Stories of Hope and Courage

One in eight Americans are struggling with the reality of hunger and food insecurity. Here are some of their stories. Do you have a story to tell? Click here to share your story.  

The Tuna Turkey Without even enough money for food, Ilka was determined that her children would have a Thanksgiving dinner one way or another, and that together they would celebrate and be thankful for what blessings remained in their lives. After visiting an emergency food pantry that receives food from Second Harvest Food Bank, the family was provided with some basic staple food items--including several cans of tuna.

But I'm Blessed 25-year old Cedric bags groceries at a local grocery store in Orlando. Having suffered a brain injury at age 5, he has only partial use of one arm, and drags a foot as he walks. One day, as he wheeled groceries to the car for one of our food bank's staff, Cedric talked about how much he enjoyed his job.

A Child More Excited About Food Than Toys Mary and her five-year old daughter Jessica rent a small apartment in a duplex in Orlando. A single mother, Mary works as many shifts as she can get at her food service job in order to make ends meet. Still, the ends often don't meet. Just before Christmas, Mary contacted Second Harvest Food Bank to learn whether there were any emergency food pantry programs in her area.

Second Harvest Allows JFS to Keep their Pantry Doors Open Giovana is a diabetic with medical needs, but was let go from her job last year and lost her medical coverage. Her husband, Sargon, is employed as head of the maintenance department for an apartment complex, but his medical insurance does not cover the entire family. Thankfully, their two sons are eligible for Medicaid which alleviates some worry. However, Giovana's costs for diabetic medication are high and her family is often left choosing between groceries or medicine.

Help for People Like Us Just eighteen months ago, Wendy and her husband Trevor both worked at good jobs and lived a comfortable life in an upper-middle class neighborhood. Their combined income even managed to provide enough for private school for their three children, savings, and other nice things. When Trevor was diagnosed with a disabling health problem, however, the family income dropped to just one job plus a small disability income. Feeling the financial pinch, Wendy jumped at another job opportunity that paid more money. Unfortunately, the new job vanished after only 90 days when the new company was forced to make cutbacks.