Circling Hunger: A Bicycle Flash Mob in Indianapolis

My friend Dave Miner and I were chatting on the phone the other day about creative ways to engage youth and raise awareness about hunger. Dave mentioned a bicycle flash mob in his home town of Indianapolis back in September of 2014. A bicycle flash mob? That was a unique way to enlist people who enjoy cycling to come together to collect food and bring attention that year to hunger on Indy Do Day,  a people-powered community day of service when the residents of Indianapolis take ownership of their neighborhoods and take care of their neighbors. 

The flash mob campaign was entitled Circling Hunger because the cyclists came together at Monument Circle, arriving from all directions. According to Dave, the event took place at Noon (allowing people to take off from work to participate).

A flash mob of more than 100 bike riders from 35 different Indianapolis companies came together today on Monument Circle to drop off nonperishable items for the Midwest Food Bank. The Orr Fellowship, Indy Hunger Network, Indy Do Day and the Elanco Enough Campaign rallied together to raise awareness that one in six Hoosiers are hungry and more than 80,000 children in the Indianapolis metro area suffer from hunger," said an Indy Do Day write-up.

For maximum effect, the cyclists were the same t-shirts and rode bikes from a local company that rents out cycles to commuters. Those commuter cycles are all the same color: yellow.  

The group hopes to illustrate how we can all come together to make a difference and promote Indy Do Day using hashtags #circlinghunger and #indydoday. The Indy Hunger Network has registered 25 projects on the Indy Do Day website," said the write-up

Here is a one-minute promotional video. (Note: The video strung together several topics in one URL, so please feel free to stop it after one minute). 

Congress, Press Softball Teams Raise Record Funds for Breast Cancer Program

The 8th Annual Congressional Women's Softball Game, held on June 15, raised more than $200,000 in corporate sponsorship, individual donations, and ticket sales to benefit the Young Survival Coalition, a global organization dedicated to critical issues unique to young women who are diagnosed with breast cancer. The CWSG, which features a match between teams comprised of Congressional Representatives and Senators and the Washington press corps, has raised more than $875,000 to date for YSC. According to Roll Call newspaper,  this year's take broke a record.

Rep. Michelle Lujan Grisham on Congress Roster
In this year's game, the Press Corps won by a score of 8-4, breaking a three-year winning streak by Team Congress. Rep. Michelle Lujan Grisham was among those playing for Team Congress. Her teammates included a bipartisan mix of legislators: Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, Sen. Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire, Rep. Mia Love of Utah, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Florida and others. The Press Corps (Bad News Babes) included representatives from CNN, The New York Times, PBS News Hour, NPR, Huffington Post and other media outlets. See the rosters for both teams.

"It's pretty competitive, the members of Congress really want to beat the press," Rep.  Kristi Noem  of South Dakota said in an interview with Gray Television

Both teams take the game personally, as evident in some of the pre-game tweets. Here is a comment from  Jill Agostino of The New York Times. “Hey Members! Almost game time — deadline looms, we’re used to this kind of pressure, are you?” Read more Digital Comments

"It’s really great to be able to keep the game close, give a really good game for the spectators to watch," Wasserman Schultz told Roll Call. "What it means is they’re more likely to talk about it next year and hopefully more people will come out,.”

And the players also have fun, as evidenced by this image of Rep. Lujan Grisham (courtesy of a tweet from Jennifer Bendery).

#FF @RepLujanGrisham, because this picture of her will put a smile on your face any day pic.twitter.com/yyvSlXrtcC

— Jennifer Bendery (@jbendery) June 17, 2016

Honoring Cindy Levin

Photo from Cindy Levin's blog

What do U2 lead singer Bono, Etharin Cousin (executive director of the World Food Programme), philinatropist Bill Gates, and Cindy Levin have in common?  They all made the list of 30 Innovators Fighting World Hunger and Poverty, published in 2014 by Top Master’s In Healthcare Administration.

Bono, Cousin and Gates are very recognizable names, but I can't say I have interacted with them in any form. And the other 26 individuals on the list are all worthy of recognition, but I also can't say I know them personally. On the other hand, I know Cindy Levin as a fellow grassroots advocate, as an anti-hunger and anti-poverty blogger, and as a Facebook friend. Check out her blog,  Anti-Poverty Mom: Raising my voice & my kids.  Cindy is passionate about advocacy, as evidenced by her work with RESULTS and Bread for the World (and early on with the ONE Campaign). In 2013, I reprinted a great piece from her article 7 Reasons You Should Take Your Kids to Lobby Congress

In addition to her advocacy efforts, Cindy is very involved in direct service, as evidenced by her work with Shot@Life, a movement to protect children worldwide by providing life-saving vaccines where they are most needed. Read more in A Shot@Life in Uganda: Vaccines for Children

Here is what the article on the 30 anti-hunger and anti-poverty champions says about Cindy.

Image from Momentumnation

Levin is a former automotive engineer turned volunteer activist and fundraising coach in Chicago with RESULTS, Bread for the World, and Shot@Life. She is a mother to two daughters, and she credits her own mother for her calling to serve her community.

Levin is particularly passionate about vaccination, a cost-effective way to save lives worldwide. She brings congressmen letters from children, who urge them to legislate greater access to vaccines. Levin combines her love of running with advocacy by competing in half-marathons. She trains with her daughters, who along with Levin ran for Charity Miles and raised enough money for Shot@Life to vaccinate over 100 children against polio, measles, rotavirus, and pneumococcal virus. 

