Deer hunting season in Louisiana is well underway, and as the season shifts into high gear, the hunting community is expressing the generosity and goodwill of the holidays in its own way: sharing their harvest with families who struggle with food insecurity.
Founded twenty years ago, Hunters for the Hungry helps the hunting and fishing communities donate their excess wild game and seafood to food banks throughout the state. The program raises over forty thousand pounds of protein annually, which helps to put wholesome meals on the tables of countless families.
According to Feeding America, the nation’s largest hunger-relief organization, one in six people struggle to get enough food to eat. For many who experience food insecurity, sources of protein are the most expensive and difficult to come by. That’s where Hunters for the Hungry comes in.
Lucky hunters who find their bounty too great, can donate their field-dressed harvests to deer processors located throughout the state. The meat is processed at no cost to the hunter and then routed to area food banks and other agencies who serve those most in need.
One agency that will benefit from the protein drive this season is the Society of St. Vincent de Paul of Baton Rouge, which provides healthcare, shelter, and balanced meals for impoverished residents of Louisiana’s capital city. Denise Terrance, dining room director, reported, “In the colder months of the year, our numbers aren’t as high. It’s too cold for a lot of the homeless men and women we serve to get out and brave the weather. A lot of them are trying to hold on to spots they have in the city that serve as temporary shelter from the elements. If they leave, they could lose their spot. But eventually they get too hungry, and come in for a meal.”
That’s when donations from Hunters for the Hungry make a direct impact in the lives of the needy. “We serve guests in our dining room three ounces of protein with each meal every day. We like to serve rice a lot of times, too, so they stay full longer”, said Terrance. Often, ground deer meat delivered from the Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank, is cooked along with ground beef and used in recipes for taco soup, spaghetti, and pasta dishes. Terrance said that a crowd favorite is a generous helping of red beans and rice with deer sausage links on the side.
St. Vincent de Paul’s kitchen serves the homeless every day of the week from 11:30 am to 1 pm, but something special takes place in their dining room on Christmas Day. “On holidays, it’s all-you-can-eat. Instead of standing in lines for food, we serve our clients as guests that day,” said Terrance. “They find a seat, like they would at a restaurant, and we serve them at their table for as long as they like.”
Terrance explains that dining room staff members and volunteers don’t see the guests as homeless strangers; they see them as family. “We smile. We greet them, and we ask how they’re doing,” said the director.
Guests being served at St. Vincent de Paul are getting valuable nutrition and needed protein during the challenging colder months of the year. But in the Bayou State, food isn’t ever just about food. It’s about community and family, both important around the holidays. That’s the real gift that Hunters for the Hungry, along with its statewide network of partner agencies, helps provide.
Details. Details. Details.
Hunters who want to donate deer to this worthy cause can drop off their field-dressed game to any processor in the Hunters for the Hungry network at no cost. To view a list of processors in your area, visit this link.
To learn more about Hunters for the Hungry, visit hunters4hungrylouisiana.org or call the development office at (225) 765-2860.
