Twitter on the same day.

The food that is collected stays in local communities. "With the help of the generous community and our local letter carriers, The Food Depot is hoping to collect more than 30,000 pounds of food this year," said the Santa Fe food bank.

So please set aside a few minutes from your day to help #StampOutHunger and supplement the food available to hungry neigbhors in our (your) community.

Wednesday, May 06, 2015

'By Now, Many People Expect to See Art There'

Photo courtesy of Shirley Simon
The annual CROP Hunger Walk in Hyattsville, Maryland (in the suburbs of Washington, D.C.), had attracted more than $10,000 in online donations by the time participants started to walk on Sunday, May The money raised by walkers in Hyattsville (and similar CROP Walks elsewhere) helps support the overall ministry of Church World Service, especially grassroots, hunger-fighting development efforts around the world. Each local CROP Hunger Walk can choose to return up to 25 percent of the funds it raises to hunger-fighting programs in its own community.

In some communities, CWS volunteer organizers partner with local Bread for the World grassroots volunteers to offer participants another way to make a differeince: the opportunity to write letters to Congress around Bread for the World's Offering of Letters campaign. The 2015 campaign,  Feed Our Children, urges Congress to renew and expand vital child nutrition programs.

The Hyattasville CROP Walk included an opportunity for walkers to write letters, and there was a familiar figure handing out Offering of Letters materials to participants as they completed their walk. That person was Bread for the World founder Art Simon. "Art has been doing this for many years," said his wife Shirley Simon. "He meets the people when they return from their 3-mile walk. By now,many people, expect to see Art there."

Shirley Simon pointed out that the set-up of the Hyattsville CROP Walk makes it difficult to write letters on the spot, so the materials that Art gives them provided background on the Offering of Letters campaign, suggestions what information to include in the letters, and the addresses of the U.S. Rep. Donna Edwards, U.S. Rep. Steny Hoyer (for those who live in the adjacent congressional district), U.S. Sen. Barbara Mikulski and U.S. Sen. Benjamin Cardin.

Tuesday, May 05, 2015

Eighty Seven Letters from Peace Lutheran Church Las Cruces

The basket in the picture below contains 87 letters from Peace Lutheran Church in Las Cruces, New Mexico. The total includes 28 letters to Sen. Tom Udall, 26 letters to Sen. Martin Heinrich and 33 letters to Rep. Steve Pearce. Members of the congregation wrote the letters on Sunday, April 19, and Sunday, April 26. The letters were dedicated on Sunday, May 3.Thank you to Ellen Young and her team of volunteers for this marvelous effort! As of May 3, there were 574 letters from three churches in New Mexico urging Congress to renew and expand vital child nutrition programs.


Monday, May 04, 2015

Pittsburgh Steelers Player Partners with Bread for the World

Kelvin Beachum, a three-year veteran of the NFL, has played  on the offensive line of  the Pittsburgh Steelers, primarily as a left tackle. Beachum, who was picked by the Steelers from SMU in the seventh round of the 2012 NFL draft, is considered one of the best players selected by Pittsburgh during Mike Tomlin's eight year tenure as head coach of the club.

Like many athletes, Beachum uses Twitter to communicate personal opinions and messages. In most cases, the messages by athletes reflect themes related to their sport or othe sports.

In Beachum's case, some of his messages promote the work of  Bread for the World'! However, the Pittsburgh player not only endorses Bread, but has formed a partnership with the organization to work to end hunger in the U.S. and around the world. The partnership was announced during Beachum's annual football camp for children in his hometown of Mexia, Texas, on May 2. 

"We are right in the middle of the hunger problem in the country," said Beachum. "As a child, my family and I bounced around from WIC, free and reduced lunches, and some food stamp assistance when we qualified. There were times when we had enough, but there were also times that we needed help."  

Here is a tweet of  a picture of Beachum with Bread's Government Relations Director Eric Mitchell on the day of the announcement..
Beachum has been following and retweeting Bread for the World's tweets much of this year. He retweeted this post from Angela Ruprock-Schaefer, a member of Bread for the World's board of directors.
"To help end hunger, God is stretching me to do things I have never done before, like advocate for hungry children," said Beachum, the grandson of a pastor. "It truly takes a team to make that dream work, It takes a team from all different walks of life, all different upbringings, backgrounds, circumstance, to all to come together and help end hunger."

