Happy 30th Birthday to us!
And by “us” we mean you too.
Because Just Harvest couldn’t have come this far without you.
Our Dec. 22, 1986 Articles of Incorporation!
A very special thank you to Joyce Rothermel and Patrick Cleary-Burns and the rest of our founding Board of Directors for their vision: an organization working to address the root causes of hunger, advocating for those in need, and fighting for economic justice for all.
We realize 30 years may not sound like something to celebrate when it comes to this kind of work. Quite frankly, in a better world we wouldn’t exist at all.
But the struggle for a fair society is as old as society itself. There will always be a need for advocates to challenge the powerful and to help the vulnerable.
We are happy to play that role, especially with you in our corner. And we are proud of what we have accomplished together in the past 3 decades.
- 1989: Won school breakfast programs for area school districts
- 1994-96: Organized area welfare recipients into the Welfare Justice Project, empowering them to take on Congress in the federal welfare reform battle
- 2002: Launched our free tax preparation program to help maximize the earnings of low-income households in Allegheny County
- 2007: Launched our food stamps application assistance and advocacy service to connect thousands of hungry people with the nation’s cornerstone nutrition program
- 2013: Issued the “Menu for Food Justice” report putting the issue of food deserts in Allegheny County on the map, and launched our Fresh Access program to enable food stamp use at farmers markets
- 2014-15: Achieved key wins on challenging state barriers to benefits
- 2016: Launched Fresh Corners to help corner stores in under-served neighborhoods start selling fresh fruits and vegetables
In 2017, we’ll face what may be our biggest challenge yet. Because if Republican leaders in D.C. are successful in their plan to dismantle not just the Affordable Care Act but our nation’s fundamental safety net programs, like Food Stamps and Medicaid — that would be a devastating loss in the fight against hunger.
This will be the battle of our lives, but it’s a battle we can win if we have your help.
And we don’t want to just defend critical programs from attack. We want to expand and strengthen them. So in 2017, we will also be working to:
- Boost children’s participation in school breakfast programs and seniors’ enrollment in food stamps;
- Expand the use of Produce Prescriptions by doctors in area hospitals to promote the role of nutrition in health;
- Increase the number of our Fresh Access markets and Fresh Corners stores;
- Play a bigger role in statewide efforts to raise the minimum wage and to improve Pennsylvania’s ‘s budget priorities; and
- Stand up for fair taxes in PA (in an exciting new campaign!) and for more tax breaks for low-income working people.
Through 3 decades of progress and victories, Just Harvest has made our founders’ vision a reality. We can continue to do so, with your support!
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