What would happen if an entire industry banded together to solve a problem? According to the two leaders on this episode of Add Passion and Stir, the industry would completely solve that problem. John Miller, CEO of Denny’s and Amanda Hite, Co-founder and CEO of Be The Change Revolutions think that the restaurant industry can end child hunger in America. Hite describes the industry as “massive, powerful and influential.” “We’re the industry that feeds people for a living,” says Miller. “Shouldn’t we be involved in being the solution to ending child hunger in America. If not us, then who?” Podcast hosts Share Our Strength founders Billy and Debbie Shore agree. “We can’t wait for the tipping point; we have to force it,” Debbie believes.

Both guests are heavily involved with Dine Out for No Kid Hungry, a restaurant-led campaign that raises funds for No Kid Hungry’s work on getting more kids access to school breakfasts, school lunches and summer meals. Denny’s has been a participant for many years, raising over $4M for hungry kids. “The infrastructure of Dine Out makes it easy,” says Miller. “You see the need, you see the kids, you see the difference you’re making.” Hite, who created a social media company because she was impressed by the internet’s ability to bring communities together and ignite for change, sees the power of all the participating restaurants’ networks and fan bases coming together. “You’ll see 200M social media impressions on Dine Out,” she reports. “The Dine Out map broke!”

When Billy Shore asks Miller and Hite about the role of partisan politics in fighting child hunger, they are adamant that politics should play no role. Miller believes we can make the case with “stubborn facts” to get people with different political believes working side by side. “These are our children, the next generation of children. They are struggling. They need their voices heard. And they don’t have a chance unless [we] feed them…,” he says. “Those are the facts, so we just have to come together and solve it.”

Listen to see how the restaurant industry and others can make kids’ voices heard.

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