Sunday, May 03, 2015

The Prayer of St. Francis (based on Tweets from Pope Francis)

Mary Ann Otto, stewardship and special projects director for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Green Bay in Wisconsin, adapted the Prayer of St. Francis into a litany, using tweets that Pope Francis sent out in 2013. As of May 2, 2015, Pope Francis had sent out 545 tweets. The pontiff had 6 million-plus followers as of that date, and he was following eight tweeters (himself in eight languages).

Below are four of the tweets related to the litany below. The full prayer follows the tweets.



Reader : "Let the cry for peace ring out in all the world." (tweeted by Pope Francis 9/4/13 )
All: Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.

R : “W here we find hate and darkness, may we bring hope in order to give a human face to society." (tweeted 9/30/13 )
A: Where there is hatred, let me sow love;

R : "God is so merciful toward us. We too should learn to be merciful, especially with those who suffer ." (tweeted 7/17 /13 )
A: Where there is injury, pardon;

R : “Christians know how to face difficulties, trials and defeat with serenity and hope in the Lord ." (tweeted 10/31 /13 )
A: Where there is doubt, faith;

R : ”We ought to never lose hope. God overwhelms us with grace if we keep asking." (tweeted 9/9/13 )
A: Where there is despair, hope;

R : "The light of faith illumines all our relationships and helps us to live them in union with the love of Christ, to live them like Christ ." (tweeted 8/ 5 /13 )
A: Where there is darkness, light;

R : "If we wish to follow Christ closely, we cannot choose an easy, quiet life. It will be a demanding life but full of joy." (tweeted 7/10/13 ) 
A: And where there is sadness, joy.

 R : "Let us allow Jesus into our lives and leave behind our selfishness, indifference and closed attitudes to others." (tweeted 8/2 7 /13 )
A: O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console;

R : Let us ask the Lord to give us the gentleness to look upon the poor with understanding and love, devoid of human calculation and fear." (tweeted 9/24/13 )
A: To be understood as to understand;

R : "God loves us. May we discover the beauty of loving and being love d .” ( tweeted 11/11 /13 )
A: To be loved as to love.

R : "Every time we give in to selfishness and say 'No' to God, we spoil his loving plan for us ." (tweeted 5/26 /13 )
A: For it is in giving that we receive:

R : We are all sinners, but we experience the joy of God's forgiveness and we walk forward truly in his mercy." (tweeted 9/19/13)
A: It is in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. AMEN!

Print a Copy 

Saturday, May 02, 2015

Hunger and Health Conference Planned for Albuquerque on June 2



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The Alliance to End Hunger, an organization that engages diverse institutions to build the public and political will to end hunger at home and abroad, is one of the main sponsors of Come to the Table, a regional summit on hunger and health, on Tuesday, June 2, at Los Poblanos Historic Inn and Organic Farm 4803 Rio Grande Blvd. NW (map) in LosRanchos de Albuquerque. .The two other sponsors are ProMedica and Presbyterian Health Services. The summit is free of charge and will run from 8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.

ProMedica and the Alliance to End Hunger have joined in sponsoring other similar Come to the Table summits , in partnership with other local and national health care organizations. The summits intend to encourage health care organizations to also address hunger as a health issue and federal legislators to protect food-related programs and policies.

The Albuquerque summit will feature perspectives from an array of experts including a keynote address by Audrey Rowe, Administrator for the Food and Nutrition Service at the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

"There are clear associations between food insecurity and poorer health status among children, adults and seniors, and our goal is to ensure that this topic becomes a priority in the healthcare industry," said the directors from the three sponsor organizations."The long-term, detrimental effects of poor nutrition on health include negative consequences on physical and mental development, as well as the productivity and economic success of our nation. While the human toll from hunger remains incalculable, one estimate puts related healthcare costs nationwide at a staggering $130.5 billion a year."

"Through our combined efforts we will continue to frame this issue in a unique perspective so that, collectively, we can develop and deploy sustainable solutions to end hunger and ensure it remains a national priority," said the organization leaders.

The Alliance to End Hunger has a strong connection to Bread for the World, which created the organization in 2001 as a platform for both secular and faith organizations to join together in the fight against hunger.  In 2004, the Alliance received 501(c)(3) status and became an independent organization with a unique board of directors and set of bylaws.  While separate, the Alliance continues to collaborate closely with its sister organization.

Click here to register for the June 2 Summit. For questions, please contact Barbara Petee (barb.petee@promedica.org), ProMedica’s Chief Advocacy and Government Relations Officer. You can also reach her by phone at 419-469-3894.