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Celebrities backing a food bank have praised the work of two staff members from Medway who feature in a campaign video.
One Direction's Liam Payne, Dawn French, and Spice Girls' Emma Bunton say the work of the Trussell Trust workers Mo Chen and Lorraine Schulze has been inspiring.
Mo and Lorraine, both from Rochester, are among 16 people from food banks around the UK in a new video highlighting the issues facing people relying on food banks in a bid to tackle the stigma associated with them.
A poem written by an anonymous mother tells the story and evokes emotional feelings about being judged for needing to use a food bank.
The video produced by the charity has now been viewed more than 10 million times and has received praise from a host of celebrity supporters.
Mo said: "It was lovely to be invited to be a part of the campaign, but this is all about the Anonymous Mother, and every person like her across the UK.
"Too many people are being left behind and, as the Anonymous Mother says, it doesn’t have to be this way.”
As the pandemic hit families on the breadline hard, the charity revealed it provided a record 122,333 emergency food parcels for children in the South East.
The Medway Towns saw a 50% increase in parcels being given to struggling families in 2020/21 to more than 12,000 in 12 months to March this year compared to 8,000 in the year before.
The number of adults and children fed in Swale also increased from 5,353 to 8,215.
However, across Dover, Sevenoaks, Folkestone and Gravesham the figures fell year-on-year.
Lorraine added: "It was a privilege to be a part of this campaign, and help to share Anonymous Mother’s important story of a parent with no other options.
"Heartbreakingly, it’s a story far too familiar for our food bank, and the situation is getting worse.”
The poet, writing under the pseudonym Anonymous Mother, penned the poignant line: "I needed free food because I didn't have enough money, I didn't have enough food in my child's tummy."
The two-minute video features Mo and Lorraine – who work at the Medway Foodbank based on the Medway City Estate – and fellow workers saying lines from the poem.
Former EastEnders actress Tamzin Outhwaite said: "This is just so heartbreaking. Hearing the Anonymous Mother's story told by Mo and Lorraine and the other amazing food bank volunteers, brought tears to my eyes. I hugged my kids so hard that night."
Comedian and fellow supporter Dom Joly added: "The reading of the poem is incredibly powerful. These Trussell Trust workers are so inspiring, and this message really does make you stop and think - what are we doing to need food banks in our country?"
Chief executive of the Trussell Trust Emma Revie says food banks in the UK cannot be used as a long-term solution and better provision and help to support struggling families must come forward.
She said: "We are so thankful to have such brilliant people, like Mo and Lorraine, throughout our network.
"Poverty is not inevitable. Food banks are not a long-term solution."
“But, food banks are not a long-term solution, and this poem needs to make all of us stop and really reflect on our situation in the UK.
“A situation where more and more people are unable to afford the basics in life. A situation that’s simply not acceptable.
“But I think it’s also important to focus on the hope in the poem too – when the mother’s benefits were sorted, she didn’t need to use a food bank again.
"With the right protection, at the right time, all of us would be able to afford the basics and not need to use a food bank.
“Poverty is not inevitable. Food banks are not a long-term solution. Together, we must do better. Together, we can create a hunger free future.”
For more information about the charity's work and how to help visit trusselltrust.org/share-the-poem
The KM Group is committed to helping the community through the KM Charity team. For more information and to find out what other good causes you can get involved in click here.
