Download
FRAC 101: Take Your Member of Congress to Work (pdf)
Site visit model invitation letter (Microsoft Word document)
Anti-Hunger Questions to Ask Elected Officials at Town Hall Events (pdf)
Sample Recess Tweets (Microsoft Word document)
Invite your Members of Congress to be a “Caseworker for a Day.” Bringing your Member of Congress to a SNAP/Food Stamp office or a site where SNAP applications are available is an effective tool to educate them about the program, the impact it has on the community, and to get face time with SNAP applicants and recipients.
Download
SNAP/Food Stamp Challenge Toolkit (pdf)
Sample materials
The SNAP Challenge gives participants a view of the struggle to obtain adequate food that is faced by millions of low-income Americans. Most participants take the Challenge for one week, living on about $4 per day worth of food – the average food stamp benefit. Challenge participants are forced to make food shopping choices on a limited budget, and learn how difficult it is to avoid hunger, afford nutritious foods, and stay healthy without adequate resources.
While living on a food stamp budget for just a week cannot come close to the struggles encountered by low-income families week after week and month after month, it does provide those who take the Challenge with a new perspective and greater understanding.
By hosting a Challenge, you can help raise awareness of hunger in your community and the need to keep SNAP strong. FRAC has developed a toolkit and sample materials for you to use in creating your Challenge. You can customize these materials with your logo and community data. If you need further assistance, contact Betsy Edwards (bedwards@frac.org).
Capitol Hill Contact Resources
- Staff Lists for Key Food & Nutrition Committees, 112th Congress/First Session, Spring 2011
- Find Your Elected Officials – Enter your Zip code on this page to find your U.S. Senators, Representatives, and local legislators.
- Find U.S. Senators on Facebook and Twitter
- Find U.S. Representatives on Facebook and Twitter
- Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition & Forestry
- House Education and the Workforce Committee
- House Calendar
- Senate Calendar
A paper plate campaign is an easy – and effective – way to convey a message to your Member of Congress. Download FRAC 101: Paper Plate Campaign (pdf) for instructions.
Inviting Members of Congress to visit Child Nutrition program sites in their state or district is a powerful way to engage them. By witnessing the programs first hand, Members can see the vital importance of these investments in children. To help you prepare for a site visit, FRAC has prepared the following materials:
FRAC 101: How to Organize a Community Conference Call (pdf) outlines the five steps advocates with limited travel budgets can take to communicate anti-hunger messages to Members of Congress.