The world is a better please because of the work of people like Cindy Levin.

Team Denver Also Won ELCA Challenge

In the days leading to the Super Bowl, Bishop Jim Gonia of the Rocky Mountain Synod (Team Denver) of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) issued a challenge to Bishops Timothy Smith of the North Carolina Synod and Herman Yoos of the South Carolina Synod (together as Team Carolina) to see who could raise more money for the ELCA World Hunger Program,

The Denver Broncos won the real contest over the Carolina Panthers, 24-10. In the Team ELCA Campaign, the Team Denver Broncos squeaked out a victory over the Team Carolina Panthers despite a numerical disadvantage (165 ELCA congregations in the Rocky Mountain Synod, including 22 in New Mexico vs. more than 300 congregations in the combined North Carolina-South Carolina Synods),  

The Final Score: Team Denver $38,671 Team Carolina $34,697 The alternate score: The two synods surpassed the goal of raising a joint $50,000 or more. Winner: The ELCA World Hunger Program and everyone around the world who benefits from the agency's services.  Here are more details

Bishop Jim Gonia's Super Bowl (and World Hunger) Challenge

If you are a football fan (and even if you're not), you are probably aware by now that the two teams vying in Super Bowl 50 are the Denver Broncos and the Carolina Panthers (based in Charlotte, N.C.).

According to oddsmakers, the Panthers are favored to win this game.  But that's not the line we care about. What's important is the BIG GAME challenge that Bishop Jim Gonia of the Rocky Mountain Synod (Team Denver) of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) made to fellow Bishops Timothy Smith of the North Carolina Synod and Herman Yoos of the South Carolina Synod (together as Team Carolina) to raise funds for the ELCA World Hunger Program.  (A similar challenge was made to the Northwest Synod, when the Broncos played the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl 48)..

Bishop Gonia issued his challenge to Bishops Smith and Yoos via the Team ELCA campaign, which allows individuals and supporters of and advocates for ELCA ministries, to invite friends, family and connections to “join the team” in support of the ministries that  they support.

Things didn't get off to a good start for Team Denver. "I just found out that as of 10 p.m. on January 28, TEAM CAROLINA has raised $3055 and TEAM DENVER has raised just $955!" said Coach Gonia.

Of course, QB Gonia did not mention that TEAM DENVER faces a numerical disadvantage to TEAM Carolina. There are 165 ELCA congregations in the Rocky Mountain Synod, including 22 in New Mexico. In contrast the combined North Carolina-South Carolina Synods together represent more than 300 churches. Hardly fair, right? But that's beside the point. The three synods are on the same team to raise a combined $50,000 during the Super Bowl season for the ELCA World Hunger program. The combined total of slightly more than $4,000 as of Jan. 28 was way short of the goal. [Update: as of Jan. 30, The Rocky Mountain Synod Broncos were closing in. The score was $3,910 for TEAM CAROLINA and $3,360 for TEAM DENVER (click here for the latest score)]

Here's where you can help:
Give an online gift for TEAM DENVER
Give an online gift for TEAM CAROLINA

Note: You don't have to be an ELCA member or a member of one of those synods to participate.
Enlist supporters on Twitter using the #ELCABigGame hashtag

The competition between #denver Lutherans and Carolina Lutherans is the only one I care about https://t.co/vo4yrovDTS @rmselca #elcabiggame

— Nadia Bolz-Weber (@Sarcasticluther) January 30, 2016

Growing (Not Throwing!) Tomatoes at the Ball Park

No garden (yet!) at Albuquerque Isotopes Park

"For those that only associate baseball farms with farm teams and think of baseball food as consisting of two food groups (hot dogs and beer, or peanuts and cracker jacks), the ballpark might seem like a strange breeding ground for hyper-local, sustainable urban agriculture."  -from article in Climate Progress

If you listen to a baseball broadcast in Spanish, you might hear the announcer refer to the outfield as the yard (jardín). The word  jardín in Spanish can also mean the garden (as in vegetable garden). There are actually a few instances where vegetable gardens are part of the game of baseball.  Five Major League Baseball parks have devoted land for vegetable gardens: Coors Field (Colorado Rockies), Petco Park (San Diego Padres), Nationals Park (Washington Nationals), Fenway Park (Boston Red Sox) and AT&T Park (San Francisco Giants). The gardens are used to provide healthy ingredients for food at the ballpark and to provide a learning opportunity about gardening to young people. AT&T offers tours of its garden to youth.

Photo. Boston Red Sox

Two of the newest projects were launched this summer at Fenway Park in Boston and Nationals Park in Washington, D.C. Fenway Farms is a 5,000-square foot rooftop farm along a previously unused stretch of roof behind Gate A in Fenway Park. "The impetus for the farm came from Linda Pizzuti Henry, wife of Red Sox co-owner John Henry," " Natasha Geiling wrote in ClimateProgress, a project of the online site ThinkProgress. " Linda had long been interested in figuring out a way to bring a focus on sustainability and healthy eating to the ballpark, and in the summer of 2014, Linda serendipitously crossed paths with Green City Growers, a Boston-based company that had been awarded a Social Impact Prize from Henry’s foundation for its work in creating urban garden and farms."

Photo: Washington Nationals

In the nation's capital, the Washington Nationals transplanted 180 plants of  tomatoes, zucchini, squash and herbs in a rooftop garden this summer. The produce will initially be used for food preparation for meals served in sky boxes and other premium areas.  "Based on the success of it, we’d like to roll it out to other areas of the ballpark as well," Jonathan Stahl, the executive director of ballpark operations and guest experience, told  WTOP  The Washington Post's DC Sports Blog also wrote about this garden earlier this summer.

Photo: City Farmer News

Community gardens evolve from other small projects.  In San Diego, Luke Yoder, former  director of landscape maintenance at Petco, decided to team up with executive chef Will Todd to incorporate fresh produce into the menu at Padres home games. "Yoder has since expanded that idea, creating one of the coolest features in any ballpark -- gardens extending through both the home and visiting bullpens," said an article in Cut 4.  Yoder's garden has featured 18 varieties of hot chile peppers from 18 countries.  “The pitching coaches and players like to play with them and pop one every once in a while to get them going," Yoder told Sports Illustrated.

Photo: San Francisco Giants

Futher up the coast in California, the still relatively new AT&T Park, home of the San Francisco Giants, features a  large area spanning 4,320 square feet, appropriately dubbed the Garden. "In addition to produce, the Garden houses a bar, tables, benches, a fire pit, and two concession stands that serve food prominently featuring Garden-grown ingredients. Produce-wise, the Garden grows everything you’d expect to find in a backyard garden patch (lettuce, tomatoes, zucchini) and a few things you wouldn’t (passion fruit, lemongrass, hops). When it opened, Giants right fielder Hunter Pence — a self-proclaimed health nut — was on site to christen the Garden," said Baseball Park Digest. There is also a great article about this garden in Modern Farmer.

When the garden first opened at AT&T in 2004, the Giants tweeted that they had the first  “organic, edible garden" in Major League Baseball. Not so, said the daily newspaper in San Diego.  "The San Diego Padres are about to enter their third season with one," said The San Diego Union-Tribune. (Not to be outdone in San Francisco, the football franchise, the 49ers included a rooftop garden at their still-new Levi's Stadium)

Photo: Colorado Rockies

In the Rockies, Colorado State University Institute for the Built Environment has developed a 700-acre site dubbed the GaRden. As is the case with all the other parks, the GaRden was created to provide fresh produce to the concessionaires who serve food to the public. "The GaRden is on display for the 500,000 fans who pass through Gate A of the stadium each season. For the second year running, it has provided on-site vendors with fresh, hyper-local produce that is grown sustainably and with organic principles," said the CSU magazine Source "The sustainably produced and managed vegetables, herbs, flowering ornamentals and plants."

There are 25 other baseball teams in Major League Baseball, which means the potential for another 25 ballpark gardens in cities like Los Angeles, St. Louis, New York, Kansas City, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, and Chicago. There is precedent in some of these cities: tomatoes, sunflowers and corn were grown in Shea Stadium, the former home of the New York Mets. The Atlanta Braves and Detroit Tigers at one time also grew produce in their bullpen areas, according to Smithsonian magazine. And the Baltimore Orioles grew tomatoes in foul territory in left field at their old Memorial Stadium home, said The Baltimore Sun in 2011.

Let's not limit ourselves to the Major League Teams.  Every team has at least five affiliates, which means opportunities for community gardens from Albuquerque and Nashville to Albany, N.Y.,  Durham, N.C., Spokane, Wa., Jupiter, Fla., Portland, Me., Dayton, Oh, Missoula, Mt., and dozens of other cities.

The gardens go beyond the promotion of healthy eating.  “These practices are an entryway to so many environmental issues, from water scarcity to agriculture and chemical impacts on our land,” Alice Henry told ClimateProgress.

#Hangry5K: Angry for the Hungry Run in Columbus, Ohio

The hashtag #Hangry5K combines two adjectives: hungry and angry. And it also made for an attemtion-grabbing slogan for a 5-kilometer race that started at Sharon Woods Metro Park in Columbus, Ohio, on June 20, 2015.  "There are people in central Ohio who live with hunger and we are angry about it," said organizers of the event. "That is why we are “Running Cause We’re Hangry.”

Participants paid a registration fee to run, with all proceeds donated to local food banks in Columbus, including Heart to Heart pantry at First Community Church. Runners were also asked to make a donation of non-perishable food item.

So how did they do?  

Here is the answer:

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..

Working with @KelvinBeachumJr and @bread4theworld to #feedourchildren and #endhunger pic.twitter.com/wGUOmgoRlR

— Eric M. (@E_Mitch06) May 2, 2015

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.

Offering of Letters by @bread4theworld Board of Directors asking Congress to protect childhood #nutrition programs. pic.twitter.com/ByogY2Zz9J
— Angela R-Schafer (@AngRSchafer) March 3, 2015

"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."

How a Photograph Prompted a Belgian Soccer Star to Help a Rural Village in Guinea

1: @pkmuller (or @NatGeo ) can you help me get in touch with the boy in my shirt? pic.twitter.com/2AodrKSpLA
— Dries Mertens (@dries_mertens14) March 25, 2015

Every now and then we hear a story about how renown professional athletes step outside their circles to do something good for the broader world. Recently, we wrote about Swedish soccer star Zlatan Ibrihimovic, who plays for the French club Paris St. Germain, and his campaign to shine the spotlight on world hunger. Ibrihimovic is working with the World Food Programme in this endeavor.

