In one short week, our Tampa Bay hometown will host Super Bowl LV.
The Super Bowl stadium, aka Raymond James Stadium, which typically seats over 65,000 spectators, will be occupied at 20% capacity due to COVID restrictions - seating 22,000 fans and vaccinated healthcare workers.
22,000 people is a lot of people.
If Tampa Bay were to grant Super Bowl tickets to every person struggling with hunger across Tampa Bay, we would need 45 stadiums to meet the need.
At full capacity, that would be 15 stadiums.
Over the past year, 1+ million people across the Tampa Bay area have sought food assistance.
That breaks down to 1 in every 6 adults across our region looking to us to feed themselves and their families.
And 1 in every 4 children in our region lacking daily meals and after-school snacks.
68% of those seeking food assistance last year had never been in a food line before. Can you imagine going to work one day only to find out you are furloughed for an indefinite amount of time?
It is no secret that this past year posed financial, social, and health-related challenges never seen before - and while we are hopeful circumstances will turn around, we must do our part to help our neighbors now.
Here are 3 simple ways to make an impact in your community:
Donate. Every $1 donated to Feeding Tampa Bay creates exponential meals for households across Tampa Bay.
Volunteer. Each volunteer shift generates thousands of meals for our neighbors - and if you sign up for a shift by February 3, you can be entered to win tickets to Super Bowl LV.
Advocate. Educate your network on our hometown hunger realities by re-posting this article, sharing our posts on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or LinkedIn, or crafting your own messages with our social toolkit.