Nonprofit group Free the Children says that its We Scare Hunger campaign, made possible by the General Mills Foundation, encourages American youth to help those struggling with hunger by collecting goods for their local food pantry on and before Halloween.
The goal of We Scare Hunger, the group says, is to generate awareness around local hunger-related issues in addition to raising necessary food items for local food banks across the U.S. Throughout the month, students, teachers and schools are invited to sign up to receive free program materials and resources. As participants in the program, young people organize food drives throughout their schools or communities, and then on the evening of Oct. 31 conclude their efforts on Halloween by trick-or-treating for canned goods and other nonperishable products, in addition to traditional candy. All food is then donated to local food banks.
Clear Channel Communities, the community engagement arm of Clear Channel, as the campaign’s official media sponsor, is promoting We Scare Hunger on all 850 Clear Channel Media and Entertainment radio stations from Oct. 21–31 with a series of PSAs. The Clear Channel-produced spots will aim to mobilize youth, teachers and parents by asking each audience to collect/hand-out nonperishable foods items in addition to candy.
“Last year, students from more than 1,500 schools across North America collected an estimated 875,000 pounds of food to help combat hunger in their communities,” said Craig Kielburger, co-founder, Free the Children. “This year, students hope to raise 1 million pounds of food for local food banks.”
