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by Russ Russell, chief development officer, Forgotten Harvest

Laughter is not only the best medicine, it helped Forgotten Harvest raise enough money to provide nearly one million meals to help feed those in need in Southeast Michigan.

Comedian Sinbad, a Michigan native, returned home to star in Forgotten Harvest’s Comedy Night and raise funds to rescue and provide more fresh food to those in need.

It was a night of laughs at Andiamo in Warren on Saturday, May 21, but as we know, hunger is no laughing matter. Our drivers were back out on Monday, collecting food and making sure Metro Detroiters can feed themselves and their families.

The need is great. Many Metro Detroiters find themselves in a situation they never would have expected … unable to provide their own food. At Forgotten Harvest, we are seeing hunger spread to communities we never would have expected just a few years ago.

Right now, four million households in Michigan live at risk of hunger. In those households, 500,000 people, including nearly 200,000 children, live in poverty in Oakland, Macomb and Wayne counties. With these statistics, it is no surprise that the number of individual emergency food recipients receiving food each week in Southeast Michigan has grown by more than 78 percent in the past five years, from 56,700 in 2006 to 101,200 this year, according to Feeding America.

Just last year, Forgotten Harvest rescued 19.4 million pounds of food and is on track to rescue more than 24 million pounds of fresh, nutritious food this year. This food directly benefits those in need by making its way into shelters or food pantries for distribution, often within the same day. Despite rescuing record numbers of fresh food, it is still not enough.

Private and corporate donations and fundraisers help us grow our ability to provide fresh food to hungry people in southeast Michigan. For example, funds raised at this year’s Comedy Night will help provide more than one million meals to metro Detroit through ticket sales, sponsorships and donated auction items.

As our network of food providers and service organizations expand, so does our need for donations to rescue prepared and perishable food. Consider this: in Forgotten Harvest’s 2010 annual survey of metro Detroit emergency food providers 19 percent had to turn away people because they did not have enough food available for distribution; 84 percent saw a dramatic increase in the numbers of people seeking help, and 79 percent said more food could be distributed if it was available.

The good news is there are many, many ways to get involved and help ensure our neighbors have enough to eat – from donations to volunteering. Attending our events, like the recent Comedy Night or the upcoming Champagne Cruise during the Dream Cruise August 19, also helps put food on the table for those who otherwise may go hungry.

Forgotten Harvest was created in 1990 to address two problems – hunger and waste. Over the last 20 years, the organization has expanded and continues to fight hunger, even as both issues grow. Your support, event attendance and donations help us address these issues directly, and we will keep working to ensure nobody in metro Detroit goes hungry.

All proceeds from Comedy Night and other Forgotten Harvest fundraisers go directly to help feed people who are hungry or food insecure. As one of the most efficient mobile food rescue organizations in the U.S. every dollar donated allows Forgotten Harvest to provide five meals to those in need.

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Seven-year-old Alex stood in the long line waiting for food at the shelter in a Detroit suburb. While he stood there a worker started a conversation and asked him what he wished for in the coming year. His answer will break your heart. “I want a birthday cake with my name on it. Last year I got one that said ‘Happy Birthday, Michelle.’”

Alex isn’t the real name of the young boy who just wanted his own cake. I changed it because his family didn’t want it made public. Still, the story is true and it is just one of the many stories of hunger in the Detroit region.

The worker let Forgotten Harvest know about Alex’s heart’s desire and this year he got a cake that said “Happy Birthday, Alex.”

Forgotten Harvest rescues surplus food from grocery stores, farms, warehouses, distributors, dairies, restaurants, caterers and entertainment venues and delivers it to those in need. Sometimes it can also make a child’s simple wish come true and provide the food he needs to avoid going hungry.

That’s just one story.

A short time ago Keith and Elizabeth had solid careers and a good size house in an affluent Detroit suburb. They came back to Michigan after a four-year stint in the Army to raise their kids in a neighborhood and school district they loved. Then, all of a sudden, they both lost their jobs. Keith was able to land a job doing the midnight shift at a local gas station but it’s not enough to pay the bills and put food on the table. Forgotten Harvest helps by providing food.

After working hard all their lives Diana and her husband Bill found themselves struggling to pay their bills and buy food. She was a marketing manager and teacher at a local college and he owned his own business. They’d lived conservatively, educated their children and were ready for retirement. Then they lost just about all their retirement savings when the economy collapsed. The money needed to pay the medical bills for his chronic condition and support her mother who suffers from chronic dementia simply wasn’t there. Food from Forgotten Harvest helps fill the gap.

For each of these people hunger has a name and an address. That address isn’t always a rundown home in the inner city. Even if you live in an affluent suburb that person could be your neighbor or your neighbors. You could be one house number away from someone who is facing hunger.

