DID YOU KNOW?

Right now 31 million Americans seriously don’t know where their next meal will come from. Some single parents can’t make enough money to pay high rent, utilities, medical insurance, clothes and food. Poor families live in areas where factories have closed and there aren’t any more good paying jobs. It’s hard to move when you don’t have money for moving expenses.

YOU MEAN THERE ARE PEOPLE THAT ARE HUNGRY IN AMERICA?

You may have read about Heidi in the September issue of Seventeen Magazine and seen for yourself how girls your age are truly hungry. The sad fact is that even in America, there are still those who go to bed without eating a meal for the day. Heidi lives in one of the poorest areas of the United States, in the heart of Appalachia.

Like any other teen girl, Heidi attends high school. But sometimes it's hard for for this North Carolinian girl and her two younger brothers to concentrate on their classes. It's not because they are lazy. They are hungry and out of energy. Their single mother works hard and tries to buy them nutritious food, but sometimes there isn't enough to fill their growling stomachs.

Thanks to Operation Blessing and caring people like you, this family doesn't have to struggle any more. They can drop buy one of our partners' warehouse and take home several bags of free groceries several times a month.

WANNA HELP FIGHT HUNGER?

Great, we thought you would! Thanks for wanting to reach out and make a difference. Sacrificing something for another is a very cool thing to do!

You may be saying, "Um hello! I don't have any money! How can I do anything to help?" Desire to help is the first step.

Did you know that $25 is all it takes to help provide a family of four with a month’s worth of food?

Here are a few practical ideas how you can save enough money to feed a family for a month:

1)Begin the healthiest diet you have ever tried! Resist the temptation to eat your favorite junk foods and tuck away the money you save for our hunger relief program. Your sacrifice will help poor girls like Heidi be able to eat a healthy meal.

2) Have a car wash with some friends to raise awareness of hunger and to raise funds for hunger relief programs.

3) Save the money you would spend on new clothes or CD's and put that toward a donation.

4) Throw a pizza party for the hungry. Invite friends to a pizza party where you talk about hunger in America. Share ideas on how to get involved locally and then take up a collection.

The biggest thing is to get involved! Use the Teen Journal to give us your ideas on other ways to raise awareness, funds, and fight hunger in America.

I HAVE SAVED SOME MONEY NOW WHAT?

After you count the money you tossed into your hunger relief jar or drawer this month, you can give your donation a couple of different ways: (please don't send in cash)

1. If you don't have your own checking account, ask your mom or dad if they would write a check to Operation Blessing's hunger relief program. Print out, fill in and send us the Mail In Form with your donation.
2. Ask your mom or dad to charge it on their VISA or Master Card by filling out the online Secure Giving Form.

So if you haven't begun helping hungry teens yet, it's time to start! Your sacrifice will help poor girls like Heidi be able to eat a healthy meal.

Remember, $25 is all it takes to help provide a family of four with a month’s worth of food!

SEE WHAT OTHERS SAY ABOUT FIGHTING HUNGER

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I have been researching world hunger and i want to do all i can to help because it is sad to know that many people are starving each and every day and i am here just not even thanking God for my many blessings.I don't know what i can do to help but i am willing to help in any way possible.

Victoria, 17, Goliad, TX
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The prayer of faith will save the sick," and the hungry! I don't have any money, but God will provide what is needed. I encourage everyone, especially youth like myself, to pray with a heart of faith for the funds to help feed hungry kids in our own backyards!

Hannah, 15, Montana
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Talk to the school SCA about doing a fundraiser at school and donate the money to this organization and help kids all around.

Madeline, 14, Silverspring,MD
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I think it so sad! I am doing a fundraiser with some friends to help out people like Heidi. I hope that she is ok! The sad thing is that we got so many people starving and when we get fed we complain about foods we don't like! I think the schools should give out more than three free lunches a month!

Alli, 14, Atlanta, GA
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I plan on raising money at school, church, and at my work place. I will have a donation bin set aside for people to donate to. I'm a junior now and I just recently stumbled across the article about Heidi in SEVENTEEN. I plan on continuing raising money until I graduate high school and possibly college. I have participated in the 30 famine before, but it hadn't affected me until I read the article.

Nicole, 16, Slippery Rock, PA
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My friends and I were talking about having a car wash or baby sitting jobs so we can help families like Heidi's fight against hunger. When i first read the article in 17, i had NO idea that OVER 30 million americans alone are not having enough food. i thought it was only serious in other foreign countries, but that article proved me wrong. i haven't seen any hunger in my town but i KNOW there is hunger in my city. Now that i think about it ... girls would save all their money but then spend it ONE designer's bag. I think they should really save their money like giving to the poor.

