— IStock Photo

Of the 51 million people in the United States who are at risk of hunger, 6 million are over the age of 60. Though this problem is large, AARP Foundation believes it is solvable. Through Drive to End Hunger, the Foundation seeks to put an end to senior hunger, by engaging in anti-hunger work at the local and national levels.

At the community level, AARP Foundation is working with local anti-hunger programs and services to:

• Educate and enroll older people in SNAP (the Federal government's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program); and

• Provide food and volunteers to supplement the efforts of local hunger relief organizations to meet the growing demand to feed more seniors.

At the national level, we are:

• Increasing awareness about senior hunger by teaming up with NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion Jeff Gordon and team sponsor Hendrick Motorsports;

• Partnering with Fortune 500 companies and national organizations to raise money to fight hunger among older people; and

• Developing long-term, sustainable solutions to senior hunger through collaboration with hunger researchers, educators and other nonprofit organizations, and through this grant making process.

Our long-term goal is to shift the paradigm, so that our focus is less about short-term solutions that seek to put food on the table, and more about providing long-term sustainable solutions that solve the issue of senior hunger, increase food security among seniors and decrease the numbers of hungry seniors in our country.