Hunger and Democracy in Boulder County: Supporting Families

Audrey Johnson, Director of Programs at Emergency Family Assistance Association, says that people do not understand how prevalent hunger is in an affluent community like Boulder.

“The biggest thing is that people think that here in Boulder County we don’t have poverty, people think this is a rich community, but there is poverty and homeless and it is hidden in our County.”

The average annual income of families that visit EFAA is $15,000. With the high cost of living in Boulder County, that means these families are relying on food assistance programs like Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP.) Johnson says she is concerned about the future food security of these families if there are any cuts to these social assistance programs.

President Trump’s budget proposes $10 billion in mandatory cuts from agriculture programs over ten years. It is expected that most, if not all, of that could come from SNAP.

Audrey Johnson spoke with Elizabeth Crowe, Director of Communications for LWVBC, after a screening of the movie “A Place at the Table” hosted by the League of Women Voters of Boulder County as part of their series Hunger and Democracy in Boulder County.

The next event in the series is on Saturday , November 18th, 2:30pm to 4:30, at St. Andrew Presbyterian Church, Boulder.

The panelists include:

• Terri Livermore, Food Systems Policy Director with Live Well Colorado
• Liz Rowland, Food Bank Manager at the Emergency Family Assistance Association (EFAA)
• Lindsey Loberg of Boulder Food Rescue
• Kathy Underhill, CEO of Hunger Free Colorado
• Alison Brisnehan, Boulder County Dept of Housing and Human Services

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