Kids Matter Mondays [Video]

An off-handed comment was made a couple weeks ago that got under my skin. I'm still peeved about it.

So I thought I would do more than complain. I'll do more than correct that one flippant, forgotten remark. I'm going to take action and educate.

To paraphrase, the comment was that there were no kids in need in [very affluent town] and that we therefore didn't need to waste our time or energy there.

It turned out that 28.2% - almost 1/3 - of those under 18 years of age were living below the poverty line (11.2% of the families and 15.1% of the total population). Thank you, Wikipedia and the US Census.

I'm not upset with the person who made the comment. I'm upset by the ignorance of such a statement. I'm upset that the generalizations and assumptions we make (and take as fact) directly impact our ability to ignore the people - especially the kids - who need our help the most. We see a beautifully manicured city and assume that all is well; everyone has food and clothing, with only worries about who has more luxuries. We move on to the next town.

If we're doing it, others are too and the problem continues to get worse.

There's a term - Hidden Hunger - that I was introduced to when my company produced the video below. The concept pops into my head often and I fear that, because I don't act and because I am have not well-informed on these issues, that I allow the problem to continue.

So, what am I doing about this? Starting today, I will profile a need in a community in which Active 20-30 is working. I imagine many of the facts, figures and stories will come courtesy of the Annie E Casey Foundation and Kids Count. Others will come from first-hand accounts from our members on the ground.

The posts will be in no particular order, but will hopefully challenge our thinking.

Let's start this conversation with one question: what has surprised you about the needs in your own community? Please post in the comments.

Let's kick things off with an issue that affects all of our communities - hidden hunger; the families who fall between the cracks and are too often overlooked. After you watch this brief video, please share your initial thoughts in the comments, too.

Thank you to Cantaloupe.tv for producing the Hidden Hunger story and for Elanco for putting your weight behind this critical issue.