Giving Tuesday is tomorrow, but there is a big need taking place today. Knowing there are children and adults in my food allergy world (Celiac too) who are hungry today inspires me to do something about it. If you haven’t met them yet, the Food Equality Initiative is working to solve a critical problem that plagues our very own community. We have many wonderful choices to support this holiday season and I do hope you consider FEI this year.
Our community received the most amazing gift when those fabulous women over at Food Equality Inititive (FEI), created their organization to address the needs of people with food allergies and Celiac disease who suffer from food insecurity. Most food pantries rely on cow’s milk and peanut butter for nutritious offerings. These foods can be fatal for our community.
Please pause for a moment and walk-in some of our food allergy community member’s shoes.
Imagine, after a series unfortunate events, making ends meet and feeding your family is a serious challenge. Your husband has Celiac disease and one of your children is egg, dairy and nut allergic. You go to your local food pantry and almost everything offered is not safe. What do you do? How do you avoid malnutrition? How do you secure safe foods for your family? The answer is: you don’t.
“Our mission is to increase health and end hunger for individuals with Celiac disease and food allergies by providing safe, healthy food, nutrition education and advocacy.”
Thankfully, solutions for this critical daily problem are taking place…
Check out this short video to understand what FEI does!
I also want to note that often it is difficult to identify who in our community is having rough times. Our own neighbors can be hungry and we would never know it. That isn’t the kind of data you share when passing on the street.
Just a little goes a long way and just a lot goes a really, really long way! Every penny counts and I encourage you and your network of family and friends to consider feeding our own Food Allergy and Celiac community this winter. I can’t even count how many times I had tears in my eyes when I found a new safe product for my children to eat. I can’t image the tears shed by parents when they don’t have access to a safe food. But, I can imagine the elation felt by parents when they secure access to safe food.
I am donating. Join me?
Ways to donate and support our food allergy and Celiac friends :
#1 Direct donation to FEI
http://foodequalityinitiative.org/donate/
#2 Donate while you shop this holiday season:
- Platinum: $10,000
- Gold: $5,000
- Silver: $1,000
- Bronze:$250
- Copper:$100
#4 Tell your colleagues, friends and family about FEI
I hope you are able to donate or support the good work of taking care of our own food allergy and Celiac community!
Disclaimer: FEI did not ask or pay me to write about them. I truly hope to support a cause near and dear to my heart.
One of the hardest things I find about managing both life threatening food allergies and asthma is talking to others. I hate to be the one that might be perceived as demanding, pushing or for asking too much. What I now know, fourteen years later, is that honest, clear information presented with kindness works!..