What is Hunger Action Month?
September is Hunger Action Month, a time for all of us to stand up and fight back against food insecurity in the United States. First established by Feeding America in...
Read More
Browse by topic
Subscribe to our blog
-
Food Assistance |
ReadWhat is Hunger Action Month?
September is Hunger Action Month, a time for all of us to stand up and fight back against food insecurity in the United States. First established by Feeding America in...
September is Hunger Action Month, a time for all of us to stand up and fight back against food insecurity in the United States. First established by Feeding America in 2008, this month is focused not only on raising awareness about the persistent and growing hunger crisis in our country, but on mobilizing that awareness into action. To learn more about the significance of Hunger Action Month to the work we do here at Food Bank, I spoke with Food Bank For New York City President & CEO Leslie Gordon. She shared invaluable insights into the importance of the month and offered advice for how to stay engaged in the fight against hunger all year long. Take a peek at our conversation below! Why is Hunger Action Month such a great time to get involved with the work we do here at Food Bank? Hunger Action Month is all about raising awareness about food insecurity in the United States, so it’s a great time to engage with organizations like ours that make it our mission to fight hunger all year long. At Food Bank, we provide a ton of different ways to get involved throughout the month, from volunteer opportunities on the ground to options for giving directly to the programs that nourish our neighbors all across the city. Click here to check out some of these easy actions! It’s often said that food alone can’t end hunger. How does Food Bank address the different issues that can impact someone’s ability to access healthy food? At Food Bank, we take the long approach to fighting hunger. That’s why we not only provide reliable access to food today through our member network of over 800 soup kitchens and food pantries across the five boroughs, but also equip our clients with the tools they need to achieve stability into tomorrow and beyond. By pairing food assistance with things like free tax filing prep and financial empowerment workshops, we’re able to address both the surface issue of hunger and its root. What does Food Bank’s Hunger Action Month theme “One Mission. Five Boroughs. Feed All” mean to you? How do we make sure we’re serving as many New Yorkers as we can? For me, this slogan means that we won’t rest until food insecurity is wiped out from every corner of our city. That’s why we partner with and power over 800 community-based organizations across the five boroughs that are able to meet the unique hunger needs of their neighbors. Our Mobile Pantry Program also allows us to take food and other resources directly into the communities that need us most. What’s the impact that a gift or donation can make on our work? Our work wouldn’t be possible without our amazing community of supporters. Their generosity is what enables us to reach the 1.6 million New Yorkers currently facing food insecurity. Each gift allows us to get more food to more people and innovate new ways to nourish, dignify, and empower our neighbors. If it takes a village to fight hunger, our supporters are that village, inspiring us to do more every day. Donate here. How can people continue to fight food insecurity beyond Hunger Action Month? I think the biggest thing to remember is that we’re all one meal, one paycheck, one moment away from experiencing hunger ourselves. Food insecurity isn’t an abstract concept – it exists everywhere, and could very well affect you or someone you love. That’s why the fight is so vital and why it must be fought all year long. So, give generously to hunger relief organizations that inspire you. Offer your time and services to a local food pantry. Follow organizations like ours on social media and share the content we create. If we all engaged with this issue beyond Hunger Action Month, just imagine the things we could do. To find your place in our mission this Hunger Action Month, click here. -
Financial Empowerment |
Read5 Tax Tips for Low-Income Filers
Food Bank For New York City’s Tax Assistance Program provides low-income New Yorkers with free tax preparation services, helping them get the refunds and credits to...
Food Bank For New York City’s Tax Assistance Program provides low-income New Yorkers with free tax preparation services, helping them get the refunds and credits to which they are entitled. If you are a low-income filer, you might be entitled to various tax credits and deductions for which other taxpayers don't qualify. With the tax deadline now set for May 17, Food Bank offers some tips for New Yorkers who have yet to file their taxes this year. Filing Your Taxes Can Unlock a TON of Benefits Food Bank’s free tax services can improve low-income families’ finances. Filers can avoid retail tax preparation fees, and save an additional $450. Plus, filing with Food Bank can connect eligible tax clients to SNAP, financial coaching, banking services, and other benefits. You can use Food Bank’s Virtual Tax Service to file your taxes safely and easily from home using your smart phone, tablet or computer. Don’t Underestimate the Earned Income Tax Credit The Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) is one of the most effective anti-poverty tools for working-age households. Not only can it provide low-income workers and families with a much-needed tax break, but it can also bring them additional income. In 2018, the EITC and child tax credit lifted 8.9 million people out of poverty. If you file your taxes with Food Bank, your family could get an EITC worth up to $8,991. You May Qualify for Special Deductions You might also be entitled to various credits and deductions for which other taxpayers do not qualify, including child tax credits, tax credits for the elderly or disabled, and credits and deductions for making IRA and retirement plan contributions. Be sure to ask your tax preparer if you qualify. Your Tax Refund Will Likely Be More Than Your Stimulus If you received any stimulus checks in 2020, the IRS has stated that it is not taxable, which means it will not reduce your refund or increase the amount you owe when you file your 2020 federal income tax return. If you did NOT receive your stimulus checks in 2020, the best way to receive them is by filing your taxes. The average tax refund in 2020 was $1,900, compared to the COVID Response Stimulus Check (Economic Impact Payment (EIP) of $1,200, which means more money in your pockets for bills, food, and other needs. The American Rescue Plan Has Unlocked New Tax Breaks If you collected unemployment insurance benefits last year, you may qualify for a new tax break from the American Rescue Plan Act. Under the newly signed COVID relief bill, the IRS will waive the federal tax on up to $10,200 of unemployment benefits that an individual received in 2020. Additionally, the American Rescue Plan Act expanded the Child Tax Credit and Child & Dependent Care Tax Credit by making them both "fully refundable," which means even families earning too little to owe taxes can still receive the full credit ($3,600 for children under age 6 and $3,000 for children ages 6-17). Who qualifies: Single heads of household up to an adjusted gross income of $112,500 or joint filers up to an adjusted gross income of $150,000 qualify for the full benefit. For nearly 20 years, Food Bank has prepared more than 775,000 tax returns, and secured $1.3 billion in tax refunds for low-income New Yorkers. Food Bank’s Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program is one of the nation’s leading Tax Time Allies, a financial empowerment campaign founded by Intuit Financial Freedom Foundation (IFFF) which works with nonprofits across the country to empower taxpayers to take control of their finances and save more of their hard-earned money. To learn more, visit foodbanknyc.org/taxhelp! -
Food Assistance |
ReadWelcome to The Core!
Welcome to The Core, Food Bank For New York City’s new blog! We created this space to dive a little deeper into the subjects, stories, and stakeholders that power our...
Welcome to The Core, Food Bank For New York City’s new blog! We created this space to dive a little deeper into the subjects, stories, and stakeholders that power our mission. You may be familiar with Food Bank as the city's largest hunger relief organization, but our work actually spans a great deal more. So, The Core will give you insight into how we operate, who we serve, and what kinds of impact we make across all five boroughs of the greatest city in the world. But don’t worry, we won’t just be talking about New York! Anyone and everyone with a hunger for food justice, equity, and advocacy will find a home here where they can learn new ideas and read some fantastic stories. To that end, we’ll have content covering a variety of subjects, including: Activism, Nutrition + Health, Financial Empowerment, and Stories from the Field. So, let’s meet these categories and figure out how we use them here at Food Bank and what they’ll mean to you. Activism Activism is at the heart of everything we do. To fight hunger is to actively fight poverty, which includes standing up for and supporting low-income New Yorkers and their families. This means not only getting them the resources they need to survive and thrive, but also advocating for policies that serve their best interests. So, we’ll be tagging stories that deal with both activism and advocacy in the hunger space. We’ll share information about the fights we’re taking on and the ones waging at the local, state, and federal levels. To get involved with our own efforts, join Food Bank’s action team. Nutrition + Health Another important facet of our work is nutrition, specifically as it relates to education, health and equity. Our nutrition program focuses on teaching folks how to establish and maintain healthy habits on a limited budget, which helps to fight hunger while addressing some of poverty’s key contributing factors – in both the short and long term. So, we’ll be giving you your fill of yummy recipes, nutrition tips, and resources exploring the relationships between food, health, culture, and poverty. Food Assistance In this category, we’ll explore not only the topic of food assistance, but also SNAP benefits and enrollment as well as insights into the various factors that impact emergency food providers across the city. We want to make it as easy as possible for people to find food whenever they need it. To do that, we’ve created an array of tools New Yorkers can use to source free meals and connect with local pantries and soup kitchens for immediate food assistance. If you’re looking for food assistance now, check out our virtual food locator. Financial Empowerment Financial empowerment refers to the sense of security that comes from being in control of one’s finances. Have you ever been down to your last 20 bucks, with more month to go before your next check? Not a great feeling. Well, for many low-income New Yorkers, living in a city as expensive as ours makes that feeling a constant companion. To help the New Yorkers we serve feel more financially empowered, we offer an array of financial resources, from free tax assistance for the working poor to SNAP enrollment and community-based financial coaching. We designed these tools because the truth is, fighting hunger takes more than food. If there’s a change in tax policy that could impact New Yorkers or if we’re leading a free (virtual) workshop on financial management, we’ll make sure to cover it here. We’ll also provide tips anyone can use to become a better budgeter! Research The hunger space is a dynamic one, so it’s important to stay on top of all the latest research to ensure that our messaging is current to our cause and relevant to our communities. Food Bank’s proprietary research has long been industry-leading, but we also rely on reports from other prominent institutions to inform the work we do. To keep you up-to-date, we’ll be sharing all of our latest research findings on this blog. Stories from the Field Here, we’ll feature photographs, interviews, and videos from the field. We work with over 1,000 food pantries, soup kitchens, and schools across the city, and our partners on the ground are the ones who keep this whole operation running. And trust us – they've got plenty of stories to tell! We’ll also share stories from those who experience hunger firsthand so that you can better understand what food insecurity actually looks like. To make sure you never miss a single anecdote, hit subscribe to get fresh updates on The Core as soon as they arrive.