Nourish America rings in giving season with campaign
about how to give back, Nourish America is launching its 1,000 for
$1,000 campaign to improving the health of Americans in need.
The non-profit organization is looking for one thousand donations of $1,000 or more by the end of 2007, in order to provide vitamin supplementation and nourishing foods to children, families and seniors. According to the charity, during the first week of the campaign, over two dozen individual and corporate donors have responded. "We believe that a key reason that people and organizations answer our requests for donations is that people today have a stronger understanding of the role that nutrition plays in maintaining good health," Michael Morton, Nourish America executive director. "The widespread popularity of fitness programs and the trend toward healthier diets among the general public underlines the importance of Nourish America's work to provide micronutrient supplementation for those at risk for nutritional deficiencies." A large percentage of the American population falls short of recommended intakes of numerous vitamins and minerals. When added to this already low starting point, factors of poverty and food insecurity only exacerbate standards of nutrition for many of America's children, who are not getting all the essential nutrients they need for optimal development. In the long run, this affects their development potential as they are at increased risk of impaired brain function, low immunity, stunted growth, or behavioral disorders. The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) estimated that, in 2005, 35.1 million American people lived in households considered to be food insecure. Of these, 22.7 million were adults (10.4 percent of all adults) and 12.4 million were children (16.9 percent of all children). "The 1,000 for $1,000 campaign reflects our belief that by working together, individuals and corporate donors can make a huge dent in the pressing problem of nutritional deficiency among children, seniors and the impoverished," said Nourish America president Connie Whitaker. The organization was founded in 1999, and its recent projects have included the Nourishing Katrina's Forgotten Children initiative, which assisted victims of Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf States. As a special encouragement, Nourish America will publicly recognize donations and donors on its web site. Corporate contributors cited so far include Clear Products, Phytotherapy, Tishcon, George Berkley, Sissy Biggers, Marcus Samuelson, Sean Hyson, Emmanuel Pierre-Antoine, Liz Neporent, Jerry Markbreit, CRT Tanaka,, the Council for Responsible Nutrition, Glynnis Milekowsky, RZN Nutriceuticals, American Biosciences, Healthy Directions, Sigma Tau Health Sciences and Safety Call.
