Kara Hunkele

Did you know April is Volunteer Appreciation Month? At Second Harvest, we could not be more grateful for our volunteers, who contributed a total of 30,942 volunteer hours in this past fiscal year — the equivalent of nearly 15 additional full-time employees! Plus, in our current fiscal year, our volunteers have already packed enough food to create ONE MILLION MEALS. This April, we’d like to recognize Lisa Burkett, one of our regular warehouse volunteers, as our 2025 Volunteer of the Year. Continue reading as we share more from Lisa about her involvement with Second Harvest, gathered by interview.

March is National Nutrition Month®, and this year’s theme, “Food Connects Us,” highlights the powerful role that food plays in bringing people together. From learning how to prepare nutritious meals to exploring different cultural traditions, food is more than just fuel — it’s a way to share experiences, build relationships, and support overall well-being.

As Food for Kids reaches its 22nd anniversary, we’re more bittersweet than celebratory. The positive impact the program has had on East Tennessee children is without question, but the fact that the number of hungry children continues to rise is heartbreaking. That’s why from now through February 22nd, we’re asking the community for support to help us Pack the Bag to meet the growing need. Because the growing pains of childhood shouldn’t include hunger.

It’s raining in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains, but Misti and her family stay warm inside what she calls their “safe space” – a home resulting from the journey she never gave up on. Not long ago, Misti was in a very different place. Read more in January’s blog of New Beginnings.

One of the most unique ways a community member has supported Second Harvest were the efforts of Clayton L. Brewer, a beloved poet who started writing poetry over 50 years ago as a UT student. He not only wrote about the activity of our truck drivers during the COVID-19 pandemic, but larger conceptual themes relating to hunger as well. Brewer donated all proceeds of his publication “A New Day” to Second Harvest.

A recent visit to Forward Market, a partner pantry in Knox County, sparked a conversation with Jessica, the founder, about the history of the pantry and the way it operates. “One Thanksgiving I felt called that people are hungry more than the holidays, and we should be feeding them more often, so that’s how Forward Market was birthed,” she says. Read more from our interview with Jessica.

“In a world where many of us are removed from the sources of our food, our local farmers’ work stands as a vital link between the land and our tables,” says our Director of Development, Rachael Ellis. That’s why over the past several months, Second Harvest visited the 4 Tennessee farms of our newly instated Farm Advisors. We’re thrilled to be sharing all we’ve learned, seen, heard, and even tasted from each of these farm visits with the community!