Feeding the DMV Town Hall: ABC7 hosts live program about food insecurity in the DC area
WASHINGTON (ABC7) — ABC7 broadcasted a live virtual town hall on hunger and food insecurity issues impacting the Washington, D.C. region on Tuesday, September 15 at 7 p.m. on sister cable channel WJLA 24/7 News.
The town hall also streamed live on wjla.com and Facebook.
RELATED: Where D.C., Maryland & Virginia families can get free meals during the COVID-19 pandemic
ABC7 news anchors Jonathan Elias and Michelle Marsh moderated the one-hour virtual panel discussion with regional food bank directors, non-profit and community leaders.
Panelists and special guests that appeared included the following:
- Radha Muthiah, CEO of the Capital Area Food Bank
- Rahsaan Bernard, President of Building Bridges Across the River (BBAR)
- Jack McDougle, head of the Greater Washington Board of Trade
- Anthony A. Williams, CEO of Federal City Council and former mayor of DC
- Linda Patterson, Executive Director of Lorton Community Action Center
- Sabrina Scott, Volunteer at St Stephen Baptist Church
Watch the entire town hall below.
The town hall is part of ABC7’s Feeding The DMV hunger awareness and fundraising campaign to support the Capital Area Food Bank. During the month of September, ABC7 is focusing stories on the impact of hunger in our region and visiting food pantries and food distribution sites in the region each “Food Bank Friday,” demonstrating firsthand how our communities can help combat the severe food insecurity in our region.
Donations for the ABC7 Feeding The DMV campaign can be made at wjla.com/hunger or by texting FEEDTHEDMV to 50155 until October 2.
RELATED: Volunteers continue to contribute at Capital Area Food Bank, amid pandemic
The ABC7 Feeding The DMV Town Hall is proudly brought to you by Lustine Automall in Woodbridge, Virginia. During the month of September, Lustine Automall will be donating $200 for every trade-in to support the Capital Area Food Bank. The goal is to raise $20,000 for the food bank during the campaign.
“Food insecurity is a critical issue facing our communities right now. It was a serious problem before the pandemic and now the need has almost tripled," said ABC7 Vice President and General Manager Michael Miller. "We’re glad to bring these voices together to collaborate on the impact of hunger and the regional economic issues that are increasing its severity."
“Covering stories about hunger in our neighborhoods is one of our top priorities at ABC7 because we’ve seen firsthand the consequences of the region’s massive job losses and the economic divide," said ABC7 News Director Cheryl Carson. "We want to bring as much attention as we can to the issues of food insecurity and challenges local food banks and non-profits are facing to provide the basic need of food to our communities."
A rebroadcast of the virtual Town Hall will air Saturday, September 19 at 1 p.m. on WJLA 24/7 News and Sunday, September 20 at 5 p.m. on ABC7.
RELATED: Feeding the DMV: 100 volunteers help distribute food to 8,000 families at giveaway in Md.
WJLA 24/7 News can be seen locally on the following channels:
- Comcast: 808 HD | 28 SD
- Cox: 1008 HD | 8 SD
- DirecTV: 8
- Dish Network: 8
- FiOS: 508 HD | 8 SD
- RCN: 608 HD | 308 SD