The need is great. Forgotten Harvest delivers 19.4 million meals annually and 75,000 pounds of food daily.

Unfortunately and scarily, the need is growing and growing. Look at these statistics:

• 1 in 5 people in the tri-county area face hunger
• 1 in 4 will face hunger by 2013 in the tri-county area
• 1 in 2 children face hunger in the City of Detroit
• 21.6% of Michigan residents are underemployed
• 34.7% of Wayne Country children live in poverty
• Food recipients have grown by 78% in four years
• 41% of Forgotten Harvests’ clients make a choice between paying for food or bills

Hunger is, indeed, knocking at the door of many.

Something can be done. We waste 96 billion pounds of food every year in the US. Food accounts for 12% of all landfill waste. How does that track here? One billion pounds of food is wasted annually in metro Detroit. All that can be donated to Forgotten Harvest and distributed to people in need.

For full disclosure I should let you know I am on the board of directors for Forgotten Harvest. It does great work providing food for groups providing food in our region including Focus: HOPE, Gleaners, Capuchin Soup Kitchen, Mariners Inn and many others.

What can you do? Sure you can write a check, which I know is greatly appreciated, but you can volunteer as well. Forgotten Harvest is one place. You can go to their website and sign up. http://www.forgottenharvest.org/

There are many other groups that need you, too. Check out this list at Volunteer Match. http://tinyurl.com/2cqprfo

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Unfortunately, the Evander Holyfield’s Dec. 9 fight against Sherman Williams at Joe Louis Arena we mentioned in an earlier post has been canceled.

What a shame. A good portion of that money would have gone to Forgotten Harvest to provide meals to hungry Metro Detroiters. It was estimated the fight could generate enough money to provide up to two million meals.

It seems the main reason was lagging ticket sales and the inability to land a TV deal. Forgotten Harvest is, of course, disappointed but has only good things to say about Evander. If you want to read more about why the fight was cancelled go to see the Detroit Free Press article.

Meanwhile, if you want to hob knob with our local sports heroes remember the Second Annual Adopting Families for the Holidays charity event is December 9 at The Reserve in Birmingham (210 S. Eaton Street).

Done in partnership with Volunteers of America and the NBA/NFL Players of Detroit Athletes, this program matches families in need with individual and/or corporate sponsors who “adopt” them for the holidays. Donations received by sponsors provide new clothes, toys or a gift for each child and food for the whole family.

You can meet and greet Detroit Lions four- time All-Pro wide-receiver Herman Moore,  seven-time All Pro and Super Bowl champion Lomas Brown, current standouts Kevin Smith, Cliff Avril, Louis Delmas, Derrick Williams and other active Detroit Lions players. Detroit Red Wings players Justin Abdelkader, Darren Helm and rookie Jakub Kindl will also be there along with Detroit Pistons Bad Boy Rick Mahorn.

A $75 general admission ticket gets you into the event and to the food provided by Big Rock/The Reserve, music, mingling with your Detroit athletes and event gift bags.

A $150 VIP ticket lets your hob knob with the stars at a private reception before the doors open and includes a private autograph signing from 10 of the attending athletes.

Go to http://athletesadoptingfamilies.com for more details.

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I like many things about Detroit but one of the things I’ve always admired is how people in this region band together to help those in need. The needs are even greater this holiday season and many people and organizations are reaching out with open arms.
Many of Detroit’s sports stars and the five-time Heavyweight Champion of the World are among those opening their arms.

Boxing legend Evander Holyfield will donate funds from each ticket sold from his upcoming World Federation Heavyweight Title Fight against Sherman Williams to Forgotten Harvest. The money will raise funds to provide meals to hungry Metro Detroiters. It is estimated the fight could generate enough money to provide up to two million meals.

The Need Continues To Grow

What’s so scary is the need continues to grow. A recent Detroit News story said that by 2013, according to the United Way For Southeastern Michigan, one in four people in Metro Detroit will experience hunger. Their calculation is based on poverty and unemployment projections.

“The most important piece of Evander choosing to come to Detroit is his willingness to use his celebrity to bring attention to our hunger crisis and give selflessly to the people of our region,” said Russ Russell, Forgotten Harvest chief development officer. “He saw our need and reacted.”

How You Can Help Fight Back Against Hunger

The fight is December 9 at “The Joe.” Tickets are on sale now ($33, $53, $78 and $253) and may be purchased at OlympiaEntertainment.com, the Fox Theatre and Joe Louis Arena box offices, Hockeytown Authentics in Troy (without service charge), at all Ticketmaster locations and Ticketmaster.com. To charge tickets by phone, call (800) 745-3000. For additional information, call (313) 471-6611.

