News/Updates

Hurricane Melissa devastated Jamaica’s central and western parishes, including significant damage to crops and infrastructure – limiting reliable access to food. Many rural areas remain isolated from assistance, and families are struggling to meet the most basic needs. Love the Hungry is donating 130,000 fortified Nutri-Plenty® meals to help stabilize communities. Partnering with ON MISSION NETWORK and MEDCORE, meals will be directed to areas where food insecurity is highest and access is most difficult. Local churches will play a critical role in identifying needs and serving as distribution points. Our thanks to Transport Ministries for delivering 600 cartons of nutritious meals to a Florida warehouse facility where they will be expedited to Jamaica.

More and more families are experiencing food insecurity throughout our communities. In response to significantly increased demand at local food pantries, Love the Hungry donated more than 30,000 fortified Nutri-Plenty® meals to Dare to Care Food Bank and other local outreach programs. It is estimated that 1 in 7 Kentuckians live in households struggling with hunger, and in the poorest counties, 1 in 4 households experience food insecurity. Nutri-Plenty® meals are easy to prepare, and provide the nutrients essential for good health, with a flavorful blend of rice, soy protein, dehydrated vegetables, and M+ Micronutrients.

While the primary focus of Love the Hungry is delivering life-changing nutrition to the world’s most vulnerable children, we are also committed to helping our neighbors in need. In 2025, distribution to Kentucky, Southern Indiana, and the U.S. has more than doubled.

In addition to celebrating 10,000,000 total meals packaged, the month of September was filled with many highlights:

— 727 volunteers of all ages produced 72,918 Nutri-Plenty servings! Participants included St. Peter’s Lutheran School (Columbus, IN), ELSB SOUL Day of Service (University of Louisville), St. John Paul II Parish, Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA), and Mt. Tabor Church.

— More than 70,000 fortified meals were donated to Operation Ukraine/Rotary International. Many of the meals will be used to help care for children displaced by the war in Ukraine. YTD, more than 535,000 meals have been provided to partnering organizations in six different countries – including the U.S.

— Donors responded generously on September 18th during Give for Good Louisville day, resulting in $9,250 of support for the mission of Love the Hungry. Every dollar has a direct impact on multiplying the meals.

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More than 50 volunteers gathered on Saturday, September 6th to help Love the Hungry surpass a major milestone – 10,000,000 total meals packaged! “Today we celebrate the work of more than 54,000 volunteers of all ages”, remarked Dale Oelker, Executive Director. “But today is also a reminder that despite our best efforts, far too many children throughout the world are suffering. Whether it be war or political conflict, natural disasters, or other circumstances, we must never forget that we are called and equipped to demonstrate care and compassion for the hungry through the nutritious meals that each of you are creating.” With the support and cooperation of many partnerships, Love the Hungry has impacted children and families in more than 40 countries worldwide – including the U.S.

Since 2012, Love the Hungry has been dedicated to ending hunger by providing nutrient-rich meals that are proven to reverse the effects of malnutrition – especially in young children. Thanks to your support, we’re reaching an extraordinary milestone: 10 million total meals packaged! It’s a moment worth celebrating, and we want YOU there with us. Join us Saturday, September 6th at 10 AM, and be part of the group that produces the 10,000,000th meal.

For more details, including volunteer registration, click here: https://lovethehungry.harnessgiving.org/events/3195

Cruise on out to Waddy, KY on Saturday, June 7th from 11 AM – 3 PM for the 7th annual Double D Farm Cruise-In benefiting Love the Hungry! The event includes dozens of classic cars and trucks, music from the Black Dog String Band, live and silent auctions, and delicious food from the La Cabanita Mexican Grill food truck. Enter the Bourbon Raffle for a chance to win one of three prizes: 1) Six-bottle complete set of Weller 2) Six-bottle collection of limited edition Blanton’s single barrel varieties 3) Complete set of 8 Blanton’s Single Barrel bottles featuring each of the eight toppers. Drawing takes place at 2 PM. Charitable Exemption EXE0002776. Phone 502-533-8045.

For more details, including online raffle tickets, click here: https://lovethehungry.harnessgiving.org/events/2886

1st Qtr Highlights Include 250,000+ Meals Provided for Global Outreach

Just 90 days into the new year, Love the Hungry is celebrating several points of impact in our mission to deliver nutritious meals to children and families worldwide.

— 550 volunteers of all ages participated in January, February, and March packaging sessions.

— More than 250,000 meals were provided to the following distribution points:

Operation Ukraine/World of Connections, Orphan Grain Train-Indiana/Swedish Help Centre in Ukraine, SOS International/Selfless Community in Cuba, Nile Orphan Care – Juba, South Sudan, Neighborhood House-Louisville, Bread of Life/Ormsby Heights Baptist Church, Feeding America-Nelson County, Harrison County Community Services, Breaking Bread Food Pantry

Volunteers from Nile Orphan Care (NOC) and Partners in Compassionate Care loaded a shipping container with humanitarian aid that included 142,000 fortified Nutri-Plenty® meals. The shipment also includes farm machinery and building materials that will be utilized on the NOC campus in Juba, South Sudan. More than 600 orphaned children are provided nutritious meals, education, and leadership skills at a time when violence and political unrest continue to disrupt the African nation. With generous support from local nonprofits SOS and WaterStep, medications, PPE, and bleach makers were also included in the shipment to help fight against a recent cholera outbreak.

Love the Hungry also donated 28,000 Nutri-Plenty® servings to local nonprofit SOS to assist with a shipment of medical aid to Cuba.

In 2024, more than 3,300 volunteers participated in 81 packaging sessions throughout the year. With the help of numerous partnerships, Love the Hungry provided 840,000 fortified Nutri-Plenty meals to Ethiopia, Ghana, Guatemala, Haiti, India, Kenya, Malawi, South Sudan, Ukraine, and the United States to assist children and families most vulnerable to hunger and malnutrition.

More than 30,000 meals were delivered to Eastern Tennessee/ North Carolina in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene.