A few weeks ago, I did a piece on Save the Children, and I had one aspect of that article wrong; I said that I’d watched their tv show when I was a little girl….I was wrong. I’d actually watched the Feed the Children program. I am truly sorry for that mistake. Now, though, I get to tell you about Feed the Children.:)

Feed the Children has been around since 1979, almost as long as I’ve been alive. They have helped families and children in 119 countries, including the U.S. In the U.S., they help provide needy families with food and other supplies and necessities. Based in Oklahoma City, they actually have 6 distribution centers in the U.S. Through the help of corporate as well as individual donors, they are able to acquire the supplies and transportation for those supplies. Usually, the supplies and food are delivered to partner agencies who then distribute them to homeless shelters, churches, soup kitchens, etc. However, an individual or a group can sponsor a distribution, and thus distribute the necessary items to specific families who need them.

Feed the Children also works internationally, especially where there is hunger, war-torn countries, or natural disaster. Right now, they are at work in Haiti, helping the now homeless victims of that terrible earthquake. They work in the poorest of communities, helping to provide not only food and basic necessities but education so that these families can learn how to support themselves and live independently. A key goal is to help families in need move past needing help and into becoming self-sufficient members of their community. In Kenya, Feed the Children has started a program to help care for abandoned babies, the ABC (or Abandoned Baby Center). The Abandoned Baby Center began as a response to a horrific problem: Every 10 minutes a baby is orphaned or abandoned in Kenya, their parents lost to epidemics, violence and poverty. Their work is so extensive that I will probably write about them at a later date.

There are several ways in which you can get involved in the work of Feed the Children. If you’ve ever watched their tv program, then you know that the work they do is real, it’s life-changing, and it’s a merciful, compassionate work. There are ways that you can help, both here in the U.S. and internationally, around the world.

• Donate any funds that you can to help keep Feed the Children’s trucks operational, so that necessary supplies and food can get to their destinations. Join the Americans Feeding Americans Caravan; just $5 helps feed one child in the U.S. for a whole week! $10 will feed 2 children. You can also set it up to donate by the month.
• Join Club 1000, and by donating just $10 a month, you will have delivered 1000 pounds of food in 14 months to children who need it across the U.S.
• Donate what you can to help provide educational supplies to children whose lives can be changed by the education that they receive.
• This is something you and your children can do together. You can build a shoe-box gift for a baby, toddler, or child. You can decorate the box together and then fill it with basic necessities, toys, whatever. There are guidelines to the kinds of things to include in the different age types of boxes, but this could be a very fun activity for your children. While doing this, you could have a meaningful discussion about why you are doing this. Once your box is ready, you ship it to Feed the Children, and they distribute it for you. I’m thinking this is an activity that Jacob and I might just do together. It’s so simple, yet such a great teaching tool.
• You can help donate to Feed the Children’s Disaster Relief programs, both here in the U.S. and around the world.
• Donate your vehicle to Feed the Children.
• You can donate to help feed children around the world, as well. Just $10 will help feed one international child for a month.
• Sponsor a child through Feed the Children. This is a more personal approach to helping fulfill a child’s needs, and it’s a long-term solution for one child.
• Shop at the FTC Store, where you can purchase music, books, collectibles, etc. Your purchase helps to feed a child!
• Go on a missions trip with Feed the Children, and see first-hand the work that they do; put your own hands to work helping others around the world. You can volunteer on a short-term missions trip, on which you’ll be working on some sort of construction project, while at the same time getting to know the people in that particular village or area through helping to provide meals for them, VBS activities, sports camps, etc. They have trips set for July for Nicaragua and September for Kenya or Malawi. You can also go on a medical mission! There are medical trips scheduled for Bolivia, Armenia, and Paraguay in the coming months. This would be a wonderful way to see first-hand the work that Feed the Children does and truly experience the life-changing power of their work.
• Start your own fund-raising project.

You can follow Feed the Children on Twitter and Facebook. The work that Feed the Children does is truly remarkable, especially as they have been at this work for over 30 years now. Don’t be afraid to step out, and shine your light! You can do a remarkable work as well!