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The Alliance has more than 500 member organizations, agencies and individuals from around the state. The six Feeding America food banks are the heart of our network. Become a member of the Alliance by clicking the button below.

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ABout our membership

Our members are as diverse as the regions of the state itself, ranging from global food retailers to legislators to small food pantries, to friends and neighbors. But large or small, they all have one thing in common: they are committed to making sure that no Arkansan goes without food. We invite you to become a member of the Alliance and a partner in our mission. Membership fees are tax deductible.

Member Directory

Membership levels

Become an alliance member today! Register on line by clicking on the membership level below that best describes you.

If you prefer to print a membership form and send it to us by mail along with your membership fees, use the Membership Form below.

Membership Form

Become an Alliance member and join us for next year’s membership meeting, Thursday, September 26th, 2024.

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Local Hunger Relief Organizations

Membership is available to local organizations such as food pantries, emergency shelters, food rescues, and soup kitchens that provide direct hunger relief to those in need. – $25 annually

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Individual Hunger Advocate

Individual members lend their voices on issues related to hunger in Arkansas at the state and national levels. Join other individuals and groups from around the state by staying up-to-date about hunger-related legislation through action alerts, learning how to advocate, meeting with state representatives and senators, and attending state committee meetings. – $25 annually

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Statewide Advocacy/State Agency Programs

Statewide organizations that advocate, do research, or have an interest in ensuring Arkansas families have enough to eat are valued members of the Alliance. Membership is also those who run federal programs that focus on nutrition or hunger issues. – $125 annually

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Individual Lifetime Membership

Individual members lend their voices on issues related to hunger in Arkansas at the state and national levels. Join other individuals and groups from around the state by staying up-to-date about hunger-related legislation through action alerts, learning how to advocate, meeting with state representatives and senators, and attending state committee meetings. This membership does not expire. – $200 (one-time fee)

Become a Member

Membership benefits

As a member of the Alliance, you will have access to the tools and support your organization needs to reduce hunger in your community. Membership benefits include the following:

Grant Opportunities

Membership Conference

Support Network

SNAP Application Training + Support

No Kid Hungry Program Support

Cooking Matters Program Training

ServSafe Training

Lobby Day

Advocacy Alerts

2022 Membership Meeting Recap

The Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance invited members from around Arkansas to join together virtually, Thursday, September 15th. We voted on new board members, heard the state of the Alliance from our CEO, Kathy Webb, and attended a food insecurity discussion featuring a panel of hunger relief experts including Kenya Eddings, Arkansas Minority Health Commission ED; Rhonda Sanders, Arkansas Foodbank CEO; and Dr. Jennie Popp, University of Arkansas Associate Dean.

During our food insecurity discussion, we heard from Ms. Eddings about the important work the Governor’s Food Desert Working Group has been doing in the state to solve the food desert crisis in Arkansas, Mrs. Sanders explained how supply chain issues and costs impact the available food received by food banks for distribution, and Dr. Popp addressed hunger on college campuses in Arkansas with a review of her college hunger report findings.

Alliance CEO Kathy Webb delivers the State of the Alliance.

Kenya Eddings

Arkansas Minority Health Commission

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Kenya Eddings, MPH is the eighth Executive Director of Arkansas Minority Health Commission. The Little Rock native holds a bachelor of science degree from Tuskegee University and master of public health degree from Tulane University School of Public Health. Prior to joining AMHC, Eddings served as the Worksite Wellness Director for the Arkansas Department of Health (ADH). In this role, she helped state agencies, non-profits, and for-profit businesses establish and maintain wellness programs. A portion of her duties included training the aforementioned on the importance of lactation accommodations in the workplace and in the public.

Rhonda Sanders

Arkansas Foodbank

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Rhonda Sanders is the CEO of the Arkansas Foodbank. The Arkansas Foodbank acquires, processes, and distributes food and other services to 33 counties in Arkansas. In January of 2016, the Arkansas Foodbank and the Arkansas Rice Depot merged to form a new, stronger organization focused on helping those in need have access to nutritious food. Under Rhonda’s leadership, Arkansas Foodbank distributed 38 million pounds of food in 2021 which provided enough food for approximately 31 million meals. The Arkansas Foodbank is a member of the Feeding America network. Currently, Rhonda serves as a co-chair for the Feeding America Contract Taskforce and is the immediate past chair for the Feeding America Policy Engagement and Advocacy Committee. In 2019 Rhonda was awarded the Feeding America Dick Goebel Public Service Award for the impact her advocacy efforts had on public policy to assist people facing hunger.

Dr. Jennie Popp

University of Arkansas

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Jennie Popp, Ph.D. is a Professor of Agricultural Economics and the Associate Dean of the Honors College at University of Arkansas. As Associate Dean, Dr. Popp contributes to student success initiatives through the management of Honors College study abroad and research grant programs, the facilitation of the development of service learning and other new courses, promotion of undergraduate research activities. Her teaching and research has focused on identification and implementation of sustainable agricultural best management practices as well as food insecurity. She has been the lead or co-principle investigator on over $20 million in federally competitive grants to support her research.

Resources

A Member Must-Read: I Was Hungry offers not only an assessment of food insecurity but also a strategy for addressing it. Jeremy Everett, a noted advocate for the hungry and poor, calls communities to work intentionally across ideological divides to build trust with one another and impoverished communities and effectively end America’s hunger crisis. Everett, a guest speaker for the Alliance, was appointed by Congress to the National Commission on Hunger, founded and directs the Texas Hunger Initiative. In I Was Hungry, Everett details the organization’s history and tells stories of its work with communities from West Texas to Washington, DC, helping people of all political persuasions understand how they can work together to make a difference in their community.

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Feeding the Hungry: Organizing and Operating a Food Pantry

Safe Food handling.

The Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance offers food safety training and certification through the ServSafe program. Feeding America requires its member food banks to have at least one ServSafe certified person on staff and that all key food handling staff and volunteers be trained, with certification optional but recommended. Agency personnel are required to receive training, but certification is optional. If you are interested in training for your staff or agencies, please contact Michelle Shope at mshope@arhungeralliance.org.