A handful of athletes become involved in their community (local or global) through some coincidence. Dries Mertens, who plays for Napoli in Italy's Serie A (First Division) League, happened  to be browsing through social-media posts from National Geographic (@NatGeo when he noticed a picture of a primary school classroom in a remote village of Meliandou in the West African country of Guinea. One of the young students happened to be wearing jersey with his name and number on the back. The school had recently reopened after having been closed because of the outbreak of Ebola in the region.

"I was focused on the young children learning French. I barely noticed what they were wearing when I later posted the photo on Instagram," said National Geographic reporter Pete Muller, who arrived in the village in February, a year after the first case was reported in the region.

Mertens, who represented Belgium in the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, did notice the photo and got in touch with Muller. "He initially wanted to send him his new jersey. On Friday, we connected with Mertens’s agent, Sam Kerkhofs, and now they hope to do much more to help the community," said Muller.

"Meliandou needs [this assistance]," added Muller. "The virus spread rapidly in Meliandou, now known as ground zero, eventually claiming 24 lives in the village and more than 10,000 across Guinea, Sierra Leone, and Liberia."
 
While Mertens and the young man with the jersey are an important part of the story, there is a broader and more important aspect of the narrative.The impact of the Ebola outbreak is hard to imagine beyond the statistics that we hear in the West. "I found the residents of Meliandou lamenting a lack of food, which they expressed as embarrassment over their inability to customarily offer me a meal," said the National Geographic reporter. "Food wasn’t entirely absent, but severely limited, as the outbreak disrupted last year’s planting season."

And yet, with all the challenges caused by the Ebola outbreak, the community continues to put education for both boys and girls at the top of its priorities. "Despite the current hardship, the adults of Meliandou still allocate the necessary funds for their children to attend school," Muller wrote in the article.  "So many do this, in fact, that the benches of Meliandou’s three-room schoolhouse are crowded beyond capacity." Read the full piece in National Geographic.

If the young student had not been wearing that jersey and if Muller had not posted that photograph on Instagram and Twitter, it's unlikely that much-needed assistance would be flowing to the village of Melianndou from an international soccer star. Even more important, we wouldn't have been aware of the resilient spirt of the people of Meliandou.

Swedish Soccer Player Seeks to Raise Awareness about World Hunger

Zlatan Ibrahimovic is a Swedish soccer star who plays for the French team Paris St. Germain (PSG). You won't remember him from the recent World Cup in Brazil because Sweden just barely missed making the field of 32 countries in the international tournament. Ibrahimovic has a strong opinion on an important topic: World Hunger. And while he was unable to express his thoughts at the marquee event in Brazil last summer, he does have a pretty big stage in France's Ligue 1  Here's what he did in a recent match.

"In the second minute of PSG’s Ligue 1 game with Caen, Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored an acrobatic kung-fu kick and promptly took his shirt off and showed off a surprising display of tattoos in yet another one of his self-centered yet loveable displays of narcissism," said ProSoccerTalk. "Or, so we thought. Now, Zlatan says the stunt was for more worldly reasons. According to the massive Swede, and supported by a video from the World Food Programme, he put 50 names across his upper body of starving children in temporary tattoos surrounding his already heavy haul of existing ones." 

The WFP and Ibrahimovich, in fact, are working very closely to make sure that world hunger does not become a forgotten problem among those of us in the West who live a comfortable existence. This video is a great example of who the WFP and the soccer start have worked together. “Each one of the 805 million people suffering from hunger in the world has a name, a voice, a story to share,” said Marina Catena, WFP Director for France and the Principality of Monaco.”Zlatan accepted the challenge and wished to carry their stories on his own skin so that the world does not forget them.”  

Can't Wait for the World Cup? Here's Something You Can Do in the Meantime

Photo from UNICEF

How many of us have put a big circle around June 12?  If you're like me, you have to wait an excruciating 42 days until the first match of the World Cup 2014, when host Brazil takes on Croatia.  After that, all games are interesting and important: Cote d'Ivoire-Japan, Ecuador-Honduras, South Korea-Algeria, USA-Ghana.  And then there are the marquee matchups: Portugal-Germany, Spain-Netherlands, Brazil-Mexico, Uruguay-Costa Rica, England-Italy....Oh my!

But let's step back for a second.  The World Cup is still 42 days away.  Until then, there are other things to ease  your aching soccer heart.  One action, from the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), helps you celebrate Mother's Day and at the same time celebrate your soccer fix.

Looking for a unique gift for mom for Mother's Day? A soccer ball purchased in her honor through our Inspired Gifts program will keep kids healthy and happy.

In the chaos of refugee camps where families have lost everything, play brings relief, healing and laughter. Recreation offers immediate and lasting psychological, physical and social benefits to a child coping with crisis. 

The beloved soccer ball is an instant symbol of friendship and play. In refugee camps, children often play barefoot on any open stretch of dirt they can find. Give children in need some much-needed fun. This gift provides 6 quality leather soccer balls so kids can be kids.   Click on this link to donate six quality leather soccer balls so kids can be kids.

ELCA Super Bowl Challenge. Rocky Mountain Synod Broncos versus the Northwest Synod Seahawks

The Super Bowl is not the same unless the mayors of the two cities competing in this iconic contest place a wager on the game. True to tradition, Mayors Michael Hancock of Denver and Ed Murray of Seattle announced their wager on Monday, January 27.. If the Seattle Seahawks win, Hancock will have to turn over a  a tasty sampling of Denver's  green chile and a pair of handmade skis from Icelantic Skis. If the Denver Broncos are victorious, then Murray has to provide Hancock with salmon, dungeness crab and a bike from Rodriguez Bicycles. Read more in The Denver Post blog.

