Food Pantries

Floor Speech

FOOD PANTRIES -- (Senate - December 18, 2007)

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Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I would like to ask through the Chair--I want to first thank the Senator from Ohio for his leadership on this issue. He is new to the Senate but not new to this issue.

Times have changed in America, and not for the better when it comes to food pantries. People need help. I just this Sunday visited the Greater Chicago Food Depository and learned that there is an 11-percent increase over last year in the number of people coming into food pantries served in the greater Chicagoland area, and most of them have jobs. These are people who, when they fill up the gas tank and need another $20 to fill the tank, realize they are not going to have enough money to buy food for their children that they planned on buying, and they make a stop at the food pantry.

I would like to ask the Senator from Ohio whether he is familiar with Second Harvest, which is a major national organization that involves itself in the processing of contributions from private industry and from the Federal Government into food pantries, and whether he has any experience in dealing with the Second Harvest food pantries in his area or other food pantries.

The last point I would like to make is that we were told on Sunday that people who care, particularly during this holiday season, should go to secondharvest.org, but find their local pantry, find where they can drop off food, volunteer for an hour, make a donation, do something that will make you feel good about yourself this holiday season.

But I would like to ask the Senator from Ohio whether he has been contacted by these agencies dealing with Second Harvest.

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