{"id":10563,"date":"2025-06-24T20:49:00","date_gmt":"2025-06-24T20:49:00","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2025-09-23T18:34:45","modified_gmt":"2025-09-23T18:34:45","slug":"bread-for-the-worlds-50th-anniversary-summit","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/www.bread.org\/article\/bread-for-the-worlds-50th-anniversary-summit\/","title":{"rendered":"Bread for the World\u2019s 50th Anniversary Summit \u2013 \u201cOrdinary People. Extraordinary Mission.\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Rev. Eugene Cho<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bread for the World is not an extraordinary<\/em> organization. It is a community of ordinary<\/em> people who believe in an extraordinary<\/strong> God and who share an extraordinary <\/strong>mission: to help end hunger in the United States and around the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That conviction anchored our 50th Anniversary Summit in Washington, D.C. and served as a rallying cry for the faithful advocates, legislators, leaders, and lifelong supporters who came together to chart the next chapter in this movement toward the end of hunger.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Summit was more than a celebration \u2013 it was a call to action: to lift our collective voice, to build on 50 years of faithful advocacy, and to urge Congress to focus on ending child hunger both at home and abroad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Event Recap<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Over the course of three days, Bread hosted a series of spiritually grounded, justice-oriented events.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The first day was filled with pre-Summit events and invitation-only gatherings. The Pan African Consultation and Latino Convening gathered diverse leaders to examine the impact of food insecurity in their communities, while honoring voices that have helped shape Bread\u2019s history. These sacred spaces elevated community wisdom, recognized longstanding members, and offered prophetic insights into the work ahead.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Participants of Bread’s Pan African Consultation and Latino Convening<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

A Luminaries Dinner celebrated 50 individuals, one for each year of Bread\u2019s existence, for their foundational guidance and leadership contributions to Bread\u2019s mission. The late Bread Founder Art Simon\u2019s daughter, Leah Dowling, recalled growing up in Bread\u2019s first offices and how Bread staff were part of their family. Former board member and Luminary John Carr said that he first remembered hearing about Bread for the World when I was in a college seminary in Minnesota in the 1970s. \u201cIt was a unique coming together of Christians to overcome hunger through prayer and advocacy in public life. I wanted to be a part of that then and I have been for five decades.\u201d Bread\u2019s President Emeritus, Rev. David Beckmann, spoke about the dramatic progress that has been made against poverty in the last 50 years and Bread\u2019s essential, impactful part of that \u2013 Bread\u2019s legacy is that change as much as what we do next will be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On day two, participants attended robust legislative briefings and advocacy trainings, gaining practical tools to engage with their members of Congress. From sessions on closing the College SNAP Gap to simulations exploring the racial wealth gap, the programming underscored the policy depth and moral urgency of Bread\u2019s mission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Keynote speaker Ndidi Okonkwo Nwuneli, President & CEO of the ONE Campaign, offered global perspective and challenge. View her speech at this link.<\/a> I was honored to preach on Tuesday \u2013 you can watch my speech at this link<\/a> – sharing a stage with outstanding musicians Roderick Giles and Grace Ensemble.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Bread Summit Keynote Speaker Ndidi Okonkwo Nwuneli<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

An international panel featuring Michele Sumilas, Former Deputy Administrator for Management and Resources, USAID; Nidhi Bouri, Former Deputy Administrator for Global Health, USAID; and Katherine Meighan, Chief Legal & Governance Officer, International Fund for Agricultural Development was as education as it was inspirational as each speaker told stories about the long-term impact that smart, resourceful international assistance can have when it is strategically applied.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reverends Jeanette and Gabriel Salguero<\/a> inspired attendees with a multi-lingual message about commitment to justice, faith, and community empowerment. Bread activist Bryan McFarland shared a new song called Nourish Our Future that was written specifically for this event.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At a celebration dinner, four awards were presented: the Rev. Art Simon Legacy Award to Dave Miner, the Rev. David Beckmann Lifetime Hunger Champion Award to Felipe Salinas, the Bread Rising Award to Mya Bell, and the Hunger Heroes Award to The Seventh Episcopal District of the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On receiving the award, Mya Bell, a Purdue Northwest student, said: \u201cWhen my mom couldn\u2019t buy groceries at the store or I would go in the lunch line at school and I didn\u2019t have enough money and they would throw my lunch away in front of me, I felt like I wasn\u2019t enough, or something was wrong with my family, and we didn\u2019t deserve to have access to the same things as everybody else. But I am meant to be here, and that\u2019s from God, and that\u2019s from Bread for the World and all of you are meant to be here, too.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

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Bread President Rev. Eugene Cho and Managing Director Heather Taylor; Honorees Dave Miner, Felipe Salinas, Mya Bell, and members of the CME Seventh Episcopal District; Bread Board Chair Jeremy Everett<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

On the last day of the Summit, Bread advocates held nearly 200 meetings with Congressional offices\u201434 directly with legislators themselves\u2014about protecting SNAP and WIC, strengthening the Child Tax Credit, and maintaining global nutrition funding.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Bread advocates outside the office of Texas Senator Ted Cruz<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Bread\u2019s faithful presence was noted in media, including Religion News Service<\/em> <\/a>and Politico<\/em>, and was uplifted by bipartisan recognition of hunger as a solvable issue. At the reception concluding Lobby Day, leaders from both parties were honored for their support. A staffer accepting an award on behalf of Senator Ron Wyden emphasized that programs like SNAP and the CTC are “lifelines, not luxuries.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Suzanne Martin<\/strong>, an advocate from Alabama, captured the heart of the Summit\u2019s public witness: \u201cWhen you play a violin, it\u2019s the tension that makes the sound. Without tension, there\u2019s no music. I think that what we did today was bring tension to Capitol Hill.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