The outside activities and competitions related to the Super Bowl are not limited to politicians. The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is also using the big game to promote an important campaign: Super Bowl Challenge for ELCA World Hunger. And it involves the two synods that cover the regions of the two teams playing in the Super Bowl.  The Rocky Mountain Synod and the Northwest Washington Synod are challenging each other to raise the most gifts for ELCA World Hunger.  You do not have to belong to one of the synods to participate online.

Click on this link to access a donation page for the Rocky Mountain Synod and this link for the Northwest Synod. You can either pay with a credit card or via Paypal.

So who is winning?  As of Sunday, January 26, at 9:30 a.m., Peyton Manning's prolific offense had the Rocky Mountain Synod Broncos far ahead.  But there is still a week left, and maybe Russell Wilson will engineer a historic comeback for the of the Northwest Synod Seahawks.  Remember, you can participate through the end of the Super Bowl.

$5,507.01

$2,647.00

Baseball and Community Anti-Hunger Efforts

Isotopes recognize Roadrunner Food Bank, others in 2009

The baseball season is entering its final stretch. The minor leagues are completing their games around Labor Day, and the majors have about a month left before the regular season ends on Sept. 29. So this is a good opportunity to talk about the activities of baseball teams outside the diamond, particularly anti-hunger efforts.

Whether they are in a major, minor or independent league, baseball teams give back to their community by collecting and distributing food for the local food bank. Check out the food drive organized by the Midland Rock Hounds of the Double-A Texas League to collect food for the Jubilee Center Food Bank.

And the Long Island Ducks of the independent Atlantic League are partnering with the Harry Chapin Food Bank and others to hold Hunger Awareness Day on Sunday, Sept. 8.

Sometimes these food-collection efforts are more targeted. The New Orleans Zephyrs of the Triple-A Pacific Coast League, for example, partner with Food for Families, which provides nutritional food boxes to seniors. 

Many times, the players' wives take the lead in organizing food drives, such as the one sponsored by the Chicago Cubs on Aug. 11.  As a member of the board of Harvesters, the Kansas City food bank, in the 1980s I served in a committee chaired by Janie Quisenberry, the wife of the Kansas City Royals star relief pitcher Dan Quisenberry.  Janie Quisenberry and the Kansas City Royals wives were very serious about making a difference in the community and held several food drives. 

Major League Baseball offers baseball fans the opportunity to offer more than just food donations.  If you look at the volunteer opportunities available via MLB Community, Feeding America and City Harvest are at the top of the list.  The list also includes opportunities to help the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF).

Sometimes individual players take the initiative.  Roy Halladay, a pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies, launched the Roy Halladay Foundation in 2011 to support hunger initiatives and other programs supported by his baseball team.

The Josh Lindblom Foundation
Because I am a Los Angeles Dodgers fan, I love highlighting the charitable work of some of the players.  I already wrote about star pitcher Clayton Kershaw and his work in Africa.  Now I want to take the opportunity to highlight the work of ex-Dodger relief pitcher Josh Lindblom (currently a member of  the Texas Rangers organization), who I saw pitch a couple of times for the Triple-A Albuquerque Isotopes.  Lindblom.  In 2011, Lindblom created the Josh Lindblom Foundation, which is intended both to raise awareness and provide assistance and support to organizations that help people in need.

Pitching for Albuquerque Isotopes in 2009

Tim Brown of Yahoo Sports tells a fascinating story about how Lindblom and his wife Aurielle became involved with the Dream Center in an area of Los Angeles known as Skid Row.  Here is an excerpt:

Josh Lindblom had listened to Pastor Matthew [Barmett] on his car radio. He'd never heard of the Dream Center, never heard of Matthew Barnett, never heard of any of this. "But he was screaming at me," Josh said.  When he got home, he researched the man and his mission, and discovered both were mere blocks from Dodger Stadium. He told Aurielle. Then they showed up and asked what they could do. Josh makes frequent trips to Skid Row. Aurielle helps with the families on-site, or travels into the community to provide bedding, food and services. Down on 6th and Crocker, while Josh walked the neighborhood, Aurielle served scrambled eggs to hundreds.

"He's living out his dream," Aurielle said, nodding to Josh, meaning the baseball. "We thought we should use it for good. You know, you can only live for yourself for so long. "It's making him – both of us – realize there's so much more to life than his baseball career. I can just tell, even if he doesn't do as well as he'd like, he knows it's OK, that it's just a game."  

I recommend that you read the full article, which was published in June 2012--when Lindblom was still in the Dodgers organization. And if you want more, here is a second article in Dodger magazine.  I watched Lindblom pitch for the Albuquerque Isotopes in 2009. He was eventually promoted to the Dodgers and subsequently traded to the Philadelphia Phillies, who then traded him to the Texas Rangers. Lindblom will return to Albuquerque as a member of the Rangers Triple-A affiliate, the Round Rock Express, for the Isotopes' final series of the season on Aug. 26-29..

Should Governments Spend More Tax Dollars (Reais) on Sports Infrastructure or on Social Services?

