Director’s Corner

May 28th is World Hunger Day and MUM is proud to be doing our part to stamp out hunger in our community. Every month we are providing an average of 40 pounds of healthy produce, eggs or chicken, and non-perishable food to over 600 households and more than 2,500 people. Many of those visiting our office food pantry and community-based distributions are working or seniors on limited incomes, and they are struggling with the rising costs of food, gas, housing, and other expenses. We hear daily the challenges our neighbors are facing and their gratitude for the food we provide. Your support is critical to help ensure no one in our community goes hungry.

The annual Stamp Out Hunger food drive organized by The US Postal Service’s National Association of Letter Carriers was a huge success! Over 7,500 pounds of food was collected at 7 local post offices, sorted by over 50 volunteers, and is being distributed to neighbors at our office pantry and community food distributions. MUM is grateful to the postal workers who collected and transported the donations, to the volunteers who helped us transport and sort the donations and to the Mid-County Consolidation Hub at Hughes United Methodist Church for providing space to receive and organize the donations. It was wonderful to see so many neighbors helping our neighbors and doing their part to stamp out hunger in our community!

I am so grateful for our many community partners who host fundraisers and food drives on behalf of MUM! Over $400 in donations were made to MUM though the Interfaith Comedy night held at Grace Episcopal Church on May 14th. And yet again, in honor of May Nakamura’s 106th birthday, she has asked friends and neighbors to donate food or funds to MUM. We collected over $270 in donations in honor of May, including two for $106 to honor her birthday! We wish May another happy birthday and thank her for many years of support to MUM!

In 2026, MUM is celebrating its 30th anniversary. In honor of that, one of the churches that helped found MUM, Warner Memorial Presbyterian Church, asked me to speak about the needs in our community and how MUM is helping to address them. It was an honor to also meet MUM’s founding director, Diane Schroeder, a member of Warner. She and others are working to plan a celebration later this year to commemorate 30 years of service and to raise funds to continue to support our neighbors in need.

I am so grateful to our many congregations, community partners, volunteers, and donors who continue to support MUM’s work in the community. You are making a difference in the lives of our neighbors, one bag of food, one utility disconnection averted, one eviction prevented, and one referral made at a time. Thank you!

In gratitude,
Dayna Brown

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World Hunger Day 2026

World Hunger Day is observed annually on May 28 to raise awareness about global hunger and encourage action to end food insecurity. The day aims to raise awareness about chronic hunger, which affects people worldwide, including many in our own community. On World Hunger Day, we encourage our supporters to engage in collective action, advocacy, and community engagement to promote food security. This year’s official theme is “The End of Hunger is in Our Hands,” which is focusing on systemic change and highlighting how local communities, farmers, and youth-led initiatives drive the fight against food insecurity.

It is sometimes difficult to understand that food insecurity affects people all over the world, including in our own community in Montgomery County. In 2025, around 35 percent of households experienced food insecurity in Montgomery County, according to the Capital Area Food Bank’s 2025 hunger report. According to Feeding America, since 2019, the cost of groceries has jumped 32%. For a neighbor struggling to make ends meet, that is a crisis.

There are so many ways that you can help, whether it’s donating food or money, volunteering your time, advocating for more resources to address food insecurity, or promoting MUM’s efforts with friends, family, and neighbors. To promote our local food system and provide nutritious food to our neighbors, MUM purchases fresh produce from local farmers and receives donations from home gardeners weekly through our partnership with HarvestShare. If you are a home gardener, you can “grow a row” for MUM and bring your surplus produce for MUM to distribute to our neighbors. On May 28^th, we encourage you to learn more about the drivers of food insecurity by reading the Capital Area Food Bank’s 2025 hunger report and to consider how YOU can help to address food insecurity in our community.

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Stamp Out Hunger Was Success!

MUM held our annual Stamp Out Hunger event on May 9th and 10th and it was a huge success! We received over 7,500 pounds of non-perishable food! We collected food Saturday night from 7 local post offices, and volunteers went through it all and prepared it for distribution. Thanks to the U.S. Postal Service and all of their employees who collected food on their delivery routes, as well as to Hughes United Methodist Church for letting us use their space, and to the 50 volunteers who helped MUM with Stamp Out Hunger!

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MUM Merchandise!

A new way you can support MUM is through our merchandise shop! A portion of every purchase of shirts, blankets, water bottles, mugs, journals, luggage, and more supports MUM’s work in the community. You can order shirts, blankets, water bottles, mugs, journals, bags, and more at MUM Merch Store and 50% of the profit will be donated to support MUM’s work! Follow the link or QR code and browse. Click on your selected item, choose item color, and select the best logo design for that color. Next, choose design placement, then size if applicable. Add to your cart and checkout! It’s as simple as that and you’ll have found another fun way to support MUM! Thanks!