Monday, January 19, is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. It’s a day off for many of us, but it’s also celebrated as a day of service – “a day on, not a day off” – where Americans are also encouraged to get out and join efforts to make their communities a better place. One of the biggest local service activities is a Triangle-wide meal-packing event that’s being organized by area Rotary clubs: hundreds of volunteers will gather in multiple locations to pack 180,000 meals for local residents in need. This is the 19th year of their annual effort; over the years they’ve give out over 2 million meals.

Do you want to participate in the effort? Drop off non-perishable food items at Christ United Methodist Church in Southern Village on Monday, January 19, from noon to 2 p.m. 

Aaron welcomes Christy Jones of the East Chapel Hill Rotary Club to discuss Monday’s effort and the larger cause of hunger relief.

97.9 The Hill WCHL and Chapelboro.com are your headquarters for local news and local voices in Chapel Hill-Carrboro. Every weekday morning, 97.9 The Hill’s Aaron Keck chats with government officials, UNC scholars, business and nonprofit leaders, area musicians, and others in our community as they share their thoughts, their experience, and their expertise on the central issues of today. Click here to listen back to all of Aaron’s conversations – and tune in to “This Morning with Aaron Keck” at 7:30 a.m. on 97.9 The Hill to hear those conversations live.

You can also listen to “This Morning with Aaron Keck” on Spotify. Click here to follow Aaron and listen to all his segments, from local news to fun features to hard-hitting interviews.

Listen:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Related Stories
‹
A Mission of Mercy, Then a Fatal Strike: How an Aid Convoy in Gaza Became Israel’s Target
Written by JACK JEFFERY, JULIA FRANKEL and WAFAA SHURAFA It was hours after sundown when the eight aid trucks drove from the makeshift jetty, cobbled together from tons of wreckage left across Gaza by months of war. The trucks were escorted by three vehicles carrying aid workers from the World Central Kitchen, the relief organization that […]
Once Starved by War, Millions of Ethiopians Go Hungry Again as US, UN Pause Aid After Massive Theft
Written by ELLEN KNICKMEYER and CARA ANNA An Orthodox Christian priest, Tesfa Kiros Meresfa begs door-to-door for food along with countless others recovering from a two-year war in northern Ethiopia that starved his people. To his dismay, urgently needed grain and oil have disappeared again for millions caught in a standoff between Ethiopia’s government, the United States and United […]
US Food Banks Struggle To Feed Hungry Amid Surging Prices
Written by JANIE HAR U.S. food banks already dealing with increased demand from families sidelined by the pandemic now face a new challenge — surging food prices and supply chain issues walloping the nation. The higher costs and limited availability mean some families may get smaller servings or substitutions for staples such as peanut butter, […]
Nobel Peace Prize Awarded to Journalists Ressa and Muratov
Written by KIKO ROSARIO, FRANK JORDANS and VANESSA GERA Journalists Maria Ressa of the Philippines and Dmitry Muratov of Russia won the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for their fight for freedom of expression in countries where reporters have faced persistent attacks, harassment and even murder. “Free, independent and fact-based journalism serves to protect against abuse […]
In Multiple Countries, Alarm Over Hunger Crisis Rings Louder
The twin baby boys lay on a bed of woven palm leaves in a remote camp for displaced people in Yemen’s north, their collar bones and ribs visible. They cried loudly, twisting as if in pain, not from disease but from the hunger gnawing away at them. Here, U.N. officials’ increasingly dire warnings that a […]
Virus-Linked Hunger Tied to 10,000 Child Deaths Each Month
The lean season is coming for Burkina Faso’s children. And this time, the long wait for the harvest is bringing a hunger more ferocious than most have ever known. That hunger is already stalking Haboue Solange Boue, an infant who has lost half her former body weight of 5.5 pounds in the last month. With […]
PORCH Marks A Million; TABLE Expands
Two local hunger relief nonprofits are separately announcing big news.
Somalia Is in a Deadly Drought Again. Most Humanitarian Aid Isn’t There This Time
Yet another drought is affecting millions of people across Somalia as it feels climate shocks. Cuts to aid are compounding the crisis.
Cubans Rendered Powerless as Outages Persist and Tensions With US Escalate
People in Cuba are plunged into darkness daily and forced to cook with coal and firewood. But not everyone can survive this new reality.
On Air Today: Triangle Rotary Clubs Packing Meals on MLK Day
Triangle-area Rotary clubs are coming together on MLK Day to pack meals for 180,000 residents in need - and they want your donations.
›