Hunger at Home: Food for our Neighbors

Rev. Dr. Christine L. Nelson is executive director of Lehigh County Conference of Churches and an ordained pastor of the United Church of Christ. She has contributed to a number of community initiatives, including the Allentown 10-year Plan to End Chronic Homelessness, ACHIEVE (Action Communities for Health, Innovation and Environmental Change), the Mayor's faith-based initiative, Women's Leadership Initiative of the United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley, and the Lehigh Valley Children's Coalition Policy Summit. Dr. Nelson has served on the Muhlenberg College Board of Associates, President of Alliance Hall, and the Allentown Rotary; and she is a frequent contributor to the Morning Call religious and editorial pages.

Pamela Gallagher, a School Nutrition Specialist, is currently Director of Child Nutrition Services of the Allentown School District.

Elizabeth Griner "My mother was a great gardener. When I was a little girl, my job was to stay out of the garden." In college, after taking a career choice test, Elizabeth found that she, also, harbored a deep love for growing things. As the volunteer coordinator for Habitat for Humanity, she discovered that many of the people who were moving into homes had only known apartment life, so she began, with the help of the Penn State (Agricultural) Cooperative Extension's Master Gardener program, to put together seed packets for new home owners. Currently, she maintains a plot in a community garden and helps struggling gardeners.

Elisa Zaehringer is Advocacy Coordinator for Second Harvest Food Bank of Lehigh Valley and Northeast Pennsylvania. In this position, she develops programs and conducts outreach initiatives to increase awareness among volunteers, member agencies, and the general public on major hunger issues. Additionally, she advocates for systemic changes that can eliminate the root causes of hunger. Second Harvest Food Bank distributes food to nearly 200 member agencies throughout Carbon, Lehigh, Monroe, Northampton, Pike and Wayne Counties.
    Elisa received her undergraduate education from Muhlenberg College where she studied Philosophy/Political Thought and a Masters degree in Political Science from Lehigh University. At Lehigh, Elisa participated in the Community Fellows Program, which focuses on combining the theoretical study of political science with the practical art of community organizing. During her time at Lehigh, she completed a fellowship as Assistant Director of the Muhlenberg Institute of Public Opinion.

Martin Milne, pastor of Zion's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Old Zionsville, has recently headed up the organizing of a food pantry for the Zionsville Area Churches.

Bread for the World Resource Team: Richard Baumann, Donald Knapp, Sheila Clever, and Bob Walden. These members of the Justice and Advocacy Committee will lead the afternoon sessions on public policy issues; they have been working together for several years to organize these annual workshops on food, hunger, and public policy.
Rev. Richard Baumann, Rector of St. Paul's Lutheran Church, Allentown, which hosts the LCCC Soup Kitchen, works with several community programs that serve low income people.
Sheila Clever is a member of the Mission Committee at First Presbyterian Church, Allentown, which hosts our annual gatherings.
Fr. Donald Knapp established the Community Foundation at Grace Episcopal Church, Allentown, which now provides supplemental food for approximately 400 people a month, serving almost 2000 families a year.
Bob Walden has been a member of Bread for the World (BFW) for over 35 years. He currently chairs the LCCC Justice and Advocacy Committee and also co-chairs a Mennonite Peace & Justice Committee.