Man doesn't live by hunger alone.

Neither do women and children.

They need to be fed.

Hunger just doesn't cut it.

Doesn't build strong bodies any kind of way.

Contains no minimum daily nutritional value of anything.

Has no essential vitamins and minerals.

That's why FACES turns the other cheek. FACES looks to the right, sees hungry people and feeds them. FACES turns the other cheek, now looking to the left, sees hungry people and feeds them.

Wherever FACES turns it sees hungry people in Prince Edward and FACES feeds them.

FACES feeds them because so many of your faces are part of FACES and you, through your generous donations, turn the other cheek with FACES to feed the hungry, who are all around us.

In today's edition of The Herald there is a fundraising letter from FACES and a pre-addressed envelope. Before dinner tonight, write a check, send yourself to help FACES continue fighting hunger in our community.

You will not be alone.

Despite the recession, there were major increases in both food and money to FACES during 2009, which is a good thing because FACES' monthly distributions of food increased by more than five percent in 2009.

During 2009 more than 28,650 bags of food were distributed by FACES and its volunteers, who include church groups, Longwood and Hampden-Sydney students, along with students from Fuqua and Prince Edward County High School.

Those bags of food amounted to 286,500 pounds of food, or more than 143 tons, and an average of more than 700 bags of food were distributed by FACES each week. Last November saw a weekly average of 888 bags of food distributed, the first time FACES had ever topped the 800 mark in its long and laudable history.

FACES believes the increase in the number of bags being distributed is significant. With recovery from the “great recession” taking its own time, “jobs are generally among the last economic indicators to rise,” FACES points out in information provided to The Herald. “We can expect, at best, a continuation of this level of demand.”

Nearly 500 families are fed by FACES each week and there are pages of additional statistics that show just how important FACES is to people in our community who would otherwise go hungry. But the only additional statistic that matters now is you adding yourself to the family of people making donations to FACES so that food may be purchased to feed the hungry people all around us.

People who do not, cannot, and must not live by hunger alone.

Help FACES turn the other cheek by turning your own face in the direction that will help the most. Every $10 you give in donations can be used by FACES to purchase more than 60 pounds of food from the Central Virginia Food Bank.

(If you misplace the envelope in today's Herald, donations can be mailed to FACES, P.O. Box 644, Farmville, VA 23901)

-JKW-