Where's Marty? At a new food pantry at the Y in Pasadena

Hi everyone!

  Today was what we call in the news biz "a feel-good story." My personal mission for "Where's Marty?" is to show you the behind-the-scenes of things, take you to places you may have never visited, and be amazed at times. 

Every once in a while someone will ask me what has been the biggest surprise about doing this segment. The cute answer is the morning traffic (I mean for 39 years I was in Studio A and only heard about it from Kristy Breslin's reports!) But the real answer is the number of people and organizations who actively try to get food to those many thousand who need it.

Today we visit the Y of Central Maryland in Pasadena, where the Y's second "Fresh Mart" is opening. It is a food pantry pure and simple. Today, we learned how the Y of Central Maryland is using the available community spaces they have to establish food pantries. It is now a part of their community mission.  

The first pantry opened at the Y on Druid Ave. in Baltimore, and a third location slated to open by years end. All Y's of Central Maryland may end up being included. 

The new pantry is in partnership with Caring Cupboards, a nonprofit dedicated to fighting food insecurity among Anne Arundel County students.

Food insecurity is real and much more than a buzzword. Photographer K2 and I are both fathers, and if need be I could get by on one meal a day. But when kids and a family are involved, the worry and concern about the basic need of food can tear a household apart. 

The USDA defines food insecurity as "a lack of available financial resources for food at the household level."  

Pre COVID-19, an estimated 1 in 8 Americans -- about 38 million Americans --.about 12 million of those children were food insecure. And it has only gotten worse in the pandemic era.

K2 and I are a team. We have discussed this issue, and I am SURE we will do more "Where's Marty's?" about the organizations, groups, and people trying to make a food insecurity difference. 

You can help by just watching this morning's interviews, or by going to the Y and Caring Cupboard's websites just for personal education as to how real this issue is.