Alabama Possible » food stamps

Sowing the Seeds of a Bountiful Harvest

Kristina Scott — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 21:11:18 +0000

Amid news that nearly one-third of Alabamians received food stamps during May, we wanted to highlight some of the work our Higher Education Members are doing to increase food security in their communities.

We recently visited with Dennis and Dean Itson of Faulkner University, who showed us their community garden.

When asked what the garden’s mission is, Director of Service-Learning Dennis Itson replied, “Our mission is to feed the elderly and those in need.”

Nearly 100 senior citizens live in apartments adjacent to the university. In addition to feeding them, the garden serves as a form of therapy and spiritual renewal too.

The garden also serves the educational needs of nearby elementary schools and college science classes, who go to the garden to learn about science and conduct experiments

Dennis stresses the vital role that volunteers have played in the success of the garden. “People have volunteered their time, seeds, plants, money, tractors, and even their land to make this garden a reality and success,” states Dennis. Volunteers include students, faculty and staff, and even local residents, schools, churches, and community groups.

The garden sits upon a 70 x 35 foot plot. It includes corn, cucumbers, eggplants, green beans, okra, onions, peppers, rosemary, squash, watermelons, and others vegetables, and has helped feed nearly eighty residents.

Dennis holds big plans for the garden’s future. He plans to increase its size by adding a second plot of land. Faulkner will also offer a gardening class in the fall.

All in all, our trip to the garden proved a great success. Who would have known that such a simple idea would spark such a successful response? In addition to learning about the garden and its achievements, Dennis also taught us a thing or two about gardening. Dennis has a big heart, and he loves his community. We thank him for hosting us and for sharing with us the garden.

To learn more about the garden, check out these news reports: WFSA 12 News Montgomery and the Montgomery Advertiser.

To learn more about community gardens, check out these resources.

To learn more about poverty and food insecurity in Alabama, check out this resource.

2009 county-level poverty estimates released

Robyn Hyden — Fri, 10 Dec 2010 14:47:56 +0000

According to the Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates (SAIPE) data today released by the US Census Bureau, poverty increased in counties across the state. Selected 2009 county-level estimates are as follows:

Baldwin County – 13.3 percent, up from 9.9 percent in 2008

Blount County – 14.6 percent, up from 13.1 percent in 2008

Calhoun County – 19 percent, up from 17.6 percent in 2008

Cherokee County – 18.4 percent, up from 17.7 percent in 2008

Colbert County – 16 percent, up from 12.7 percent in 2008

Dale County – 16.2 percent, up from 15 percent in 2008

DeKalb County – 21.7 percent, up from 18.7 percent in 2008

Etowah County – 17.2 percent, up from 16.7 percent in 2008

Franklin County – 21.8 percent, up from 19.5 percent in 2008

Hale County – 26.6 percent, up from 26 percent in 2008

Houston County – 17.7 percent, up from 15.1 percent in 2008

Jefferson County – 16.5 percent, up from 13.8 percent in 2008

Lawrence County – 16.2 percent, up from 15 percent in 2008

Limestone County – 13.5 percent, up from 12.1 percent in 2008

Madison County – 10.3 percent, down from 11.3 percent in 2008

Mobile County – 18.7 percent, up from 18.6 percent in 2008

Morgan County – 15.9 percent, up from 12.5 percent in 2008

Pickens County – 28 percent, up from 25.6 percent in 2008

Shelby County – 6.9 percent, up from 5.8 percent in 2008

St. Clair County –13.8 percent, up from 12.6 percent in 2008

Tuscaloosa County – 19.9 percent, up from 17.3 percent in 2008

Walker County – 16 percent, down from 17.4 percent in 2008

The 2009 poverty line is just $22,050 per year for a family of four.

“We knew that the recession hit Alabama hard and deep. This new data helps us paint a picture of where poverty has increased the most, and where the needs are the greatest,” said Kristina Scott, executive director of the Alabama Poverty Project.

Alabama is the ninth poorest state in the country, with a statewide poverty rate of 16.6 percent, according to Census Bureau estimates.

