Second Annual End Hunger in New Mexico Summit Seeks to Continue Awareness, Work Started in 2015

A year has gone by since a variety of community organizations gathered in Albuquerque to discuss how to end hunger in New Mexico. Still the state’s statistics on food insecurity largely remain the same -- first in the country for child hunger and second for senior hunger.

“What these statistics continue to show us is that we have a lot of work to do if we want to really start addressing hunger in our state,” said Tim Armer, Executive director for the North Central New Mexico Economic Development District.

That is why North Central, through the new non-profit agency New Mexico Cares Foundation Inc., is the primary organizer for the Second Annual End Hunger in New Mexico Summit scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday, Sept. 23 and 24 ^th, at the Albuquerque Marriott at 2101 Louisiana Blvd, NE, Albuquerque

“We want to increase awareness that hunger continues to be a serious problem in New Mexico and start moving toward identifying viable solutions for ending hunger,” Armer said.

At last year’s Summit, AARP New Mexico developed a white paper identifying some of the challenges that exist in ending hunger.

“The list that came out of that workshop wasn’t that surprising,” said Gene Varela, AARP New Mexico State Director. “Lack of employment or low wages; barriers that prevent people from seeking benefits; focus on quantity of meals and not the quality of meals; and the increasing demands put on food banks while donations are low; are just some of the issues that were identified.”

“Now the next step is how do we, as a community, begin to address some of these issues, which are systematic and all contribute to the state’s level of hunger,” Varela said.

 Armer echoed those sentiments, “We have spent time the last couple of years really raising the awareness that hunger exists in our state, which will always be ongoing, but now we need to identify where we go from here. Unless you look at why people are going hungry we will never solve our state’s hunger issues.”

The state’s hunger statistics are sobering – 40,000 people in our state seek food assistance each week, 40 percent of the people who receive assistance are children under 18 and 7 percent are under age 5, while 13 percent are senior citizens. Forty-one percent of hungry families are working families.

The Summit will be conducted conference style with a variety of workshops, keynotes and exhibits all focusing on hunger and related issues such as nutrition, public assistance, resources for the homeless, after school and snack programs, and discussion on the best approaches to address food insecurity.

The Summit, however, is not just for people who are working on hunger issues. Organizers said anyone who has an interest in the issue and wants to share ideas and get the discussion started is invited to come. This is also open to the public that would like to find out more about the resources and programs available in New Mexico that may be helpful to those that are struggling to put food on their table. Registration is $20 for the two-day conference. If a participant can’t afford the registration fee, it could be waived under certain circumstances.

Gov. Susana Martinez issued a proclamation proclaiming September 21 ^st through the 25 ^th as “End Hunger in New Mexico Week”. A food drive will also be conducted and participants are asked to bring a half a bag of non-perishable food to the truck parked outside the hotel entrance.

For more information on the End Hunger in New Mexico Summit visit www.endnmhunger.com or call 1-866-699-4927. The event is being sponsored by North Central, the Non-Metro Area Agency on Aging and the New Mexico Aging and Long-Term Services Department.

(An End Hunger Walk will be held as part of the activities at 7 a.m. Thursday morning. Photo: Last year's participants gather for a quick picture.)