[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 89 (Tuesday, June 5, 2007)]
[House]
[Page H5980]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    RECOGNIZING HUNGER AWARENESS DAY

  (Mr. LARSEN of Washington asked and was given permission to address 
the House for 1 minute.)
  Mr. LARSEN of Washington. Mr. Speaker, today I rise in recognition of 
Hunger Awareness Day.
  Each day millions of our fellow Americans will go to bed hungry. In 
my home State of Washington, around 95,000 families suffer from hunger. 
Each day, approximately 300,000 families in Washington State are forced 
to choose between putting food on the table and paying their bills. 
Worst of all, 39 percent of those served by Washington's largest hunger 
relief agency are children.
  In the wealthiest and most agriculture-rich nation in this world, 
this is simply unacceptable. As Americans, we all must do our part to 
make sure everyone in our communities, young and old, get enough to 
eat.
  In my district, organizations like the Boys and Girls Club of Monroe, 
Washington, are using today to hold food drives and benefit dinners to 
support local food banks. Many organizations across the State and 
Nation are doing their part to fight the hunger epidemic. We need to 
match their efforts in Congress.
  So as Congress works to reauthorize the farm bill this year, we need 
to make sure that Federal anti-hunger programs and emergency food 
assistance programs get the resources they need. I want to thank our 
local leaders in Washington State and across the country for their work 
fighting hunger, and I call on my colleagues in Congress to join their 
efforts.

                          ____________________