700+ to Attend Unique Community Art Event and Food Drive October 16

George Mason University students will volunteer to help fight local hunger at the Complete The Circle outdoors event and food drive, hosted by Our Daily Bread on October 16. Pictured with ODB Food Program Manager Chris Garris (center, holding flyer) are students enrolled in Professor Evan Braff's "Intro to Leisure" course

NEWS RELEASE

Contact: Lisa Whetzel, exdir@ODBFairfax.org, 703-273-8829

Our Daily Bread’s “Complete the Circle” Gathering Uses “Art for the Sky” to Highlight Call to Action to Fight Poverty in the Fairfax County Area

FAIRFAX, VA. (October 2, 2011) – Fairfax based non-profit Our Daily Bread, Inc. (ODB) will host a unique event and food drive on October 16, 2011 in Fairfax City to engage individuals, families, community groups, congregations and businesses in the effort to end hunger and need in the Fairfax County area.

“Complete the Circle” will take place from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday, October 16 in the large field at the corner of George Mason Boulevard and University Drive. More than 700 community members have pre-registered to gather to create a unique “living painting” [image at left] that will be photographed from 80 feet above by artist Daniel Dancer of Art for the Sky.  Mr. Dancer will discuss his creative work and be available to the media on the evening before the event at 7 p.m. on Saturday, October 15 at Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Fairfax. More information on his talk at the end of this release.Participants in their event T-shirts will “color” the image. To “complete the circle” of giving, participants are asked to bring two or more food items to the event, which will form the perimeter of the design image. A goal of 2,500 pounds of food pantry donations has been set, which will later be distributed to feed Our Daily Bread’s Food Program clients. A family-friendly celebration with refreshments and festive live music by The Fretful Porcupine will follow the photo shoot.

More than 28 groups have pre-registered to participate, including congregations, civic groups, businesses, youth and scouts, and groups of friends and families (full listing below).  “Sky Sight” sponsorship and in-kind donation opportunities are still available. All proceeds will benefit Our Daily Bread’s efforts to help struggling families across the Fairfax County area.  Everyone in the community is welcome to attend the event. A limited quantity of event T-shirts are available on a first-come, first-served basis for a $20 donation. Event registration, volunteer and sponsorship information, and resource materials on local hunger and food insecurity are available on Our Daily Bread’s web site at: www.ODBFairfax.org.

According to recent statistics from the national hunger awareness organization Feeding America, nearly 70,000 residents in the Fairfax County area are “food insecure,” meaning they do not know where their next meal will come from. During the 2010-2011 school year, Fairfax County Public Schools reported that more than 40,000 children, or 24 percent of the student population, qualified to receive free or reduced-price meals.

Our Daily Bread assists thousands of Fairfax County area residents every year. During 2010, the organization provided short-term food assistance to 442 families, emergency financial assistance to 333 families, and budget classes and one-on-one financial mentoring for 385 families. The non-profit also provided school supply assistance to 335 children, and Thanksgiving and December holiday assistance to more than 4,500 families. Many of the individuals and families who receive Our Daily Bread’s services are working but are struggling to pay for housing, utilities, gas and food because of unemployment, reduced work hours, or health care or other crises.

“It takes an income of about $60,000 for a family of four to thrive in Fairfax County. Most of the clients we help only make about $20,000. They are the working poor,” said Our Daily Bread Executive Director Lisa Whetzel. “Here in one of the wealthiest areas in the nation, it is shocking that tens of thousands of people struggle with hunger and hardship on a daily basis. We hope the community will come out in force on October 16 to help us create a better understanding of the need here in our own back yard.  Together, we will ‘complete the circle’ of hope and giving to improve the lives of our neighbors in need.”