- A festa do futebol acabou e amanhã voltamos a pressionar o governo e o congresso nacional, a trabalharem dentro da linha e seguindo a pauta social: educação, saude, saneamento, condições de trabalho digno, transporte, etc..etc... (the football festival is over, and tomorrow we are pressing the Government and the National Congress, to meet their commitments and follow the social compact: education, health, sanitation, decent working conditions, transport, etc.etc ...) -Graziela Aronovich, journalist and social activist in Rio de Janeiro

Protests in Rio de Janeiro. Photo courtesy of Graziela Aronovich

The Confederations Cup, which brought together the best national soccer teams from each region around the world, was held in Brazil this past June. This was a warm-up event of sorts to the 2014 World Cup, which will also be held in Brazil.  The home team won the tournament with a decisive 3-0 victory over Spain, the reigning world champion, in an event that drew a record television audience around the world.

The tournament by itself would have been sufficient to shine the spotlight on Brazil.  But there were parallel activities that attracted even more (unwanted) attention on the government of Dilma Rousseff and the Brazilian Congress.  All throughout the cup, there were massive street protests in every Brazilian venue hosting a Confederations cup match (and even in cities that were not designated as hosts).  

No other country around the world has been identified so closely with futebol as Brazil.  Because of this, and the country's recent economic growth into a "middle income country," the international soccer federation (FIFA) granted Brazil the 2014 World Cup.   

But this economic growth has been uneven and this has stirred a different kind of passion in Brazil.  A lot of resources have gone into the construction of stadiums and infrastructure to prepare the country for the World Cup, and many citizens believe this spending has come at the expense of expenditures for transportation, education and other services that will improve the quality of life of the people. (And there is ongoing debate on whether Brazil would recover its massive investment.  The initial cost was initially estimated at about $17.4 billion (39 billion reais), but the price tag might be even higher).

After the Confederations  Cup, protest organizers agreed to hold a dialogue with Rousseff, but put the president and Congress on notice that they were not off the hook. 

The protests were remarkable because a  large number of Brazilians put aside their overwhelming passion for soccer and the chance to host one of the premiere sports events (actually two, because the Olympics are coming to Rio de Janeiro in 2016), to bring attention to the needs of society.  The protestors did not necessarily want the Brazilian government to withdraw from the tournament or the Olympics. They just asked for more creative financing so that basic needs were not set aside in the quest for international prestige.

Same Debate in the United States

Protestors oppose public money for Vikings Stadium (Photo: Kim DeFranco, FightBack!News)

- Almost two of every three Minneapolis school students come from low income families struggling to pay for food and other necessities,   At the same time,  politicians were determined to make the stadium deal the top priority, so, "'the team can make money." It's time we rethink our priorities.  -Minnesota State Sen. John Marty

While it's true that  sporting events bring prestige and employment to a community, to what extent should the government provide funding for infrastructure and other related expenses? What if this funding come at the expense of government services?  In the United States and Europe, this debate is even more important given the escalating salaries of athletes, the record profits of owners, and the increasing price of admission to sporting events.

And the question of whether governments should spend on infrastructure to support sporting events is not unique to Brazil.  Here in the United States, there was a debate in Minnesota last year whether the state government should help pay for a new stadium for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League with taxpayer money.

And just last month, there was the question of whether the city of Glendale, AZ, should continue to provide favorable terms on a lease agreement with Phoenix Coyotes of the National Hockey League.  The agreement was approved, keeping the Coyotes from moving to Seattle.  Interestingly enough, the National Basketball Association (NBA) recently turned out a plan to allow investors in Seattle to build a privately financed arena to lure the Sacramento Kings to that city.  Tax revenues will be used to fund a new arena in Sacramento.

"Almost two of every three Minneapolis school students come from low income families struggling to pay for food and other necessities,," Minnesota State Sen. John Marty said in his Apple Pie Alliance Web site after funding was approved for a new Vikings stadium.   At the same time, numerous Republican and DFL (Democratic Farm-Labor Party) politicians were determined to make the stadium deal the top priority, so, as (lobbyist Ted) Mondale said, 'the team can make money.' It's time we rethink our priorities."

Salvaging Leftovers from the Luxury Suites at Broncos Stadium

By all accounts, football is the most popular spectator sport in the United States, drawing millions of fans to 32 stadiums around the country. Those fans spend a big portion of their entertainment budget on tickets, but also on parking and food.

While NFL teams are trying to keep fans happy by providing an increasingly varied (and sometimes healthier) selection at the concession stands, the fare in the luxury suites has always been very good. This is the food that the Denver salvage organization We Don't Waste collected at eight Broncos home games last season, and plans to do so again this coming season.  

“At Sports Authority Field at Mile High, there are 141 suites that are occupied during every Denver Broncos football game,” said We Don't Waste founder Arlan Preblud. “Those suites are catered by a single company. Once the game is over and the suites are empty, our volunteers go through and they collect all the unused food that is in the suites.”   

The leftovers from the suites provide a lot of meals for folks in the community. “We usually collect approximately 4,000 servings,” said Preblud . “That’s servings of everything from sliders to scalloped potatoes, to chili, to tacos, to roast beef, prime rib, pork tenderloin, barbecued chicken, barbecued ribs, and vegetables. It’s all nutritious restaurant-grade food, and we are thankful that we are there to recover that food.”   

