Chicago, U.S.A. — “Together we are Feeding America” is the message of a new series of radio public service advertisements (PSAs) unveiled on October 15, by Feeding America, the nation’s largest domestic hunger-relief organization, and the Ad Council. The PSAs feature music mogul and entrepreneur 50 Cent, best-selling author and daytime host Rachael Ray, Today ShowCo-host Al Roker, singer Josh Groban, registered dietitian and Cooking Channel host Ellie Krieger, and actress Ana Ortiz.

These members of the entertainment industry are lending their voices to PSAs to show their support of hunger-relief. In addition, to raise awareness about the more than one in five children who often suffer from hunger in silence, complementary radio ads were released featuring everyday children.

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently announced that more than 50 million Americans, including nearly 17 million children, are food insecure, meaning they live as risk of hunger.

“We are grateful for the support of the Ad Council, Cutwater and these generous celebrities, who are helping to raise awareness of the problem of hunger in America. They are lending their time and talent to our mission because children shouldn’t have to worry about where their next meal will come from,” saidMatt Knott, Interim President and Chief Executive Officer of Feeding America.

Created pro bono by Cutwater, the PSAs target adults in an effort to strategically breakdown stereotypes about the faces of hunger. The ads highlight that hunger is closer than you think, but so is the solution. Listeners are directed to visit www.feedingamerica.org/Hunger for ways to help and to find their local food bank.

“We are very grateful that these recognizable people have lent their voices to Feeding America and the issue of hunger. The problem continues to be monumental,” said Chuck McBride, Founder & Chief Creative Officer of Cutwater. “Cutwater will continue to do whatever we can to help end hunger in our country.”

People struggling with hunger are individuals and families who live in communities throughout the country. They work hard each day to do everything they can to change their circumstances so they will not have to worry about where their next meal will come from.

“We are proud to continue our work with Feeding America to encourage Americans to step forward and play a role in the fight against hunger,” said Peggy Conlon, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Ad Council. “These celebrities and children who graciously donated their time and voices will inspire communities nationwide to get involved with their local food banks to make a difference in the lives of so many.”

Per the Ad Council model, the PSAs will be distributed to media outlets nationwide this week and will run and air in advertising time that is donated by the media. These PSAs are part of the national Hunger Prevention campaign, which has received more than $146 million worth of donated media since its launch in November 2008.

Listen to the radio PSAs here.

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Breakout electro inspired hip-hop duo Chiddy Bang, comprised of rapper Chidera “Chiddy” Anamege and producer Noah “Xaphoon Jones” Beresin, is partnering with Feeding America, the nation’s largest domestic hunger-relief charity, to launch a Breakfast Food Drive with college fans from 13 markets across the United States. The Feeding America network is comprised of more than 200 member food banks serving all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico, and secures and distributes 3 billion pounds of food and grocery products annually.

The band was inspired to name their debut album Breakfast not only from the obvious symbolism (first meal, first album), but also from their genuine belief that a good day always begins with a quality breakfast.  Band member Noah Beresin says, “For us, what separates the good days from the bad days is a good breakfast, so we’re happy to help give people in need a healthy and nutritious breakfast.”

Over 20 student-run organizations (fraternities, sororities, and student clubs) will participate in a Breakfast Food Drive which will take place over a ten-day span beginning Friday, February 24.  The student organizations are encouraged to donate healthy, nutritious breakfast items, such as peanut butter, 100% juice, oatmeal, and canned fruit to the Feeding America food bank in their areas.

The top five donating organizations will all receive a home electronics prize worth $500 (TBC), and the overall largest donating group will also be awarded a free concert from Chiddy Bang this spring. For more details, please visit http://chiddybang.net/feedamerica.

Participating Feeding America member food banks are:

• Capital Area Food Bank (Washington, D.C.)
• Cleveland Food Bank (OH)
• Community Food Share (CO)
• Delaware Food Bank (DE)
• Eastern Illinois Food Bank (IL)
• Food Bank of Central & Eastern North Carolina (NC)
• Food Lifeline (WA)
• Greater Boston Food Bank (MA)
• Los Angeles Regional Food Bank (CA)
• Mid-Ohio Food Bank (OH)
• Mississippi Food Network (MS)
• Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina (NC)

For updated information on Chiddy Bang visit: www.facebook.com/ChiddyBang  or www.chiddybang.net. Follow Chiddy Bang on twitter at www.twitter.com/chiddybang. For photos, bio and other press materials visit: www.emimusicpublicity.net

Visit Feeding America at www.feedingamerica.org. Find it on Facebook at www.facebook.com/FeedingAmerica or follow it on Twitter at www.twitter.com/FeedingAmerica.

Image Courtesy of   http://www.flickr.com/photos/partywounds/

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The Dunkin’ Donuts & Baskin-Robbins Community Foundation has announced a grant of $102,000 to Feeding America, the country’s largest domestic hunger-relief organization. The donation will help support child hunger relief through Feeding America initiatives such as its BackPack program, which provides hungry children with nutritious and easy-to-prepare food to take home on weekends and school vacations when other resources are not available.

The DDBRCF grant will be distributed among eight food banks across the United States: Greater Boston Food Bank, Food Bank of Western Massachusetts, Philabundance, Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee, Cleveland Food Bank, Greater Chicago Food Depository, Albuquerque Road Runners and Los Angeles Regional Food Bank. The donation was made possible in part from a grant from the Rich Family Foundation.

