The Community Cupboard

Background

In 2009, more than 50 million Americans lived in households that had struggled obtaining enough food to eat. This includes 17 million children, and at least a half-million of those children had inadequate diets, or even missed meals, because their families did not have enough money for food. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture the State of Florida has seen the greatest increases in food insecurity over the past three years. In fact, the Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) comprised of Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, has one of the highest rates of food hardship in the state of Florida with nearly one in five South Florida households lacking the food needed to sustain their families.

Our situation

At the United Way Center for Excellence in Early Education (the Center), we serve a diverse population of families. According to a 2009-2010 study, approximately 23% of Center families indicated that they sometimes worried that their food would run out before they had the money to buy more. As a full care provider, the Center strives to provide families with more than early education. We recognize that children cannot be at their best if they do not have basic necessities at home.

Our Solution

Late this fall, the Center will open and stock a food pantry – the Community Cupboard – to support our neediest families by providing them with nonperishable food and diapers at no cost. The Community Cupboard will expand resources provided to the families we serve, as well as create a model that other early education providers can adopt. The Community Cupboard will do more than just provide Center families with an opportunity to fill their cupboards and nurseries at home. As a national model for organizations in the early education arena, initiatives implemented here at the Center are fashioned to be replicated. We hope to use what we learn from the establishment and implementation of the Community Cupboard to replicate this initiative in early education centers throughout Miami-Dade County.