“When everything’s burned because there’s no water and the sun is so hot that it’s 115 degrees, and you have no food … you start picking which child and which adult gets to eat,” our Guatemalan partner said.
It’s a decision parents all over the world are forced to confront.
Every day is a struggle for families who don’t have enough food to eat. In Central America’s dry corridor, a severe drought has devastated maize and bean crops leaving people vulnerable to hunger and malnutrition. Children are especially susceptible.
And in places like South Sudan, years of violent unrest and vicious rights abuses have caused critical food shortages. Food and fuel prices have spiked, while trade and local markets have been disrupted, depleting the country’s food stocks, according to the United Nations.
So, parents are forced to choose who eats … and who doesn’t.
Do you feed the youngest? Do you give food to an elderly grandparent who is frail and sick? Do you rotate which family member eats each day?
It’s a morbid schedule to think about.
But moms and dads living in poverty, like in the villages of Guatemala, are resigned to the fact they’ll most likely lose a child because of malnutrition or starvation.
“It’s so normal to the people in this country to see their children die,” our Guatemala partner explained.
But you can help feed a starving child for an entire year — starting today. For $40, you’ll provide nutritious, vitamin-enriched food that not only fills a child’s stomach, but also helps him or her grow up healthy and strong.
The food your $40 provides is specifically formulated to help fight malnutrition in children. It is packed with nutrients including …
• Proteins
• Vitamins A, B12, C, and D
• Carbohydrates
• Fats
• Folic Acid
• Calcium
• Iron
• Zinc
Each of these are vital for growing boys and girls, but they are missing from the diets of children in poverty … especially for those living in areas facing food shortages.
After visiting several remote villages in the Guatemalan mountains, another of our partners shared this heartbreaking story:
“The people told me that because of the drought this year they had lost their crops, so they had no money for food. When [we] went to a couple of homes, only the children were home. We asked them if they would like us to pray for them, and their one prayer request was for food.”
Will you help prevent a mother from having to choose which child she’ll feed today?
Instead, YOU can choose to provide food for a starving child for 365 days — for just two $20 bills. It will be the best choice you make today.