Draft
Proclamation
Recognizing
September 2026 as Hunger Action Month
WHEREAS, hunger and poverty are issues of vital concern in California, where 22% of California households and 27% of households with children experience food insecurity and do not know where their next meal will come from; and
WHEREAS, everyone needs nutritious food to thrive, and people are working hard to provide for themselves and their families—yet over 387,000 individuals, including over 112,000 children – that’s 1 in 6 children, here in Orange County are food insecure; and
WHEREAS, the City of Orange is committed to taking steps to combat hunger in every part of our community and to provide additional resources that those in our community need; and
WHEREAS, the City of Orange is committed to working with the Orange County Hunger Alliance in educating people about the role and importance of food banks and food care in addressing hunger and raising awareness of the need to devote more resources and attention to hunger issues; and
WHEREAS, in 2025, Orange County Food Bank and Second Harvest Food Bank collectively recorded an average of 808,473 individual food distribution visits per month from our community members facing food insecurity and distributed 72,837,548 pounds of food through their partner networks of food pantries at senior centers, schools, colleges, universities, houses of worship, soup kitchens, shelters, and other community organizations; and
WHEREAS, Abound Food Care helps to facilitate the recovery of more than 25 million pounds of excess edible food in Orange County each year, reducing food waste and diverting that food to those who need it; and
WHEREAS, the month of September has been designated as “Hunger Action Month” in order to bring attention to food insecurity in our communities and to enlist the public in the movement to end hunger by taking action – including volunteering, donating, and advocating – to ensure every community, and everybody in it, has the food they need to thrive; and
WHEREAS, food banks and other organizations across the country, including the members of the Orange County Hunger Alliance, will host events throughout the month of September to bring awareness and help end food insecurity in our local community.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, Daniel R. Slater, Mayor of the City of Orange do hereby recognize September 2026 as HUNGER ACTION MONTH in the City of Orange, and I call this observance to the attention of our residents.
DATED this 25th day of August, 2026.
Daniel R. Slater, Mayor
Arianna Barrios, Councilmember
Kathy Tavoularis, Councilmember
Ana Gutierrez, Councilmember
Jon Dumitru, Councilmember
Denis Bilodeau, Mayor pro tem
John Gyllenhammer, Councilmember