But the NFL Broncos are just one source of food for We Don't Waste.  More than 50 donors in Denver provide their leftovers to the organization, which then distributes the food fo 40 community-based agencies. 

We Don't Waste, which has been in existence for about three years, has made a big difference in Denver. Read more in Organic Connections.

But the Denver organization is just one of many organizations dedicated to food salvage around the country. (In Albuquerque, there are two organizations that provide this service: Desert Harvest and Community Plates). We are thankful for their service to the community, but also mindful of our wasteful habits as a society. According to some estimates, 40 percent of the food in our country goes to waste. 

Two Super Souper Bowls (and you don't have to spend $2,475 for a ticket!!)

You have a choice.  You could either buy a Super Bowl ticket for $2,475.  Or for the same price, you could  attend the Souper Bowl in Santa Fe with 99 of our friends and relatives or the one in Albuquerque with 61 companions. Tickets are $25 in Santa Fe and $40 in Albuquerque.

And if you go to the Super Bowl in New Orleans, the $2,475 does not include any food.  You'll have to shell our some extra bucks to sample some of the offerings from concession stands at the Superdome. (And it's not as good as the food at the great restaurants outside the stadium in New Orleans).

The Souper Bowls in Albuquerque and Santa Fe, on the other hand, gives you samples of great gourmet food from dozens of local restaurants and benefit The Food Depot and Roadrunner Food Bank.

The Food Depot event, which will be held at the Santa Fe Convention Center (201 West Marcy Ave.) on Saturday, January 26, Noon-2:30 p.m., features food from The Blue Corn Cafe, Jambo Cafe, Azur, and other fine restaurants in the City Different.

In Albuquerque, the event will be held at Roadrunner Food Bank, 5840 Office Blvd NE, 11:00-2:00 p.m., also on January 26.  Dozens of great restaurants will be offering samples, including Standard Diner (Guy Fieri was there!), High Noon Restaurant and Saloon, La Fonda del Bosque La Provence Brasserie and many other wonderful establishments in the Duke City.  This is a special Souper Bowl for Roadrunner.  It's the 20th anniversary. That means you have to celebrate with sweets from Nothing Bundt Cakes or Choco Canyon Artisan Chocoloate.
 
If  you're  looking for football at the Souper Bowls, you're out of luck (although I'm certain you'll see a few people wearing Steeler, Cowboy, Bronco and other NFL jerseys). But since the actual Super Bowl is a week later, it is possible to  still attend one of the New Mexico fundraisers and the Harbowl (Harbaugh Bowl?) between the Falcons and the Ravens (provided you have that extra $2,475, plus air fare and hotel)  Or you can just watch it at home on your flat screen TV.

A Cy Young for Arise Africa

The Los Angeles Dodgers ace pitcher Clayton Kershaw is one of the top contenders to win the Cy Young.  This award is given annually to the top pitcher in each league, and Kershaw's statistics offer a powerful argument on why he should receive the Cy Young.  His record is 21-5, his earned run average is 2.28, and he has recorded 248 strikeouts.  These are better statistics than his likely competitors for the National League Cy Young award, Cliff Lee and Roy Halladay, both pitchers with the Philadelphia Phillies.

I had a chance to see Kershaw pitch in 2008

The ERA and the won-loss record are both very impressive.  But I'd like to focus on the strikeouts because they have an impact on a program that serves people in Africa.  If you recall, at the beginning of this baseball season I posted a blog about an effort by Clayton and Ellen Kershaw launched in conjunction with their involvement in Arise Africa, a non-profit organization dedicated to helping end poverty on the continent through health care, education, business and discipleship.  For everyone of his strikeouts, Kershaw pledged to donate $100 to the program.

So Kershaw struck out 245 batters during the course of the regular season, which is about to end in a couple of days.  This translates to about $24,500.  For a baseball player making millions, this probably is a little more than pocket change.  But I suspect that this is only a portion of what Clayton and Ellen will ultimately give to Arise Africa.  And who knows how many others learned about the program because of the efforts of the Kershaws to bring attention to the issue.

So here's hoping that Kershaw does indeed win the Cy Young award, not only for himself but also for all the many efforts to address hunger and poverty in sub-Saharan Africa (and around the world).

On Baseball's Opening Day, We're Hoping for Lots of Called Third Strikes (or Swings and Misses)

My favorite baseball team, the Los Angeles Dodgers, are hosting the dreaded San Francisco Giants on the opening day of the season.  And we're hoping that opening day starter Clayton Kershaw strikes out a lot of opposing hitters.  Here's why.   Kershaw, announced yesterday  that he and his wife, Ellen, will donate $100 for every strikeout  during the 2011 season to Arise Africa, a non-profit organization dedicated to helping end poverty on the continent through health care, education, business and discipleship.

So if Kershaw strikes out 10 Giants today, there could be $1,000 going to the program.  (It's all democratic. A strikeout of Pablo Sandoval is worth the same as a strikeout of Buster Posey).  Go get them Clayton!

Don't Have $167,380 for a Super Bowl Ticket? Then go to the Souper Bowl Instead

It's mid-January, you're a big football nut, and you're dreaming about the possibility of attending Super Bowl XLV at Dallas Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on February 6.

You start to get discouraged when you realize that you'd have to fork over (gasp!) anywhere from $2,115 to $167,380 for a single ticket from an official ticket sales site!  You know, the one called Stub Your Toe or something like that.

