By TIM THORNBERRY
Kentucky Correspondent

FRANKFORT, Ky. — In a country that enjoys the most bountiful, inexpensive food supply of any on the planet, far too many are hungry and the number is growing in the wake of a bad economy.

FFA students in Franklin County are keenly aware of that problem and have been working to help provide a bit of the remedy by way of a project that has taken market animals from the farms to the tables of a local community kitchen.
The group recently announced a donation of lamb and beef to the Access Soup Kitchen located in Frankfort.

J.R. Zinner, the FFA advisor at Western Hills High School (WHHS) said the project has taught the students more than just community service.

“I think the biggest thing we have to do as far as agriculture industry members is to make our community members aware of agriculture commodities,” said Zinner. “Now that we are seeing generations off the farm two and three deep, people are becoming less literate about where their food comes from. They listen to the media, but they don’t necessarily hear it from the source so, it’s great to get these students involved in the process.”

The idea came from WHHS FFA and Bluegrass Region President Ali Higgs, who attended the Washington Leadership Conference and participated in an activity in which FFA members helped the less fortunate. One of the things they did was known as a poverty dinner in which members got a look at what it’s like to not have enough food. Higgs brought that idea of helping back to her chapter.
“This is a very important activity for young people because, I think a lot times we forget those that are less fortunate in our communities,” she said. “Not only will you gain all kinds of life skills from showing livestock about being responsible and having to care for something, but when you are able to bring it full circle, not only learning those things, but giving back to the community, it’s a really good experience.”

The project began with students who, early in the winter, pick out market animals to exhibit then raised them throughout the summer. At the culmination of the show season, there was a livestock investment auction, the first for Franklin County. Each exhibitor went through the auction process and buyers had the opportunity to donate their animals, once processed to the soup kitchen. A hog and market lamb were donated from the sale.

Linda Brown, the executive director of Access, was on the receiving end of the donations and said that often they can only serve sandwich-type meals, but the donation meant they will have meat for their meals and the kitchen serves a lot of meals.

“We serve over 27,000 meals a year. I think we don’t realize that there are so many homeless people that migrate to Frankfort,” she said. “We’ve been real blessed to have the food we have and the people here to bring it to us.” 
But the fact that students have become so involved in helping doesn’t surprise Brown, who also serves as a youth minister. Being concerned in the future was just something she grew up with she said.

Brown added that the kitchen is always looking for volunteers and they get a variety of age groups coming in to do so.

Anna Hawkins, the leadership chair of WHHS FFA, shows livestock, and it was one of her animals that became part of the meat donation.

“This past summer I (exhibited) show lambs and participated in the livestock auction and the buyer of her lamb donated it to the soup kitchen,” she said.
Hawkins also said she was glad to have participated in a project in which she put so much time into what would ultimately benefit so many others.
Being a volunteer herself at the kitchen, Hawkins said she knew of the needs the facility has but never realized how much she could contribute. “It was really a surprise as to how much I could help,” she said.

Hawkins is very much an example of what a growing number of FFA members are, that being a member without a farming background. She took an “introduction to ag” class at school and became involved in the chapter and an aquaculture class. Being interested in marine biology, the class will help in her future endeavors she said.

Students, school and community members gathered at WHHS to hear the announcement the day before Thanksgiving by way of a press conference, completely organized and run by the FFA and 4-H members themselves.
Zinner said that organizing such an event was another lesson students learned in  organizing the project.