Hope Full Life Center made gallons of soup as part of a February fundraiser to support the Senior Projects of Ravena. The Soups for Seniors event featured soups made by businesses and individuals from all over the area. For $5 the public sampled these soups and voted on their favorites. The Center made a delicious ham and potato soup using many ingredients from Helping Harvest. The Senior Projects raised $1,000 at the event.
Senior citizen food insecurity is a pressing topic during this time of extraordinary food prices. In 2020, 1 in 15 seniors or 6.8% of all seniors faced hunger. Hunger puts seniors at risk for chronic health conditions like depression, asthma, and diabetes. Helping Harvest, the center's food assistance program, has seen a surge of senior usage.
"Seniors may be very vulnerable to food insecurity without the services of a strong, local senior center," said Rebecca Flach, executive director of Hope Full Life Center. "We were excited to be a part of this event to protect the services we know seniors need in the community."
The Senior Projects of Ravena is a community gem. Best known for its group meals where seniors gather to dine and mingle, Senior Projects also provides meals to other Albany County senior residences and coordinates Meals on Wheels. The senior center houses a thrift shop, provides medical transport, and hosts fun events like bingo, fitness and art classes. Our community, and especially our senior citizens, need Senior Projects!
While Hope Full Life Center's soup didn't win the soup contest we had a great time supporting this very worthy fellow charity.