Then you look for other alternatives and discover that  a popular wholesale/retail box store is offering packages of  $7,499.99 per person.  Granted, those include a few nights at a luxury hotel.  But still....

OOPS.  Forgot that it's going to cost money to get to Dallas...

Then you think Fuhgeddaboudit!  We'll just watch the Super Bowl on television in the comfort of our living rooms.

But as long as you're not spending  $2,115, $7,499.99 or $167,380 on a ticket to a football game, how about considering this other option?  

With all that extra money in your pockets, you can now attend the annual Souper Bowl to benefit Roadrunner Food Bank  on Saturday, January 29   11:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.  The event will be held at Roadrunner Food Bank  5840 Office Blvd. NE

For $40 in advance or $45 at the door - $10 for kids 12 and under, you can enjoy soups and desserts from more than 40 restaurants, live music, and exciting prize drawing packages.

And there is a bonus. You'll have the knowledge that you are helping Roadrunner Food Bank provide food for the hungry in our state.

Plus, you'll get a chance to use your culinary judging skills through the People's Choice competition. Attendees will have the opportunity to vote for their favorite soup, vegetarian soup, dessert and booth.

So how do you buy a ticket?  Simply call 505 349-8921 or  Purchase Tickets online

If you're on the fence, here's a bit of information that might get you over the goal line for six points.  It's a list of some of the SouperBowl 2011 participating restaurants:

• A KayTahRing Company

• Annapurna’s World Vegetarian Café

• Artichoke Café

• Bocadillo’s

• Chama River Brewing Company

• Church Street Café

• Claudia Rae’s Sandwich Shop

• CoolWater Fusion Restaurant

• Courtyard by Marriott Journal Center

• Cristobal’s Fine Dining

• Cupcakeology

• Cyprus Grille (Embassy Suites & Spa)

• Farina Pizzaria and Wine Bar

• Gecko’s Bar & Tapas

• Indulgence Café & Catering @JCC

• Johndhi’s BBQ

• Just Muffin Around

• Kelly’s Brew Pub

• Lovelace Westside Hospital

• McGrath’s Bar & Grill (Hyatt Regency)

• One Up Elevated Lounge

• Romano’s Macaroni Grill

• Santa Ana Café at the Tamaya

• Savory Fare

• Savoy Bar & Grill

• Seasons Rotisserie & Grill

• St. Clair Winery and Bistro

• Standard Diner

• Sweet and Savory

• Sysco Food Service of NM

• The Chocolate Cartel / Van Rixel Bros. Gelato

• The Grove Café and Market

• The Rancher’s Club of New Mexico

• Theobroma Chocolatier

• Torino’s at Home Trattoria Italiana & Café

• Trattoria Trombino’s Bistro Italiano

• Zinc Wine Bar & Bistro

A Fair Trade Three-Point Shot (or is it a Touchdown or a GOOOL?)

There are plenty of opportunities to acquire certain types of fair-trade gifts for the holidays, including arts and crafts, jewelry, coffee and chocolate and some types of clothing and footwear.  (Heck, I found a totally awesome and comprehensive listing of fair-trade merchants in the back of my fair trade calendar.  More on that later)

But what if you decided to follow the advice of health experts to promote an active lifestyle for the children and adults in your life.  So the wheels start turning and you think you might want to buy a baskeball or a soccer ball (fútbol) or a football for your loved one. 

Our tendency would be to go to the local box store or sports-equipment retailer to purchase a ball so we can shoot hoops or play a game of touch football or a soccer match with our buddies at the park.  Kickball anyone?

Still, the socially conscious part of you starts to think that fair trade, labor rights and the environment should also factor into your decision.

Can your purchases involve both sports equipment and fair trade?  For Seattle-based Fair Trade Sports, the answer is Absolutely!  

Fair Trade and Eco-Friendly
The company offers balls and apparel that is fair trade/sweatshop-free and produced in an environmentally friendly manner.  And if you're a coach and need a lot of balls, you can also purchase these items in bulk.

Here's a description from their Web site.

Fair Trade Sports, Inc is the first sports equipment company in the US to launch a full line of Eco-Certified Fair Trade sports balls, ensuring Fair Trade Certified wages and healthy working conditions for our adult workers. Be sure to also check out our sweatshop-free apparel.

We are committed to donate all profits after taxes to children’s charities, both domestic and international. Sound familiar? It’s a similar idea to the one behind the Newman’s Own brand you see in the grocery store.

And Scott James, a staff member at Fair Trade Sports, adds:

Our products are hand-stitched by adults in Pakistan, with the eco-certified rubber coming from India and Sri Lanka.

Check out this list of certifications.. Among these is Fair Trade USA (formerly TransFair USA) and IMAC (which certifies that products are not made with child labor). 
 

And you might be interested in knowing that the list of certifiers includes  the international soccer federation FIFA.  (Wouldn't it be great if products from the company were used in the 2014 World Cup in Brazil?)  

The company is so committed to fair trade that it offers the opportunity for dialogue via  its blog.

Reasonable Prices
Sometimes products that are fair trade are a little more expensive than similar goods found in retail stores.  This is understandable because we do want make sure that the producers get their just payment, and the company needs to make some profit to stay in business.

But you will be surprised by the products offered by Fair Trade Sports.  The items they offer are not expensive at all and are at least comparable to the costs of similar non-fair-trade items found in stores. Check out their retail and the wholesale price lists.

This seems like a great alternative during the Christmas shopping season!