Hope begins with food

Food may sometimes get a little overrated, but as I found this week hope starts with food.
My youngest daughter and I found that out on Monday as we took advantage of the holiday to package food at Feed My Starving Children in Eagan. It is a non-profit Christian organization committed to feeding God’s children hungry in body and spirit.
What perhaps impresses me the most about Feed My Starving is its approach. Quite simply, the approach is simple. Children and adults hand-pack meals specifically for malnourished children and they are shipped to nearly 70 countries around the world.
We were a part of more than 50 volunteers who came together to roll up our sleeves and continue to work together to feed God’s starving children. In the course of less than two hours, we bagged and boxed enough food to feed 65 children for the next year. A single meal costs only 22 cents to produce. 
After our mission was completed, organizers showed a video of little Nelson from Haiti. It’s something that certainly brought tears to my eyes. In the impoverished village of Old Letant, Haiti, Nelson’s mother was unable to feed all four of her children. With no other options, she would place him outside to sit among the pigs every day, where he was alone and exposed to the elements without food or water.
Feed My Starving Children came across Nelson in November 2013 at a time when Nelson was extremely malnourished, too weak to walk and eating dirt to quiet his hunger pains. His frail arms and legs protruded from a very swollen belly. He began eating the Manna Pack meals provided by Feed My Starving. After eight months of love, attention and nutrition, Nelson is healthy and thriving.
Last month Feed My Starving shipped more than 7 million meals alone to Haiti. That was the most any country received in the world from this organization.