HUNGER AND HOMELESS COALITION
We are an ecumenical organization on Hilton Head Island, SC founded in April 2010 after a communitywide panel discussion titled “Help – I’m Hungry!!!” in March 2010 at Congregation Beth Yam. We work with other community organizations and churches on Hilton Head Island.
VISION: A community free of hungry and homeless people
MISSION: To feed the hungry and house the homeless children, women and men within our community.
OUR GOALS: HHC is working toward building public awareness of the hungry and homeless children, women and men on HHI and surrounding areas, compiling and publishing a resource pamphlet, reducing the number of those in need of food, clothing and shelter, establishing a reserve fund to house the homeless children, women and men in motels or other buildings when temperatures are below freezing.
OUR LEADERS:
BOARD OF DIRECTORS: Twyla Sable, Chairperson OFFICERS: Andi Argast, Judie Aronson, Andrea Bhatt-Siebold, Glenn Neff, Walter Schymik, Janet Weingarten
COMMITTEE CHAIRPEOPLE: Vicky Hunnings, Chairperson Homelessness Task Force, Janet Weingarten, Chairperson, Backpack Buddies
OUR PROGRAMS: Backpack Buddies of Hilton Head Island began September 2010 to feed 50 of the neediest children in the three public elementary schools on the Island with backpacks filled with sustainable food issued on Friday’s for the week-end. This program will expand to over 100 children for the next school year. Backpack Buddies is a partner with LowCountry Food Bank and Feeding America.
The Homelessness Task Force began in late 2010 working toward providing food, clothing and shelter to homeless children, women and men during the cold winter months.
FACTS: There are 96 homeless school-age children in Beaufort County in 2009-10; 10,817 in South Carolina (Beaufort County School District & SC Department of Education). It is estimated that for every identified child, there is another child at home which essentially doubles these figures.
About 191,000 people rely on food stamps, food shelters, pantries and soup kitchens in South Carolina every year.
About 80,000 children in coastal South Carolina go hungry every day.
Source: Lowcountry Food Bank (Island Packet 11/22/2010)
TAKE ACTION: The HHC is a 501 (c) (3) tax-exempt organization. To volunteer, to make a contribution or for more information contact the Hunger and Homeless Coalition, P.O. Box 22738, Hilton Head Island, SC 29925 or call 843-363-6858– or you can make a donation to our programs right here on this website.