According to Child Poverty & Hunger During the Holidays by Eden Canon, “the latest statistics released by the USDA reveals that there are 3.9 million households in America in which both adults and children are food insecure—which means they have limited or inconsistent access to food which is both nutritious and safe.  Hunger during the holidays is not just a soft issue of feeling that every family, no matter how poor, should be able to gather together for a decent holiday meal.  People may suffer emotionally from not being able to feast at the holidays, but those who are not living on the razor’s edge of poverty may not realize how much financial pressure is put upon these vulnerable families when their children aren’t receiving free lunches from school over their break.  It is alarming just how many children depend on these free lunches as a primary source of nutrition and sustenance.”  https://ethicalfoods.com/child-poverty-hunger-holidays/  In Campbell County, 13.2% are below poverty and 17.8% children are living in poverty with 33.7%  (4,757 out of 14, 134) of people living in poverty in Newport, KY.  The Hosea House in Newport, KY assists an average of 150 individuals and families each day with an evening meal.   Through community partner donations, the soup kitchen also assists families with Holiday meals as well.  The poverty rate in Melbourne, KY is 14.8% (57 out of 385).  The St. John Lutheran Church Food Pantry in Melbourne, KY assists from 40 to 80 families each month with food from the USDA.  
While both facilities are a huge help to individuals and families, giving people, who are in survival mode, food without educating them how to produce delicious, healthy recipes, could result in food going to waste or being given away.  According to Accessing Nutritious Food, one of the University of Kentucky’s Family & Consumer Sciences’ (FCS) Initiatives, Family and Consumer Sciences Extension helps families gain access to food and to stretch food dollars; communities to decrease hunger; and local food assistance programs to educate recipients on healthy and safe food preparation methods. Family and Consumer Sciences agents are pivotal in training consumers and producers to maximize local access to farm-to-table food products. Ronda Rex, Agent for Family & Consumer Sciences Education (FCS), has been linking arms with Hosea House and St. John’s Lutheran Church Food Pantry for 5 and 3 years respectively.  
Each month, Ronda takes the FCS Initiatives (Making Healthy Lifestyle Choices, Nurturing Families, Embracing Life as You Age, Securing Financial Security, Promoting Healthy Homes and Communities, Accessing Nutritious, and Food Empowering Community Leaders) and the Nutrition Education Program (NEP) and Supplement Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) resources to both the Hosea House and St. John Food Pantry through hands-on activities, Plate It Up Kentucky Proud and NEP recipes, U.K. curriculum and publications.  For the 2017 Thanksgiving Holiday, Ronda Rex (FCS) and Sarah Stolz (Horticulture Agent) conducted and facilitated the Extend a Hand Project by reaching out to and partnering with the Hosea House, St. John Lutheran Church Food Pantry, Safe Ship Northern KY, Extension volunteers/leaders, community donators and the Campbell County Media Central.  The Agents recruited and supervised 12 of their volunteers and leaders.  Ronda provided the Guide to the Thanksgiving Meal with Plate It Up Kentucky proud and NEP recipes along with food safety publications and NEP kitchen tools/resources.  Sarah provided sweet potatoes and herbs from the garden along with herbs publications.  
The Campbell County Cooperative Extension Service conducted this project by linking arms with the Hosea House (soup kitchen assisting 100 families with holiday meals), St. John’s Lutheran Church’s Food Pantry (food pantry assisting 50 families with holiday meals), a local U-Haul business (provided boxes for meal prep. items), Campbell County Media Central (filmed the event and broadcasted it on Public Access T.V. in the N. KY area), community donators (donated food items for boxes), and the Cooperative Extension Services’ volunteers/leaders to educate individuals and families in meal preparation for the holidays.
End of program evaluations revealed that 150 individuals and families received a Holiday Guide to the Thanksgiving Meal Preparation which included:  the University of Kentucky’s Plate It Up Kentucky Proud Recipes, Nutrition Education (NEP) recipes, USDA Turkey Preparation and Safety Publications, and U.K. herbs publications.  Through donations brought into the Extension office from program volunteers and leaders, the participants also received turkey pans, cake mixes and can pumpkin (for Healthy Chocolate Cake recipe from NEP), kitchen tools/utensils including meat thermometers from NEP and sweet potatoes and herbs from the Campbell County Cooperative Extension Service’s Educational Gardens (grown by the Mommy & Me…in the Garden and Kitchen Program, the Newport High School students and the Master Gardeners).
According to the University of Kentucky’s Family & Consumer Sciences Initiatives, “building the capacity of volunteer leaders is critical for the sustainability of communities that support and strengthen families. Family and Consumer Sciences and Horticulture Extension is committed to engaging, educating, and empowering local citizens to investigate issues, make responsible decisions, and take ownership of solutions.”  About twenty Horticulture and FCS volunteers, leaders and community partners linked arms with the Cooperative Extension Service to conduct the Extend a Hand Project.  For more information about the project, view the video at http: http://campbellmedia.org/video/10679/