A Dream Within A Dream: Hero for the Hungry Blog Tour: Guest Post + Giveaway

Welcome to the Hero for the Hungry Blog Tour!

Follow along all week for exclusive guest posts from author Peggy Thomas, plus 5 chances to win Hero for the Hungry (on shelves 9/1)!

Can a quiet Iowa farm boy grow up to change the world? Norman Ernest Borlaug did. Norman

Borlaug was the Father of the Green Revolution, saved millions from starvation, and won the Nobel Prize.

How? Science, true American grit, and a passion for helping those in need.

Born in 1914, raised on a small farm, and educated in a one-room schoolhouse, Norman Borlaug learned to work hard and excelled in sports. Against odds and adversity, Norm studied forestry and eventually became a plant scientist, dedicating his life’s work to ending world hunger. Working in obscurity in the wheat fields of Mexico, Norm and his team developed disease-resistant plants, and when widespread famine threatened India and Pakistan, Norm worked alongside poor farmers and battled bureaucracy to save millions from mass starvation. Often called the “Father of the Green Revolution,” Norm helped lay the groundwork for agricultural technological advances that alleviated world hunger. He won the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1970. He was a true hero for the hungry.

Can pursuing science help you and your future generation? This book is sure to inspire young learners!

Sidebars include topics such as a deeper dive into the science Norm was using to produce new and better wheat varieties, agronomy, wheat genes, stem rust, nutrients and more. Back matter includes a timeline of events and discoveries and a call to action for readers to use science to solve problems and do small things to help with hunger and food waste.

Hero for the Hungry is excellent for a science class learning about genetics, an agriculture class studying agronomy, or a history or English class looking for a well-written biography on a hero scientist.

Kids Can Be Heroes for the Hungry Too!
by Peggy Thomas

Norman Borlaug devoted his life to ending world hunger, but there is still much to do. In the United States alone there are as many as 12 million children struggling with food insecurity. That means that their homes don’t have enough food to ensure that every family member leads a healthy life.

Here are five activities for kids that will get them thinking about their connection with food, and how they can be part of the solution to ending hunger in their lifetime.

1. Track Your Trash

About 40% of all food in America is wasted. Food waste is food that was uneaten at home or at a restaurant; improperly transported or manufactured; didn’t meet a store’s standards; or was left in the fields because crop prices were too low or there was a surplus.

To find out how much food you waste, track your trash for 2 weeks. Put a notepad and pencil near your kitchen trash can. Record all the food you throw away – fruit that got moldy, veggies that sat in the refrigerator too long, leftovers no one wanted. What foods go to waste? You may find that instead of buying 4 kinds of fruit, its better to buy just 2 at a time. Or maybe you’ll find out that nobody in the family likes broccoli. How could you shop smarter and waste less?

2. Volunteer at a Food Bank

Food banks and food pantries are busy places and always need help. Call ahead and ask about their program. Can you volunteer for just one day, or do you have to sign up for a regular shift? How old do children have to be? Some food banks and pantries may need volunteers to stock shelves, collect donations, bag groceries, do light meal prep, or deliver meals. Find the job that suits your child’s personality. Would they prefer to meet people delivering meals or work behind the scenes stocking shelves?

3. Host a Bake Sale

If you have a foodie in your family, they may like to host a bake sale to raise money for your local food pantry. No Kids Hungry has all the resources you need: weekly planning checklist, food safety information, pricing tips, order form templates, and even social media ideas and signage. Some of the best little bakers on Kids Baking Championship got their start with bake sales.

4. Grow a Garden

Like Norman, lots of children are more comfortable outside in the soil, than working in a food pantry. Give them a spot in the yard to grow a vegetable garden. Four of the easiest veggies to grow are tomatoes, lettuces, peppers, and cucumbers, but let them choose their favorites. They’ll be more willing to weed if their mouth is watering for those first peas or carrots. Growing their own food is the best way to connect kids to the soil and their food supply. And make it a habit to share extra just-picked produce with neighbors or the local food pantry.

5. Chores for Charity

For every dollar donated, Feeding America can provide ten meals for children. That’s a lot of bang for your buck. Challenge kids to do chores for their favorite hunger-fighting charity. Make it a game. How many meals can your child earn by raking the leaves or shoveling the sidewalk? If the charity is local, let kids present their donation in person. They’ll get to see the impact of their efforts, as well as feel the satisfaction of helping others.

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Peggy Thomas has always loved true stories, and can’t remember a time when she wasn’t thrilled to find animal bones, musty encyclopaedias, or a history plaque by the side of the road. It's that same curiosity that has fueled the research and writing of more than twenty nonfiction books for children.

With a master’s degree in anthropology, Peggy explores a wide range of subjects, blending history and science to create award-winning titles. Her most recent books include Lincoln Clears a Path (Calkins Creek, 2021) and Full of Beans: Henry Ford Grows a Car (Calkins Creek, 2019), which earned NSTA Outstanding Science Trade Book, 2020 Best Book from the American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture, and Book of the Year from the Henry Ford Heritage Association.

Peggy is a member of SCBWI, a blogger for Nonfiction Ninjas, and on the creative team behind Nonfiction Fest, a month-long celebration of writing nonfiction for children.

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About the Illustrator

Sam Kalda is an illustrator and artist based in Saint Paul. His commissioned works include editorial, book, advertising and pattern illustration. In 2017, he received a gold medal in book illustration from the Society of Illustrators in New York. He also won a medal from the Cheese Club in college for being able to identify the most amount of, well, cheeses. His first book, Of Cats and Men: History's Great Cat-loving Artists, Writers, Thinkers and Statesmen, was published by Ten Speed Press in 2017. He recently illustrated his first picture book, When We Walked on the Moon, written by David Long and published by Wide Eyed Press in 2019, as well as the follow-up, When Darwin Sailed the Sea.

He lives in an old house with his husband and two cats, Arthur and Frances. In their role as studio assistants, the cats specialize in houseplant demolition and pencil relocation. He enjoys futzing around in his garden, going to estate sales, and taking long walks. So basically, when he's not working, he's retired. He's taught at CUNY Queens College and Minneapolis College of Art and Design.

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About the Publisher

Feeding Minds Press is a project of the American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture, whose mission is to build awareness and understanding of agriculture through education. We focus on helping young readers understand where their food comes from, who grows it, and how it gets to them and believe in cultivating curiosity about food and farming and how agriculture plays a role in our daily lives. All books from Feeding Minds Press have accompanying lessons, activities, and videos to further learning available on their website, www.feedingmindspress.com.

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