It is also the hungriest state in the nation, with 6.8 percent of Alabama households experiencing hunger over the past three years because they couldn’t afford enough food, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).

As of September 2010, 849,785, or approximately 18 percent, of Alabamians participate in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (food stamps), according to the Food Research and Action Center and the USDA.

“Alabamians are hurting this holiday season. In order to eliminate poverty and hunger, we need to deepen our commitment by both helping meet short-term needs and supporting long-term policy solutions to grow and protect the middle class,” said Scott.

View the detailed county-level data.

Huntsville Hunger Workshop report

T.C. McLemore — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 19:03:45 +0000

Around 60 people came out to The Village Church in Huntsville Tuesday for our fourth and final Hunger and Food Security Workshop.

Rich Hartz from the North Alabama Food Bank started off the day with the presentation of some recent data on hunger and food bank usage in North Alabama.

Karen Wynne from the Alabama Sustainable Agriculture Network (ASAN) joined our community garden discussion and reported on the newly formed Food Policy Council of Huntsville.

Thanks to The Village Church and their pastor Alex Shipman for being helpful and engaged and letting us use their beautiful space. Starbucks donated food and coffee, which was greatly appreciated. Thanks also to our amazing speakers and all the participants, who shared some touching stories and valuable insights.

What steps can you take to fight hunger in Huntsville and beyond?

Visit our event page to view notes from our group discussion about plans going forward
Connect with the Food Policy Council of North Alabama by emailing Lee McBride – their next meeting is September 8
Plan to attend the 2010 Alabama Food Summit in Birmingham November 12
September is Hunger Action month. Visit hungeractionmonth.org to learn how you can support your local food bank or food pantry.
Educate yourself about hunger and food security in Alabama by viewing our web resources

Posted by T.C. McLemore

Could you survive on just food stamps?

Kristina Scott — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 23:19:48 +0000

According this article in Saturday’s New York Times, 18 percent of food stamp recipients’ – or 1 in 50 Americans – now live in a household with a reported income that consists of nothing but a food-stamp card.

Read the full report – including the personal stories of some of these Americans – here.

It reminds me how fortunate and blessed I am.

Posted by: Kristina Scott

72 percent of Perry County kids are on food stamps.

Kristina Scott — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 12:46:28 +0000

According to this story from the New York Times.

Posted by Kristina Scott

Half of all kids on food stamps at some point during their childhood

Kristina Scott — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 20:23:42 +0000

I have to admit that I was surprised when I read this editorial in the Florence Times Daily today that half of all American children receive food stamps assistance sometime during their lifetime. Half. Wow.

Here’s the full text of the editorial and a link to the underlying study in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine:

Kids in poverty

A new report shows about half of all U.S. children will be on food stamps at some point during childhood, whether it be for a month, six months or years.

Food stamps are among the welfare programs that many middle class and wealthy Americans like to bash.

But they do so at their own risk. If the person to whom they are complaining is 40 or younger, there’s about a 50 percent chance he or she survived on food stamps at one point in life.

About 49 percent of all U.S. children are on food stamps at some point during childhood, according to a study released in the November issue of Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine. That includes 37 percent of white children and 90 percent of black children.

“Your neighbor may be using some of these programs but it’s not the kind of thing people want to talk about,” said Mark Rank, lead author of the study and a sociologist at Washington University in St. Louis.

Food stamps are available for low-income people and families, covering most foods, but not prepared hot foods or alcohol. The income for a family of four cannot exceed about $22,000 to receive this help.

Yes, there are abuses, but the average monthly benefit is $222 so no one is getting rich off food stamps. And while many children benefit from the program, children are not among the abusers of food stamps.

The federal program is especially important in a poor state such as Alabama, where many adults struggle to feed their families. And during the current recession, with high employment rates, food stamps are even more critical.

So if you enjoy bashing welfare programs, be careful before you criticize this one in front of other people.

This is one of those cases in which “them” is “us.”

Posted by Kristina Scott