The DDBRCF has had a national partnership with Feeding America since 2007 and has donated nearly $1 million to support local food banks. Over the past four years, The DDBRCF has addressed the issue of hunger relief through both national and local efforts. Dunkin’ Donuts and Baskin-Robbins franchisees have led food drives in the communities they serve and have organized volunteer days at their local food banks to help fill backpacks filled with nutritious snacks for children.

Feeding America is the nation’s leading domestic hunger-relief charity, with more than 200 member food banks serving all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Feeding America’s food banks secure and distribute 3 billion pounds of donated food and grocery products annually through a network of approximately 61,000 food assistance agencies, such as food pantries, soup kitchens, emergency shelters and after-school programs.

37 million Americans receive food and groceries from Feeding America each year, including nearly 14 million children and 3 million senior citizens, and approximately 5.7 million Americans receive the Feeding America network every week.

According to Karen Raskopf, Co-Chair of The Dunkin’ Donuts & Baskin-Robbins Community Foundation and Senior Vice President of Communications at Dunkin’ Brands, “Our Foundation is committed to working with Feeding America to help eradicate hunger, particularly childhood hunger, in the communities we serve.

Dunkin’ Brands and our franchisees are proud of our support of this cause and look forward to continuing to support the Feeding America network of food banks in the fight to end hunger.”

“Nearly 49 million people – approximately 1 in 6 Americans – struggle with hunger, including more than 16 million children. Every day, working families in every neighborhood are forced to choose between food, rent and medicine,” said Leah Ray, Feeding America’s Vice President of Corporate Partnerships.

“The support of our partners has never been more crucial, and we are extremely grateful to The Dunkin’ Donuts & Baskin-Robbins Community Foundation for their generous grant to help us combat hunger.”

Image Courtesy of   http://www.flickr.com/photos/politicalpulse/

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Feeding America, the nation’s leading domestic hunger-relief charity, and the DreamWorks Pictures movie The Help, are joining forces this holiday season to help feed Americans facing hunger. Coinciding with the DVD/Blu-ray release of The Help on December 6, a national donation campaign will run from December 1 to December 11 to generate food and funding to help feed the 1 in 6 people in the United States who do not have enough to eat.

“The economic downturn really hurt American families,” said Feeding America Director of Media Relations Ross Fraser. “As a nation, we need to come together to help our neighbors who are struggling to make ends meet. The collaboration between Feeding America and the producers of The Help is a great example of how we can come together to make a difference.”

“The film’s hopeful message of creating change along with its home entertainment release during the holidays inspired the team here to reach out and help make a difference in people’s lives,” noted Jeff Small, President and Chief Operating Officer of DreamWorks Studios.

“Feeding America seemed the perfect fit in that it operates nationally but is focused locally and housed within the communities it serves and will directly benefit those in need. We’re happy The Help can help.” To help put food in the hands of as many people/families in need this holiday season, Feeding America/ The Help are asking consumers to please help contribute in one of the following ways.

It’s this simple:

• Donate Online - Every $1.00 donated can help Feeding America provide meals eight meals for people in need. People who make online donations at www.feedingamerica.org/thehelp between December 1 and 11 will receive a limited-time $5.00 off coupon toward the purchase of the film The Helpon Blu-ray or DVD.Touchstone Pictures, the affiliate of The Walt Disney Company that distributed The Help, will provide a matching donation of up to $10,000, with a goal of providing more than 200,000 meals to families at risk of hunger.

• Get Social – Throughout the month of December, Facebook and Twitter fans of The Help will be encouraged to take action in their local communities. The Help Facebook and Twitter accounts will post details about how people can get involved and ask fans to provide feedback and talk about their local community efforts/contributions.

• Drop Off Food – Feeding America/The Help themed food donation boxes will be positioned at local community events in Manhattan, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Dallas and Atlanta throughout December. The food collected will be distributed the local Feeding America food bank. Please consider donating foods that are most frequently requested, such as cereal, pasta, rice, beans, canned fruits and vegetables, soups, 100% juices, peanut butter, canned tuna, chicken or turkey.

Those who would like to stay connected with the Feeding America/The Help program are encouraged to:

• “Like” the Facebook page

• Follow us on Twitter

Unprecedented demand for food assistance

The state of the economy is affecting more Americans than any other time in recent history. The US Department of Agriculture reports that 49 million Americans are food insecure. Feeding America reports a 46 percent increase in the number of people seeking emergency food assistance through their nationwide network of food banks compared to four years ago.

For those not living in the five cities where the food drive takes place, DreamWorks will be doing grassroots and media awareness campaigns to encourage local community efforts. As well, you can find other ways to help on TakePart.com/TheHelp, the social action website sponsored by The Help‘s producing partners Participant Media.

Who’s Helping?

The #1  New York Times  best-seller by Kathryn Stockett comes to vivid life through the powerful performances of a phenomenal ensemble cast. The Help is an inspirational, courageous and empowering story about very different, extraordinary women in the 1960s South who build an unlikely friendship around a secret writing project — one that breaks society’s rules and puts them all at risk.

Filled with poignancy, humor and hope — and complete with compelling, never-before-seen bonus features — The Help is a timeless, universal and triumphant story about the ability to create change. To learn more about the movie please visit, http://thehelpmovie.com/us/.

Feeding America provides low-income individuals and families with the fuel to survive and even thrive. As the nation’s leading domestic hunger-relief charity, our network members supply food to more than 37 million Americans each year, including 14 million children and 3 million seniors.

Serving the entire United States, more than 200 member food banks support 61,000 agencies that address hunger in all of its forms. For more information on how you can fight hunger in your community and across the country, visit http://www.feedingamerica.org.

Image Courtesy of  http://www.flickr.com/photos/austinfoodbank/

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