Participating groups designated a “Sky Captain” to facilitate the group’s recruitment and placement for the sky photo shoot. Brenda North, office manager for the dental practice of Brenda J. Young DDS and Marjun Ayati DDS in Fairfax, signed up her co-workers.  “Our dentists often reach out to help our community, like exams for low-income families at area dental clinics and supporting the ODB Holiday Program,” she explained “They made the donation for our event T-shirts and we’re all excited to participate. We’re also holding a food drive at our office from Oct. 3-13, so that our patients and business contacts can support the food pantry too. My co-workers and I will bring the food items to be included in the sky photo.”

Barb Brehm, Sky Captain for a group of 61 from Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Fairfax (UUCF), is also excited about the chance to help. "Complete the Circle supports a most wonderful, local, caring agency that works hard to feed food-insecure people in Fairfax County," she said. "UUCF helped to found Our Daily Bread over 25 years ago, and it means so much to us to continue this great partnership."

Event Sponsors, in-kind donations and volunteers to help organize and run the event are greatly appreciated. “We are excited about the outpouring of support and participation from the community to help make the celebration a success,” Whetzel said. “And most important, to be part of the solution to help our neighbors succeed. Everyone benefits when members of our community can achieve financial stability.” For more information, visit www.ODBFairfax.org or call 703-273-8829.

Our Daily Bread is a volunteer-based organization focused on easing the plight of low income residents in the Fairfax County area of Virginia. In addition to its on-going Food, Financial Assistance and Financial Literacy programs, ODB administers an annual Holiday sponsor-a-family program and provides Back to School assistance. The organization has been named as one of the featured charities for United Way of the National Capital Area’s 2011/2012 giving campaign. ODB welcomes contributions of funds and volunteer time from Fairfax County area residents, businesses and community groups in order to deliver all of these services. For information, visit www.ODBFairfax.org.

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    Daniel Dancer Talk, October 15:

Art for the Sky Photographer Daniel Dancer will discuss his creative work and passion on the evening before Complete the Circle at 7 p.m. on Saturday, October 15 at Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Fairfax (UUCF), 2709 Hunter Mill Road, Oakton, VA. The talk is free, open to the public and children are welcome to attend. Mr. Dancer will be available to the media following the talk. RSVP is requested. For information or to RSVP, contact 703-273-8829 or info@ODBFairfax.org.

Complete the Circle Sponsors:

Combined Properties, Alliance Bank, J.L. Tree Service, ar-jon Portable Toilets of Vienna, Acumen Solutions, Inc., MoveForHunger.org, Paxton Van Lines Springfield, Virginia Commerce Bank, Whole Foods Markets Northern Virginia, Apple Federal Credit Union, Freedom Bank of Virginia, In Honor of Jason Flanary, Kiwanis Club of Tysons Corner/McLean, MiddleburgLaw.com, Monica Chiralo, Photography by Hernan Vargas, Twins Ace Hardware of Fairfax, AAA Recycling and Trash Removal, and Great Harvest Bread Co. Burke.

Community Organizations Participating in Complete the Circle:

Accotink UU Church, Bread Bowl Bundle, Brenda J. Young DDS and Marjun Ayati DDS, Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church, Church of the Holy Comforter (Vienna), Cub Scout Pack 1865, Fairfax County Department of Public Safety Communications (DPSC), Divine Dining Divas, Emmanuel Lutheran Church in Vienna, Fairfax Girl Scout Cadette Troops 5 and 1362, Fairfax Presbyterian Church, Fairfax United Methodist Youth Group, Girl Scout Troop 2249, GMU “Intro to Leisure” Class, GSCNC Ambassador Troop 28, KPW Friends, Ladies of Fairfax Walking Group, Little River Glen Senior Center, Mount Vernon Unitarian Church, Oak View Elementary School Odyssey of the Mind, Poe Middle School Eighth Grade Civics Class, Rotary Club of Dunn Loring-Merrifield, Shining Star Community Church, Temple Rodef Shalom Fifth Grade Class, Volunteer KorUs, Unitarian universalist Congregation of Fairfax (UUCF), Unitarian Universalists of Sterling, and Unity Church of Fairfax.