PRINCETON: Hunger forum outlines problem locally, nationally

By Philip Sean Curran, Staff Writer
   Nonprofit groups that provide food to the hungry say they are providing critical services at a time when people are struggling to meet their housing costs and feed their families.
   ”We’re seeing a lot of children, a lot of seniors, a lot of people trying to put food on the table for their families when they’re working,” said Carolyn Biondi, executive director of Crisis Ministry, during a forum on hunger at the Jewish Center of Princeton on Thursday.
   Ms. Biondi, whose organization gives away 250 tons of food a year, sat on a panel with others who are helping feed the hungry around the state.
   During the forum, moderator Melissa Hager, a member of the synagogue and the co-chairwoman of its social action committee, cited a statistic from the U.S. Department of Agriculture that found that in one year, 96 billion pounds of food in the United States were thrown away by retailers and restaurants.
   One organization represented at last week’s forum is helping save food that otherwise would go to waste. New Jersey Farmers Against Hunger relies upon volunteers to go to farms and suppliers to collect unsold produce and deliver it to the needy.
   ”It’s perfectly good food,” said Kristina Guttadora, director of the organization that collects and recovers more than one million pounds of fresh produce annually.
   In Princeton, Ms. Biondi’s organization operates a food pantry at the Nassau Presbyterian Church Monday afternoon and recently started offering pantry service Thursday evenings to accommodate working families and adults who otherwise could not get to the pantry during the daytime hours. Crisis Ministry operates two other pantries in the state.
   Although located in an affluent community, one local church has found a steady demand for a free meal program.
   Larry Apperson, a member of Princeton United Methodist Church, said the church last June started offering a free meal once a week every Wednesday. Since its inception, the “Cornerstone Community Kitchen” has fed more than 1,500 people.
   ”All I know to do is to find a hungry person and feed him,” he said.
   Earlier, the Rev. George Fernes, representing Bread for the World, explained how the faith-based organization lobbies Congress and mobilizes churches to contact lawmakers in Washington about preserving “social-safety net programs.”
   ”At Bread for the World, this is a moral issue,” he told the audience. “We cannot solve America’s debt problem on the backs of the poor and the unemployed and the most vulnerable people.”