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PROPOSED RESOLUTION
RECOGNIZING SEPTEMBER AS HUNGER ACTION MONTH IN COOK COUNTY
WHEREAS, every year one in six of our neighbors receives food from the Greater Chicago Food Depository’s network of pantries, soup kitchens and shelters throughout Cook County; and
WHEREAS, increasingly, the face of hunger is a person with a job, an older adult, a veteran or a child; and
WHEREAS, the health consequences of hunger affect the well-being of our community and limit the potential of our children; and
WHEREAS, September is Hunger Action Month, a 30-day nationwide campaign to raise awareness for hunger relief; and
WHEREAS, all Cook County residents are urged to join together to support Hunger Action Month by pledging to raise awareness for the fight against hunger in our community and by striving to improve the lives of their neighbors who struggle to put food on the table through generosity and service; and
WHEREAS, Cook County is committed to lending direct assistance to address food access inequalities; and
WHEREAS, as part of these efforts, the Cook County Health & Hospitals System (CCHHS) recognizes that the health of many of our patients are impacted by the lack of access to healthy and nutritious foods; and
WHEREAS, CCHHS is working to address this need by piloting a food insecurity screening program and connecting patients with food benefit programs and local resources; and
WHEREAS, the Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle and the Greater Chicago Food Depository launched the Cook County Food Access Plan: a two-year strategy to combat food insecurity and its impact on health, education and economic development, and
WHEREAS, with the help of the Chicago Food Depository’s FRESH Truck, 7 clinics in Cook County are currently conducting food insecurity screenings, of which 5 are CCHHS sites, and
WHEREAS, in the past year, the Food Depository’s FRESH Truck has distributed more than 90,000 pounds of fresh fruits and vegetables at health care facilities in Cook County to 3,000 households, helping more than 11,000 individuals who struggle with food insecurity, and
WHEREAS, the Cook County Board of Commissioners believes that no one should go hungry; and joins with the Greater Chicago Food Depository to support the fight to end hunger by wearing orange pins representing the official color of Hunger Action Month.
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, by the President and Cook County Board of Commissioners, that the month of September shall be recognized as Hunger Action Month throughout Cook County; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the Greater Chicago Food Depository in appreciation for their commitment to end hunger in Cook County.
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