Red Nose Day is all about making it fun to come together to raise money and awareness for children who need our help most, in America and around the world. Red Nose Day’s mission is to end child poverty – one nose at a time. This year, Red Nose Day is Thursday, May 23.
In central Pennsylvania, one in six children struggle with hunger. Many come from households where one or both parents work, but are not making enough to make ends meet. The Central Pennsylvania Food Bank works to address the issue of child hunger through our programs like our School Pantries, which aim to provide food to the whole family. Many schools in our area are adopting this model, creating a choice pantry on their grounds for students and their families to visit and choose from healthy and nutritious foods like fruits, vegetables, dairy, meat and more.
Our Summer Feeding Programs bring meals to thousands of children who don’t have access to nutritious meals during the summer. Last summer, as one young girl arrived early to one of the summer feeding sites, she told our program manager she “had not eaten since yesterday.” Stories like these happen all over central PA and with the help of organizations like Red Nose Day USA, we are working to bring enough food to these children on a regular basis.
The Central Pennsylvania Food Bank directly benefits from Red Nose Day support. Last year, Red Nose Day USA donated $10,000 to our child hunger programs. To get involved in this year’s event, purchase a nose at Walgreens or head to RedNoseDay.org to learn more. One May 23, tune into the live Red Nose Day event at 8 p.m. on NBC.