Melissa, 13, Long Beach
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I am going to start saving up my extra money to help Heidi and her family. That is just one more family that is helped, and living a healthier life.

Brooke, 14, IA
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Hey, I just read a article in 17 mag for September and it made me think that I need to find a way to help raise money for the hungry like have a carwash and send the profit to Blessings. At my church we donate canned goods to the hungry and homeless. When you do something to help the hungry you feel like you saved a life. I usually don't see allot of hungry people in my city, they might be there but I don't really notice it.

Shevonne, 13, MD
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My church youth group does a fundraiser every year to help people who can't afford food. The youth group gets food and other items these people would need. This fundraiser is called the 30 hour famine. The youth stays at the church to go without food for 30 hours to understand what 2/3 of our world feels like each day. I hope in the future there will be allot more people willing to help with world hunger.

Brittney, 13, GA
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I read the article in 17 mag. It made me feel sad that so many kids like me are starving that much. My family is only a little bit above them right now. We go to a pantry in our church and that really helps. My parents don't work full time so it's hard. My dad tries but hasn't been getting much work. I donate money to things like the children's hospital because there are tins for that. There's not very many boxes of money for the poor. My plan is to start a collection in my county for kids around the country who are starving.

Melissa, 11, MA
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I Pray for you. God Bless You.

Febe, 6, Cusco, Peru
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I think world hunger in the worst so what I'm trying to do is to raise money and send it to people who need it more than me.

Elise, 14, Redmond, WA
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I am planning to get involved somehow. My mother grew up having no food and my grandmother had no food while living in the projects. I want to help!

Natasha, 17, Dublin
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My 9-year-old daughter felt compelled to help those who didn't have enough food to eat. She, along with some of her friends, had a bake sale to raise money for Operation Blessings Hunger Relief Program. They made an incredible $634! I am so proud of her! We hope to continue this new tradition each year focusing on a different area of need.

Carrie, 28, Fayette, MI
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I just thought of this plan after i saw Heidi in a seventeen magazine belonging to a girl that i work with. Recently i have started selling shirts to my friend that i design on the computer featuring kid's artwork and funny sayings. I make little profit and (if anything) enough to pay for some clothes of my own. But it hit me tonight at work, i would like to sell shirts telling facts about poverty in america and displaying in large letters the address to OB.org. I will then donate the profits of the shirts directly to ob.org.

Kameron, 15, Dagsboro, DE
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With my church, for the past 2 years i have participated in the "30 Hour Famine." We raise money and then we do not eat anything, only drink water and juice for 30 hours. During that time we watch informative movies and talk about what we can do to help ease world hunger. During the 30 Hour Famine i got really hungry, and not just like i need lunch hungry, but i felt the pains of hunger, and really experienced what it felt like to be hungry. But we will never truly know what it feels like, because we only fasted for 30 hours which is just longer than one day.

Kate, 14, CA
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I read this article in Seventeen magazine and the moment I got done I wanted to help immediately. I searched around the house for loose change to save up for the hungry. So as soon as I get enough I will send it. Now that I have read this I think that I will not stop sending money for the hungry ever. I hope when I send in my money that I will end up making a difference to at least one family that struggles to have what they need.

Alexandria, 13, Glendale, AZ
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I plan to help raise money, maybe through the Interact Club at school, where I am the secretary. It could be our project for the year! I've never really thought about hunger in America. But now that I have, I'm going to help. No, I don't think I've noticed hunger in my city. Thanks for getting the word out!!!!

Ashley, 17, Fredericksburg, VA
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It's so heart wrenching that this is going on in the world today, not only in America, but everywhere else as well. Even just walking up and down the street at the beach and asking 1 person for 1 penny, the amount of people you pass a day would be probably like $5.00, do that for 7 days could be $35 to donate to a family like Heidi’s. I wish there were ways I could help in my area.

Jennifer, 17, Los Angeles, CA
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I just read an article in seventeen about a girl who's family didn't have enough money for food and I gave me goose bumps! I'm going to donate money i raise from my yard sale to this wonderful organization! i really want to help those who are less fortunate!

Candace, 17, Chicago, IL
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I read the article about kids in the US about not having enough food to eat and it really touched me and I will like to learn more about it.

Summer, 14, Los Angeles, CA
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I really want to get involved with helping with to fight hunger and sending children back to school. I want to be a doctor when I grow up, so I can help people. This is a chance I want to take to get my foot in the door of doctoring. I hope I can start soon.

Jasmine, 14, Grand Prairie, TX