There were two good stories in the Great Bend Tribune this morning about efforts to serve and advocate for those who go hungry. The first, an Editorial Opinion by Chuck Smith, describes how the City of New York is "killing two birds with one stone," or rather, "killing one bird for two reasons."

Remember that U.S. Airways Flight 1549 that landed in the Hudson River in 2009 after geese were caught in its engines? Well, the geese haven't gone away, and they continue to pose a safety hazard for planes that are arriving and taking off from the New York airport. To solve the problem, the city authorized the eradication of the geese by capturing, euthanizing, and disposing of them in local landfills. Some aren't  keen about the birds being dumped into landfills.

So, the New York City Department of Environmental Protection now plans to send the captured geese to a Pennsylvania slaughterhouse where the high-protein, free-range meat will be sent to food banks, and subsequently fed to needy New Yorkers. What a brilliant idea!

The second story is about a group of local Great Bend students from the Youth Workers Alliance--a combination of youth groups from several different churches--who are fighting hunger this weekend. Here's the good part: they want you to come join them tomorrow night (Saturday, 6-18-11) for free food and a concert! Read on . . .

Starting today, the students are participating in a nationwide 30 Hour Famine that's sponsored by World Vision, and aimed at raising awareness and fighting world hunger. More specifically, they are getting a taste of what the world's poorest children and families fast every day as they fast and volunteer in service projects around Great Bend including Meals on Wheels and the Hungry Heart Soup Kitchen.Tonight, they will build a cardboard village, sleep on the convent lawn, and watch movies about poverty and hunger. Students have also raised money that will be donated to the local food bank, and World Vision

Tomorrow night at 6 p.m., the rest of us are invited to help the students break fast with dinner and a concert featuring the McPherson band Evelyn on the south lawn of the Heartland Center for Spirituality at 3600 Broadway Ave in Great Bend KS. Your free will offering and cans of food are welcome. The kids have already learned that every $30 they raise can help feed and care for a child for a month.

According to World Vision, hunger and preventable diseases claim the lives of 24,000 of the world's children every day. With more than 6 billion living on the planet, one in six will go hungry tonight. Do you know someone around you who seems to be having a little trouble putting food on the table? If so, please call one of our offices listed at the bottom of this page and let's see if we can help them! Click here to read more about resources and ways to assist those who go hungry in our local communities.