Name and initiating chapter:
Andrea Price, Kappa Gamma—Texas A&M Corpus Christi
How do you volunteer for your local fighting hunger organization?
After leaving Texas A&M Corpus Christi, I graduated from Texas Woman’s University in 2013 with my bachelors degree in dietetics. I had no idea where I would fit in with the nutrition world. For the past two years, I have been at the San Antonio Food Bank, SAFB, a part of the Feeding America Network as well as Feeding Texas. I’m a Nutrition Education Coordinator in our Nutrition, Health and Wellness division. I help make up a team of professionals-nutritionists, registered dietitians, physical activity specialists, master gardeners and certified chefs-who guide our community to help stretch their dollar and encourage them to use their benefits to feed themselves and their family. At SAFB we have been able to utilize creative outlets in the community and bring healthy eating to others. From our Mobile Mercado, a mobile grocery store brought to food desert areas, to our on-site farm providing locally cultivated produce to the SAFB farmers market all across town. We get to create, cook, teach and provide healthy ways to fight hunger. The SAFB Nutrition, Health and Wellness Division’s mission is to fight hunger and feed hope through education. I am so lucky to be part of a community where we want to educate our community to fight hunger, prevent chronic illness and provide hope not just for a temporary fix but feeding for the future.
Why are you passionate about fighting hunger?
For the past month, SAFB has been in disaster relief mode and stepping further beyond what many people believe we do. We have deployed many trucks and fellow staff to our gulf coast community, my home of Corpus Christi, Houston and the surrounding areas. Our warehouse is full of donation and we have not had a single empty shelf in our 210,000 square foot warehouse. Donations have been coming in by the truckloads from our community and even across the nation with mail deliveries every single day.
I am passionate about fighting hunger because this is our home. I am proud to help fight hunger in a way I am able to use my knowledge and I have found my purpose. We all have a greater purpose where we are. Every single day I am reminded why I am here and this is one example.
Two weeks ago, I ran into a partner pantry from a local church. I’ve come to know them and have provided nutrition classes at their facility in the past year. They recently have been taking in Hurricane Harvey survivors and assisting them with their temporary transition. The pantry coordinator told me she had a family who was about to have a baby any day and they didn’t have a car seat to bring their child home.
In Texas you are required to provide a new car seat for a newborn or else the baby cannot go home. Immediately I took action and coordinated with the SAFB team. We located a donated brand new car seat in our warehouse. We contacted the family to inform them they would be able to bring their baby home.
This wouldn’t have been possible if we didn’t have our community and donations. The opportunity to aid people in their time of need, by being at the right place at the right time, only reinforced my belief that I am here for a reason. A reminder of my passion and purpose to be here fighting hunger and so much more!
Where can chapter sisters go to get involved / find more information in their communities?
You can go to feedingamerica.org to find your local food bank. You can also volunteer your time at church pantries, local food bank organizations/partners and even donate money, time and compassion to help the fight against hunger.
What are your thoughts on our new philanthropic focus?
I’m very excited Alpha Gamma Delta has joined the fight against hunger. From our sisters who are teachers, who may teach hungry children in their classrooms, to those who are in the home health care systems seeing seniors struggle to nourish their bodies with food. This is an opportunity for us to move and really make a difference in our local communities and help fight hunger. It’s extremely exciting for me to see people realize their local food bank cannot continue our fight without the community’s effort, time and support.
Why are you excited for Alpha Gams fighting hunger?
I’m excited for Alpha Gams to fight hunger because we can make a difference and impact the world. We can live our Purpose, respectfully helping our neighbors, our community and our home. Mostly we are women impacting the world and contributing to the world’s work in the community where we are placed. Fighting hunger, feeding hope and mostly finding our Purpose and living it as well!
We are always seeking stories and knowledge from our sisters related to our philanthropic cause to share on social media, in print materials and in future video. Do you have a unique experience you want to share? Or maybe an idea that sisters could learn from to fight hunger? Tell us your thoughts by emailing philanthropy@alphagammadelta.org.
