New Opportunities, Carroll— Haul Out Hunger
posted on Thursday, June 27, 2019
“People don’t realize that there are individuals and families that are homeless or couch surfing right here in Carroll County,” said Kristina Grossman at New Opportunities. “They’re staying at friends and relatives or in their cars every night, not knowing what the next day has in store. It’s a very scary reality for many people.”
According to Feeding America, 341,890 Iowans are struggling with hunger—111,520 are children. The unfortunate reality is that many Iowans are also struggling with homelessness.
“We are here to lend a helping hand when it matters most,” continued Kristina. “If we know someone is homeless we connect them with local organizations to help.”
Growing up in Carroll County, Kristina never knew hunger was a problem in her community until she was in high school and saw someone asking for money on the corner. “I couldn’t believe there were people struggling in my own community,” she said. “After seeing that, I knew I wanted to come home and make a difference after college.”
At New Opportunities, she’s doing just that.
“We help with a variety of services, but most are geared towards emergency situations,” explained Kristina. “The food pantry is definitely one of the most used services, but we also offer a clothing closet, education, medical, dental and mental health services, among others.”
During today’s visit, Haul Out Hunger loaded the freezers at New Opportunities in Carroll with 240 pork loins—enough to provide 4,320 servings of pork for individuals and families in need.
“For such a small community, people don’t realize we have so much poverty, but we do,” she said. “This donation of pork loins is going to feed a lot of struggling families.”
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