One World Everybody Eats and its network of independent nonprofit cafes will participate in the first annual National Everybody Eats Week from August 25th – August 31st, 2019. National Everybody Eats Week is a nationally coordinated campaign to help consumers understand the power they have to end hunger in their own community.
Ten cities across the country have or will proclaim National Everybody Eats Week, August 25th – 31st. Participating cities include: Boone, North Carolina; Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Danville, Kentucky; Edmore, Michigan; Fort Worth, Texas; Johnson City, Tennessee; Rochelle, Illinois; Versailles, Kentucky; Wytheville, Virginia; and Xenia, Ohio.
One World Everybody Eats provides a local approach to the larger issue of hunger in our nation; and these nine cities are leading the way.
According to Feeding America, over 41 million people in the United States are food insecure; and the annual food budget shortfall totals just over $21 million. In comparison, according to the USDA, each year Americans spend over $500 billion eating at full-service and limited-service restaurants.
“There is power in how you spend your money,” says Julie Williams, President of One World Everybody Eats. “Empowered consumers can do so much more than a single organization.”
What if deciding where to eat for lunch also involved deciding how you can make a difference in your community?
One World Everybody Eats encourages all Americans to dine at a One World Everybody Eats café during National Everybody Eats Week. The organization boasts nearly 50 cafés in its network. You can find your local café at www.oneworldeverybodyeats.org. If you can’t find a local café near you, consider donating online at www.oneworldeverybodyeats.org to help launch a cafe near you.
About One World Everybody Eats
In 2003, One World Everybody Eats began as a simple offering in a small café in Salt Lake City, UT. Owner Denise Cerreta noticed her patrons were struggling to make ends meet, and in what she describes as her ‘field of dreams’ experience, she decided to begin letting them pay what they could for their meals. She realized that one in six Americans—50 million people—are food insecure, meaning families and individuals are accessing emergency food pantries, even scavenging or stealing, to meet their nutrition needs. To address this issue, OWEE supports a model of pay-what-you-can Community Cafés that helps communities alleviate hunger at the local level. Since its inception, cafés around the world have implemented the OWEE business model, including Panera Bread and the Jon Bon Jovi Soul Foundation for which Cerreta provided café opening guidance. Dozens of cafés are currently in development. Collectively, OWEE cafés have served almost 2 million meals, 30 percent of which are served to people of less means. Under OWEE’s business platform, each café is committed to serving appealing, nutritious, locally sourced meals with dignity to everyone while ultimately, changing communities and their perspective on hunger. For more information on OWEE visit www.oneworldeverybodyeats.org.
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