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Bread advocates meet with North Carolina Congressman Richard Hudson’s office<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Bread Members and Advocacy That Moves Policy and Hearts<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

From the Historic Alfred Street Baptist Church\u2019s Voices of Triumph Choir filling the hall with worship to Rev. Sarah Robinson\u2019s call for a just Farm Bill to college students speaking their truths to their elected officials, every element of the Summit pointed back to Bread\u2019s foundational belief: faith must move us to action.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n

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Bread college student advocates meet with Senator John Boozman, Chair of the Senate Agriculture Committee<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

It reminded me again why we do this. Because God doesn\u2019t wait for perfection. God calls us as we are\u2014ordinary people\u2014to do extraordinary work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I think of Mike Huck<\/strong> from Illinois, who joined Bread as a college student 30 years ago. He\u2019s led Offerings of Letters ever since\u2014bringing thousands of handwritten letters to his member of Congress. One year, those letters flipped a vote on the Farm Bill. The Congresswoman told a lobbyist, \u201cI have to vote with Mike,\u201d pointing to the stack of letters on her desk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I think of Connie Wick<\/strong>, writing letters from her retirement home\u2014letters that made their way to the Senate floor and helped secure global nutrition funding. When Bread\u2019s president spoke with U.S. President George W. Bush about the issue, Senator Richard Lugar said, \u201cI just got letters about this from Connie Wick.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I think of Rev. Will Meachum<\/strong>, a high school baseball coach and Methodist pastor, who joined Bread after seeing hunger affect students in his own congregation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I think of Pat Ayres<\/strong>, whose heart for children brought her to Bread. Her leadership on the board helped lay the foundation for what Bread is today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I think of Congresswoman Eva Clayton<\/strong>, who championed nutrition programs on the House Agriculture Committee and helped shape global alliances to fight hunger, and Senator Bob Dole<\/strong>, who served on Bread\u2019s board for 20 years to ensure that his voice for hunger would continue to inspire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ordinary people. Extraordinary mission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I think of Pastor Sarah Robinson<\/strong> of Audubon Park Covenant Church in Florida who joined Bread to advocate for a Farm Bill that is nutritious, sustainable, and equitable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I think of Carlos Navarro,<\/strong> who joined Bread in 1983. He has mobilized thousands of letters from the Southwest over the decades and served faithfully on Bread\u2019s board..<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I think of Jane Klopfenstein<\/strong> of Indiana\u2014a 40-year member and grandmother\u2014who first got involved through advocacy for the McGovern-Dole Food for Education Program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These aren\u2019t celebrities. They\u2019re not career lobbyists. They are people like you\u2014people who believe that faith must lead to action.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Throughout the Summit, attendees heard from a \u201ccloud of witnesses\u201d\u2014advocates who have built the mission over the last five decades.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dave Miner<\/strong>, recipient of the Art Simon Award, reflected on being asked to join the board years ago: \u201cWhy would he want an ordinary guy from the Midwest on the board? It turns out that this movement thrives on the gifts of ordinary people, working together\u2026Bread is the Gospel at work in our times… Together we have made a difference. An extraordinary difference.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This movement is not sustained by charisma or headlines\u2014but by decades of steadfast commitment and Spirit-led action.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What a cloud of witnesses.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hebrews 12 says: \u201cTherefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight… and run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

And that is what we do\u2014we run with perseverance.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We pursue God\u2019s vision of a world restored and free from hunger\u2014a world we may not fully see, but one we are called to work toward.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Bread organizer Andrea Faiano leads a discussion<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Looking Forward to What\u2019s Next<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Bread for the World 50th Anniversary Summit was a holy moment\u2014an intergenerational, bipartisan, multi-ethnic embodiment of faith in action. As we face the world\u2019s worst hunger crisis in a generation, we are not overwhelmed. We are mobilized.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We move forward not with fear, but with clarity. The stakes are high. But the path is clear. Bread is an ordinary organization, following an extraordinary God, sent on an extraordinary mission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And we will continue\u2014together\u2014to nourish our future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So many of you joined us in Washington, DC, for the Summit. So many of you have responded to action alerts. So many of you met with your elected leaders. In fact, already this year Bread advocates have already held nearly 300 Offerings of Letters in 35 states, sent 75,000 letters to Congress, and held 439 meetings with members of Congress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your collective voice is powerful.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I write this with gratitude and with a challenge. Stay in this with us. Become a Bread for the World member<\/a>. Let your voice be heard. Let your faith be seen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because the future will only be nourished by the Power of Us<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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By Rev. Eugene Cho Bread for the World is not an extraordinary organization. It is a community of ordinary people who believe in an extraordinary God and who share an extraordinary mission: to help end hunger in the United States and around the world. That conviction anchored our 50th Anniversary Summit in Washington, D.C. and<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":10564,"template":"","tags":[162],"focus":[7],"topic":[],"resource_type":[],"class_list":["post-10563","article","type-article","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-50th-anniversary","focus-faith"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bread.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article\/10563","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bread.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bread.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/article"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.bread.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article\/10563\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bread.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10564"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bread.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10563"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bread.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10563"},{"taxonomy":"focus","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bread.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/focus?post=10563"},{"taxonomy":"topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bread.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/topic?post=10563"},{"taxonomy":"resource_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bread.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/resource_type?post=10563"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}