9 Ways to Help End Hunger

 Solving the world's problems is never "simple." However, there are some simple steps you can take to help out. Today, Crystal from My Ramblings and I want to share with you 9 simple things we came up with that you can do to help end hunger.

1. Donate food

This is the most obvious way to help. Crystal wants to remind you to check with your local food bank to see if there are certain items that they need. You can find your local food bank by visiting www.feedingamerica.org

2. Donate money to a reputable organization.
Lee and I have donated to Children's Hunger Fund in the past. Crystal says that you can use Feeding America to find where you can donate on a local level. If you have a passion for children, there's also No Kid Hungry which focuses specifically on ending child hunger.
 

3. Sponsor a child.

When you sponsor a child, you help ensure that they have their basic necessities, including food. There are many organizations that you can sponsor a child through. Lee and I sponsor through Compassion. Compassion is a Christian organization, but I also found Save the Children as another way to sponsor children.

4. Use your voice on social media to raise awareness.

One of the major advantages to social media is being able to share causes that you're passionate about with others. Between blogs, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and whatever else is out there, we can reach a lot of people. Consider using that reach to help others rather than for only superficial things. Crystal wants to let you know that if you're big on social media, you can check with your local food bank to see if they have a Social Media Ambassador's program-that's what she does! She says that it has really taught her a lot and given her access to a lot of resources. 

5. Petition the government.

If you feel that strongly about something, there are a lot of petitions out there to tell the government that ending hunger should be a priority. You can also always contact your representatives on both your state level and the federal level. Doing this is only a Google search away. 

6. Host a canned food drive. 

Where I grew up, there was a huge football rivalry. So, this made a perfect theme for a canned food drive. People would bring canned food in and put it in the box for their team. Everyone wanted to see their team bring in the most cans. Be creative and come up with a way to make it fun and competitive. Everyone likes a little competition. My school hosts a canned food drive where the class that brings in the most cans wins a prize.  Crystal wants you to know that there are also National Food Drives that you can help with. On May 11 of this year, you can participate in National Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive, which is sponsored by the National Association of Letter Carriers. You only have to leave food for your Postal Worker to pick up as their delivering the mail. For more information, visit Stamp Out Hunger's Facebook page.

7. Coupon

Many of you may coupon already. If you do, use some of those buy one, get one deals or maybe items that you get for very cheap or free as items that you can donate. To see how I've done this before, you can read this post. 

8. Volunteer 

Give of your time. It's an easy way to get involved. Crystal and I both agree that it's a rewarding experience. If you want to know more about volunteering at a food bank, you can read this post by Crystal. 

9. Grocery Shop
Simple enough. Many of the items you already buy can help end hunger. Crystal reminded me that there's currently a campaign going on called Child Hunger Ends Here. It is sponsored by ConAgra Foods and it benefits Feeding America. All you have to do is purchase their products (which you probably already do). These products have a red push pin (picture) on them and a code. After you go shopping, you simply go to their website and enter the code. Every code entered equals one meal for a child in need.

Do you have any tips on helping end hunger?

Have you met Crystal yet? She blogs at My Ramblings.This week, she wrote some awesome posts including explaining what that blue line on black means that I see all the time on people's cars and how she pulled off an adorable last minute baby shower. My personal favorite this week was this heartbreaking story of a life lost too soon. I only hope that by sharing this story, other lives can be saved.