Boston’s WCVB Helps Fight Hunger With Televent

September is Hunger Action Month, and this year, due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the need to raise awareness and encourage action around food insecurity is even more pronounced.

So last Thursday, Sept. 10, WCVB, Hearst’s ABC affiliate in Boston, partnered with The Greater Boston Food Bank (GBFB) on the second annual hunger month televent, Hunger Action Day, to help shed light on the reality of food insecurity throughout the Bay State.

WCVB aired live cut-ins and stories within its newscasts featuring interviews with food bank agency partners that are on the front lines serving neighbors in need, as well as several individuals and families benefitting from the GBFB’s many services, including school-based pantries.

The GBFB reported it received over seven times more page visits than typical to its site, where people can search for the food pantry or meal program by ZIP code and find other resources to help.

In addition, GBFB received four times the number of requests/inquiries about volunteering at GBFB on Hunger Action Day than it typically gets, crediting WCVB’s day-long focus on hunger with the surge in interest.

According to GBFB, the food insecurity rate in Massachusetts is projected to increase 53%, so that one in seven people are expected not to have access to enough food for three healthy meals a day. One in five children in Massachusetts now live in food-insecure households, an even more dramatic increase of 81% over pre-COVID-19 food insecurity levels.

“Together with our longtime partner, The Greater Boston Food Bank, WCVB’s special televent shed light on the heroes in our community working on the front lines to fight hunger and provide vital hope and help to those struggling to feed themselves and their families,” said Kyle Grimes, WCVB’s general manager.

The special hunger televent is part of WCVB’s ongoing community affairs initiatives. Last September, WCVB hosted a similar food insecurity televent that helped raise awareness and funds for the Greater Boston Food Bank’s programs and connected hundreds of viewers with much-needed resources.

“Our friends at WCVB have once again shown why they are leaders in our community by generously dedicating a whole day to raising awareness and encouraging all of us to take action towards providing hunger-relief to those in need,” said Catherine D’Amato, Greater Boston Food Bank’s president.

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