If you can’t make the fight and chose to watch it on TV, you can donate via text during the fight by texting the word HARVEST to the number 50555. Of course, you can also go directly to the Forgotten Harvest’s website at www.forgottenharvest.org to donate.

Dodge has also partnered with Holyfield and Forgotten Harvest and serves as the exclusive automotive sponsor for the event.

Meet Your Sports Heroes And Beat Hunger

Also on December 9 is the Second Annual Adopting Families for the Holidays charity event. Done in partnership with Volunteers of America and the NBA/NFL Players of Detroit Athletes, this program matches families in need with individual and/or corporate sponsors who “adopt” them for the holidays. Donations received by sponsors provide new clothes, toys or a gift for each child and food for the whole family.

Athletes scheduled to attend include Detroit Lions four- time All-Pro wide-receiver Herman Moore,  seven-time All Pro and Super Bowl champion Lomas Brown, current standouts Kevin Smith, Cliff Avril, Louis Delmas, Derrick Williams and other active Detroit Lions players. Detroit Red Wings players Justin Abdelkader, Darren Helm and rookie Jakub Kindl will also be there along with Detroit Pistons Bad Boy Rick Mahorn.

This year, with the support of companies such as Stonebridge Financial Partners LLC., HOUR DETROIT Magazine, Fathead, Quicken Loans, Henry Ford Health Systems, The Diamond Vault of Troy, DC Sports and more, this will be the largest holiday fundraiser yet for Volunteers of America Michigan.

A $75 general admission ticket gets you into the event and the food is to be provided by Big Rock/The Reserve. Also, there will be music and mingling with your Detroit athletes and event gift bags as well.

The $150 VIP ticket lets your hob knob with the stars at a private reception before the doors open and includes a private autograph signing from 10 of the attending athletes.

The event is at The Reserve in Birmingham (210 S. Eaton Street). It will be hosted by Terry Foster, voice of The Ticket at 97.1 on your radio.

Go to http://athletesadoptingfamilies.com for more details. December 9 is going to be a great day for doing good things.

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Sometimes, large problems feel so overwhelming that one might go, “Where do I start?”

Well here’s a quick place for you to help and ALSO get a dollar off of a large iced drink. Forgotten Harvest and Gleaners Community Food Bank of Southeastern Michigan are working together at 14 different Metro Detroit Caribou locations (in Royal Oak, Novi, Independence Township, Troy, Shelby Township, Plymouth, Commerce, Madison Heights, Rochester and Grosse Pointe) through Friday, July 23rd. All you need to do is drop off a non-perishable food donation or make a contribution and you get your discount!

“With these Caribou Coffee rallies, we hope to continue our goal of raising awareness of the hunger crisis that is affecting our entire community and providing meals to hungry children,” said Susan Goodell, president and CEO of Forgotten Harvest.

This is part of a national event working together with ConAgra Foods,  and as part of that national effort if you use Twitter and make a donation, don’t forget to check in with the #fightchildhunger hashtag.

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Last month Detroit Unspun broke the news about a special benefit comedy event for food rescue organization Forgotten Harvest, featuring metro Detroit native Dave Coulier and local favorite Ken Brown of the Mitch Albom Show on WJR 760 AM.

Time is inching closer to the show, to be held  at 7 p.m. on May 15th at the Detroit Music Hall, and Coulier was kind enough to record a video invitation to the event himself!

Find out more information and purchase tickets at the Forgotten Harvest website.

Hope to see you there!

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Comedian Dave Coulier, a Michigan native, will be returning back home to the Detroit area for a very special evening of comedy for a cause at the Detroit Music Hall on May 15th at 7 p.m. Joining Coulier will be another famous local favorite, Kenny Brown of the Mitch Album Show on WJR 760 AM. All proceeds will benefit Forgotten Harvest, metro Detroit’s only mobile food rescue organization.

Forgotten Harvest is aiming to rescue 19 million pounds of food this year by collecting surplus prepared and perishable food from a variety of sources such as grocery stores, restaurants, caterers, dairies, farmers, wholesale food distributors, and other Health Department-approved sources.

This donated food—that would otherwise go to waste—is delivered free of charge to emergency food providers in the metro Detroit area. The individuals and families served are as diverse as the community’s residents – young and old, from all races and faiths.

Tickets start at $25 and are now on sale through Ticketmaster and the Detroit Music Hall box office. Contact Cindy Corey at 248.967.1500 extension 115 for more information and group sales. All proceeds go to help Forgotten Harvest rescue a record 19 million pounds of fresh food for our local hungry in Metro Detroit!

Recently Bruce Nyberg, Susan Goodell, and Russ Russell of Forgotten Harvest were featured on the Paul W. Smith show on WJR, it can be heard on the WJR website.

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