Throughout college, my roommate and I led an organization on campus called Latte Losers. This is a national organization on college campuses started by VisionTrust, with whom I went to the Dominican Republic on a service trip. The whole idea of Latte Losers is “Lose a latte, save a life.” For just $5 a month (the cost of a Starbucks latte!), a child can be fed for an entire month. VisionTrust sends the money to African countries or Asian countries on alternating years. I have seen the children who this money goes to, and I can say without a doubt that there is nothing I would rather do than help them. If you would like to learn more about Latte Losers, please visit www.lattelosers.com or contact me through this blog. If you would like to sign up to give $5 a month, please go to www.lattelosers.com and click “Give Now”. The website is completely secure, and 100% of your donations (plus more from a fund-matching system) will go towards feeding the children. Thank you!

Feed Those Kids!

“Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”- James 1:27

Hello, all! Today’s post discusses something I’m incredibly passionate about. Yes, it’s still about food, but from a very different perspective. Let’s talk about world hunger.

Friends, we have so much food in America, yet 20 thousand children die daily, many from starvation. I’m sitting here choosing between dinner options, and kids all around the world are wondering when and if their next meal will ever come. This really bothers me, and it also bothers the people of VisionTrust International, a fantastic international nonprofit organization.

But what can we do about world hunger, you might ask? Well, VisionTrust has formed a daughter organization called Latte Losers. It’s a national collegiate organization that raises money to feed children in danger of starvation, other health risks, and sex trafficking. The idea of this is “Lose a latte, save a life.” For only $5 a month (the approximate cost of a latte or some other small luxury), you can feed a child for the entire month. The entire month. This money feeds the children, and also helps them get an education. For these children, food and education means that they don’t have to sell themselves as prostitutes, become involved in the drug trade, or steal food. This is big. And even bigger is the fact that these children hear the Gospel while they are being fed. Could this get any better?

At my school, my co-leader and I formed a chapter of Latte Losers, and held an event to raise support and awareness for Latte Losers, and particularly for the children of Liberia, where this semester’s funds are being sent. We were hugely blessed by many people from my church, as well as by Panera Bread and Aroma Joe’s (a local coffee shop). I had so many donations that I actually couldn’t fit more than one passenger in my car. Now that’s what I call a blessing.

All told, we raised $282.98 in just cash donations today. That’s amazing! We also got many one-time donations online, which is super. What our most exciting news is, though, is that we got 5 new monthly sponsors who signed up to give $5 each month to feed a starving child. This is absolutely incredible!

So what can we do to end world hunger? It’s simple: go to www.lattelosers.com and sign up to give $5 a month. Give up your coffee, or snacks,  or whatever it is, just for one day a month and give a child a better life.

My co-leader and I have been donating $5 a month for almost a year, and I can personally say that my checking account information is secure on their website, and I get monthly receipts in my checking account, as well as an email confirmation at the time of signing up. It’s so easy; you sign up once, and then they take the $5 out of your checking account regularly, and you don’t have to remember to donate. All you need is a debit or credit card at the time of signing up. You can also do a one-time donation online at www.visiontrust.org, and specify that you want the money to go towards Latte Losers.

Thanks for listening, everyone. As you can tell, this is near and dear to me. If we have enough food to feed everyone, why not give it? This blog is all about inspiring community; why not strive for a global community? Go for it! For more information, check out www.lattelosers.com and www.visiontrust.org.