Our CEO Claire Babineaux-Fontenot, was a guest on The Jennifer Hudson Show this week, speaking about the work we're doing across our network in the wake of Hurricanes Helene and Milton. We want to extend our thanks to Jennifer Hudson and Mars/Ben's Original for their generous donation of $25,000. This donation will help us continue our on-the-ground work to help these communities rebuild and recover in the challenging times ahead.
Where’s Claire? Using My Voice for Another Claire, Her Community and So Many More Hurricane Helene is not done, though the cameras may soon stop reporting on its impact in favor of a “new” story. It has taken so much, including hundreds of lives. But it can’t take all. Amidst the rubble remains heart, grit, resilience and even triumph. The #MannaFoodbank was taken but not #ClaireNeal, its CEO—nor was her remarkable team, her partners or her community across western North Carolina. Though life is certainly “lifing” there, neighbors are “neighboring” too. So many, like Claire, are providing for others even in the face of significant, personal loss. This is not just happening in North Carolina, but also in Tennessee, Georgia, South Carolina, Virginia and Florida. And with Hurricane Milton more has been taken, some of which is irreplaceable…again. And, as is true for every disaster, #feedingamerica is there, in the thick of the storm and its aftermath. Our Network will stay even after all of the cameras leave. I’m sometimes asked what “keeps me up at night?” Some are surprised to learn that I sleep rather well. But those people must not know what it feels like to go to bed knowing that whatever the day, no matter the geography or circumstance, they are part of a team who will show up for others #BeforeDuringAndAfter the storm or wildfire or mudslide or tornado or the more intractable hunger-related disasters that nearly 50 million people (nearly 14 million kids) face in this country that have nothing to do with weather. So…#WheresClaire been using her voice lately? Look at the video to find out! https://lnkd.in/gMQtqK8x