The following post was written by Mike Cox, FamilyWorks’ Food Bank Manager.
You may have heard or seen something in the news recently about proposed legislation that would affect food security for vulnerable populations here in Washington State. Below we’ve put together an easy way to help you let your state senator and representatives know that food security is an important part of the safety net for many people in Washington state and that funding for these emergency programs is vital to keeping families healthy.
You can start by using the link below to find your legislative district and your legislators.
http://app.leg.wa.gov/districtfinder/
Here in the 43rd District (near FamilyWorks), our legislators are:
• Rep. Brady Walkinshaw – brady.walkinshaw@leg.wa.gov
• Speaker Frank Chopp – frank.chopp@leg.wa.gov
• Sen. Jamie Pedersen – jamie.pedersen@leg.wa.gov
Clicking on your senator or representative’s name will take you to a page where you can find their email address. Click on the address and cut paste the following message. (Be sure to include a personal message if you’d like.) Believe it or not, these emails actually provide a lot of impact in influencing our legislators.
(email text below)
(Senator _____,) or (Representative __________,)
1 in 7 Washingtonians have trouble affording enough food to eat. No one in Washington should be hungry. Please help hungry families with a state budget that includes fair, sustainable revenue to protect and strengthen our public safety net.
• Maintain 2014 funding levels for the Emergency Food Assistance Program to help our network of food banks meet the need for services that remains higher today than during the recession.
• Preserve current funding for the Farmers Market Nutrition Programs that help low-income seniors and families on WIC purchase nutritious food from Washington’s farmers at their local farmers markets.
• Restore full benefits to the State Food Assistance Program to provide Washington’s newest residents, including nearly 15,000 children, with the food stamp assistance they need to buy nutritious food.
• Support efforts to increase participation in school breakfast, restore the TANF grant, housing and other services to ensure that low-income families can meet all of their basic needs.
(Please add your personal message and information to this email here)
Sincerely,
Name:
Street Address:
Legislative District: