According to Feeding America 1 in 7 Kentuckians face hunger.  One in six children face hunger.  People facing hunger in Kentucky are estimated to report needing $302,792,000 more per year to meet their food needs.  Knowing these statistics Henderson County has a food pantry called “Henderson Christian Community Outreach." In 2019, they were able to assist:

5,915 families with food insecurities, 315 families with utility assistance, 200 families with rent assistance, 29 families with life sustaining medication assistance and 118 families with emergency gas assistance for out-of-town medical appointments.  

The Henderson County FCS Agent along with the FCS Advisory Council and Henderson County Diabetes Coalition saw a need to show clientele how to prepare the foods that they receive.  The FCS Agent had received many calls and emails stating that individuals did not know what to do with the food and were throwing it away.  The FCS Agent met with the food pantry staff to see what they needed in order to make the program successful and applied for a Mini-Grant through FCS Extension and was granted $1,430.  It purchased food equipment, recipe holders, kitchen utensils, insulated bags and cutting boards.  The councils purchased a television for recorded cooking demos.  The idea of the cooking demos is for clientele to watch while waiting for their names to be called to get their food or can take a jump drive home with videos to watch.  They are required to watch 5 videos and then will receive a gift card to a local grocery store.  They will also receive a voucher for the Farmers Market from the Henderson County Diabetes Coalition.  A true partnership was created with the Community Christian Outreach, Henderson Diabetes Coalition and the Henderson County Cooperative Extension Service.  Evaluations are prepared and videos are still be created to add to the hard drives.