Stephany Nellessen
La Puente Volunteer
From April 22 to April 28, La Puente is partnering with the community and with other service agencies in the San Luis Valley to coordinate Hunger Education Week. For more information on how we work to combat hunger in the SLV or how you can get involved, please call La Puente’s office of Community Education at 587-3499.
As a way to raise both awareness of hunger issues and food insecurity, both worldwide and throughout the San Luis Valley, as well raise funds for organizations that fight hunger on a daily basis, Hunger Education Week will be the final week of April and full of events to educate and inform. The Food Bank Network of the San Luis Valley, a program of La Puente Home, Inc., will partner up with the Feinstein Foundation for their $1 Million Giveaway in order to make any donations made in April go further.
The Feinstein Challenge is a fifteen year long event where philanthropist, Alan Shawn Feinstein commits one million dollars to hunger relief agencies throughout the country. The more money that is raised in conjunction with this challenge, the bigger piece of that one million dollar gift will get donated to the Food Bank Network of the San Luis Valley to provide needed money for food purchases and operational support.
The week will start off Sunday, April 22 at 2 p.m. with CROP Hunger Awareness Walk at the First Christian Church. CROP Walk is a 5K walk around Alamosa to raise awareness and funds to combat hunger issues in the Valley and around the world, organized by Church World Services (CWS). Church World Service provides food, water and sustainable resources to developing countries around the world. Following the walk, there will be music by Jack Rabbit Hollow and a free barbeque under the North Pavilion at Cole Park. Seventy-five percent of the proceeds will go to CWS, and the remaining twenty-five percent will go to the Food Bank Network of the SLV. All are welcome to come out and walk! We walk rain or shine!
On Tuesday, April 24, Rainbow’s End in Alamosa will host a Chile Cook-off from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.. This event, in its second year, showcases the culinary talent of local restaurants and community members of Alamosa. Tastings are free and if you would like a bowl of chile at the end, it will be available for $2.50. Bring in a canned food to get donated to the Food Bank Network and the cost of the bowl is down to $2. Come hungry to vote on the best chile, or call 587-3499 to enter your own special chile recipe.
A very special Open Mic night will happen on Wednesday, April 25 at Milagros. This will be a combination of both of the successful Open Mics at Milagros – the Freedom Writers Open Mic on the second Wednesday of the month and the traditional musical Open Mic held on the first Saturday of the month.
Please come enjoy coffee, baked goods and the talents of artists from the Valley. This Open Mic will be held at 7 p.m.
Join us on Friday, April 27 at 7 p.m. for the documentary, “Food Stamped”, which explores the ideas of eating a nutritious diet on a food stamp budget. This will be held at Milagros.
Come enjoy great coffee, delicious home baked goods as well as an interesting and educational documentary, with a brief discussion to follow.
To wrap up the week, La Puente is partnering with the SLV Brewing Company and Don Richmond and the Rifters to host Generosity on Tap.
This will be the third year for the successful silent and live auction and concert. Tickets are $25, which include an appetizer and a drink, and are available for purchase by calling 587-3499. All proceeds will support the Food Bank Network of the SLV. Enjoy a night of great food and drink, fantastic local music and the chance to find unique items and vacation packages while supporting the local Food Bank Network.
Get involved in one or more of these events and help us win more of the money from the $1 Million Feinstein Challenge.
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