Ante Up for Hunger
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Times are tough for everyone these days – but all the more so for children whose parents cannot afford to pack them a healthy school lunch. That's why ANTE UP FOR HUNGER, Yad Ezra's annual spring fundraiser which provides lunches for kids in need, is ever more important this year.
"Our dollars don't go as far as they used to in any situation," says Lea Luger, Yad Ezra executive director. "We used to give groceries to 1,100 families every month. In the past year, that number has increased exponentially. And it's the children who are hit hardest."
ANTE UP FOR HUNGER, in its fifth year, raises money for the Yad Ezra lunch assistance program, which feeds kids in Jewish day schools. Metro Detroit is home to 10 Jewish day schools and dozens of Jewish preschools.
Event Details:
Saturday, March 6, 2010 8-11 p.m.
$50 per person + $50 poker buy-in
Location:
Yad Ezra
2850 W. 11 Mile Rd.,
Berkley, MI
RSVP: (248) 548-FOOD
Yad Ezra's Lunch Assistance Program feeds more than 500 students among these institutions – confidentially. For many of these children, the lunches are the healthiest meal they have each day, as the price of healthy lowfat proteins, whole grains and fresh produce continues to rise.
Connected with the Lunch Assistance Program, Yad Ezra is also providing the schools with a Healthy Minds and Bodies program, to teach children how to read food labels, follow the food pyramid, be savvy about nutrition and create healthy habits which include good nutrition and regular exercise.
"This event is great fun for all involved – and it's meaningful because we know that the proceeds from the night are going to a very worthy cause," says Nancy Kleinfeldt, Ante Up co-chair. The fundraiser features a Texas Hold'em Poker tournament, Bingo, a silent auction and other festivities.
Statewide, 19% of Michigan children live in poverty. Yad Ezra is a food pantry, providing groceries to some 1,600 families per month. A recipient does not have to be Jewish to qualify. In 2009, 500 more families per month sought assistance from Yad Ezra, compared with 2007.
Yad Ezra means "helping hand" in Hebrew. It is an independent agency that provides free groceries, toiletries and household goods to needy families in southeastern Michigan every month. More than 700 Jewish day school students are given healthy lunches every month due to Yad Ezra's strategic fundraising.
