Hunger Action Month 2015: A Record-Setting Year

Hunger Action Month happens every September, and this year’s was one of our best yet! We set multiple records, held some amazing events, and best of all, connected even more with our Western North Carolina community.

Hunger Action Day, which was September 3, was the day we asked the community to wear orange, the color of hunger awareness, as a show of support for ending hunger across America. We had a great response, and our staff and volunteers were especially supportive!

Leanne Brown

We were thrilled to host author Leanne Brown in Asheville and Sylva on September 4 as part of her national book tour for her best-selling cookbook, Good and Cheap: Eating Well on $4 a Day. We scheduled a whirlwind day for this young, energetic food enthusiast! We started with a visit to Pisgah View Apartments, where Leanne demonstrated a few recipes from her book, courtesy of the YMCA of Asheville’s Healthy Living Mobile Kitchen! Then we whisked her away to City Lights Bookstore in Sylva for another demo and book signing. Right after the booksigning, Leanne heard from her publicist that she officially made the NY Times Best Seller list! GO LEANNE! Because she is just this kind of person, you can download a free pdf of Leanne’s book on her website. Plus, we were able to make Leanne’s cookbooks available to our partner pantries, thanks to a generous donation from UnitedHealthcare! It takes a village to make change, and our village is amazing.

14th Annual Empty Bowls

Empty Bowls is one of our favorite events: handmade pottery from incredibly talented local potters and artists, food from Asheville’s nationally acclaimed local restaurant scene, great music, and of course, you! We sold out both lunch and dinner events again this year, ate delicious food, and fully enjoyed the day as WNC came out to help us end hunger. This was our most successful Empty Bowls fundraiser…EVER! We couldn’t have done it without our outstanding sponsors and ticket holders. Visit our Empty Bowls 2015 event page to see our sponsors, and let tell them THANK YOU for supporting our mission to end hunger in Western North Carolina!

Ingle’s Day at the Mountain State Fair

Once we started breaking records, we just couldn’t stop! All of WNC came out in force for Ingle’s Day at the Mountain State Fair on September 16, and we collected a RECORD-BREAKING 21,308 lbs of Laura Lynn canned food! This is astounding, and we are so grateful to everyone that participated!

Highland Brewing Wrap Party

After a month of fantastic events dedicated to ending hunger, we celebrated with a few delicious local brews at Highland Brewing on September 30. Highland graciously hosted MANNA as the beneficiary for their Community Night, and donated $1 for every beer sold! We had great attendance, delicious food courtesy of Booties Meat Market, and enjoyed an evening of getting to know our community a bit better, all while raising money to feed WNC!

Thank you so much to our vibrant, supportive community that supports MANNA FoodBank’s mission to end hunger in Western North Carolina. Because of your continued and dedicated support, we feel like every month is Hunger Action Month! We hope you will join us again next September when we once again engage our community in the ongoing work of feeding WNC families!