About
Meet Chris LaForest
“As I child, I was very poor. My family had very little and it was a very uncomfortable life. Anyone who has been in trying times can relate to one major threat; hunger. I can still vaguely remember some of the negative parts of my childhood; my clothes being old and shabby, our house being dingy, very few toys to play with, and that sort of thing. One thing I will never forget, and can still feel to this day, is the powerful hunger of not having enough to eat. Nothing makes a more powerful impact on a person than a hot, truly nutritious meal, even if you do have to go to sleep on a hard cot in a chilly room.
In a country so full of bounty, it sickens me to think that there are children just like I was still in our community. There are families that truly do not have enough to eat. Parents who have to choose between feeding their children or feeding themselves! Families have to make choices between food or medical care! If you’re reading this, and you feel any empathy for those in that plight (any at all) please donate a fitting amount to one of the charities I directly support with campaigns like this one, and through a portion of all my business.”
– Christopher LaForest
Foodlink |
Foodlink is a regional food hub and the Feeding America food bank serving Allegany, Genesee, Livingston, Monroe, Ontario, Orleans, Seneca, Wayne, Wyoming, and Yates counties. Foodlink operations target the root causes of hunger. We do this by distributing food to a network of human service agencies, serving meals through our commercial kitchen, and offering more than 30 food-related programs. In 2015, Foodlink distributed nearly 19 million pounds of food — including 4.6 million pounds of produce, offered more than 200 nutrition education courses, and created new access points for healthy foods in under-served communities. Our innovative approach directly addresses health disparities related to food insecurity. 1 in 7 Americans are hungry—including more than 1 in 5 children.
The good news is that we can do something about this. And at Foodlink, we are. By orchestrating a complex system of food recovery, storage, and distribution, we are doing something very simple: feeding our neighbors.
Feeding America |
Feeding America is FoodlinkNY’s national, parent organization.
“In a country that wastes billions of pounds of food each year, it’s almost shocking that anyone in America goes hungry. Yet every day, there are millions of children and adults who do not get the meals they need to thrive. We work to get nourishing food – from farmers, manufacturers, and retailers – to people in need. At the same time, we also seek to help the people we serve build a path to a brighter, food-secure future.”
“At Feeding America, 98 % of all donations raised go directly into programs and services for people in need. Thanks to your support, the Feeding America nationwide network of food banks, pantries and meal programs serves virtually every community in the United States—more than 46 million people including 12 million children and 7 million seniors.”