This week, over 250 community members are participating in the United Way of King County Hunger Challenge. We have been lucky enough to hear from some participants about how their first day went and some initial thoughts and reflections on the challenge. Read about Lauren Lutz’s first day below and sign up to take the Hunger Challenge:  

“Today is my first day starting the United Way Hunger Challenge and I can already tell this is going to more difficult than I had mentally prepared myself for.  For breakfast, I had a banana (which I bought as a bunch for $2.50, one for each morning). I normally get a Chai tea on my way to work but considering that would be half of my daily allowance I had to sacrifice that luxury.  For lunch, I brought an Eating Right frozen squash ravioli meal that I purchased for $2. Looking at the nutrition facts, I’m actually pretty impressed, although I don’t know if I could do a frozen meal for too long a period. After eating the frozen entrée, I’m still pretty hungry because the proportion is smaller than I normally eat for lunch. This left me $4 for dinner, which I was stumped on until my mom suggested a can of soup. I purchased a can of Tortilla soup for $3 but was unable to afford the Frito chips and cheddar cheese that I normally add for flavor. I had planned to buy a small candy bar for desert but with tax I was already at $6.83. So you may ask, did you get enough to eat? Well the answer  is no. Without my morning chai, my normal afternoon snack, and a large dinner I’m going to bed still craving more!  I’m already planning what I will get to eat tomorrow; food will be in my dreams tonight!”

We’d love to hear from you too! How did your first day go? Did you have enough to eat, or did you go to bed less than satisfied like Lauren? Post your thoughts in the comments section of this entry.