Ardent Advocate Lucy Nolan of End Hunger Connecticut!
Lucy Nolan with End Hunger Connecticut! partner Kate Robinson after winning full funding for school meals for the 2021—2022 school year. Photo courtesy of End Hunger Connecticut!
Meet Lucy P. Nolan, a lifelong organizer and economic justice advocate. From door-to-door canvassing with Connecticut Citizens Action Group to serving as one of the last VISTA volunteers under the Carter administration, Lucy has an unwavering dedication to Connecticut children and families. Lucy currently serves as the Policy Advisor for Newman’s Own Foundation grantee partner End Hunger Connecticut! (EHC!)
Founded in 2001, End Hunger Connecticut! is a statewide anti-hunger and food security organization whose mission is to end hunger in Connecticut through legislative and administrative advocacy, outreach and public education. Lucy led EHC! as the Executive Director from 2001—2017, and now speaks directly to federal and state legislators as the Policy Advisor. Lucy works side by side with current Executive Director Julieth Callejas and a small but mighty team of six (plus volunteers!).
EHC! partners with state and local officials, schools, and community-based organizations, to strengthen awareness of and access to federal food assistance programs such as school meals. “There are a number of federal programs that are underutilized for a number of reasons—administrative, people having to jump through hoops, or the law is written in a confusing way—so we want to take these programs and make them more accessible,” Lucy said.
Lucy and Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro outside the first Summer Meals Truck in New Haven, Connecticut, 2013. Photo courtesy of End Hunger Connecticut!
1 in 8 Connecticut children live in households experiencing food insecurity. That’s why EHC! advocates for Healthy School Meals for All, or meals made available to all students at no cost, which research has shown to result in improved academic outcomes and reduce rates of food insecurity. “School shouldn’t be a place where kids get unhealthy foods, or can’t get it at all,” Lucy shared. “We’re not giving kids what they need.” A recent advocacy win in 2023 included securing $16 million dollars in funding to support school meals, which includes providing free school breakfasts for all students. Providing universal breakfasts ensures that children are ready to learn and thrive.
Lucy is also quick to connect the dots between supporting children and families and supporting local food systems. EHC!’s Connecticut Fresh Match Program allows Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients to double the fruits and vegetables they purchase at farmer’s markets, which she notes is supportive of both people’s health and local farmers.
Farmer at Connecticut Old State House Farmer’s Market. Photo courtesy of End Hunger Connecticut!
What keeps Lucy going? She wants to remove stigma and harmful assumptions associated with needing food assistance. “If you need access to any of these food programs, it’s not because you’re doing something wrong,” Lucy said. “We help navigate the channels to the programs. You can’t succeed if you’re hungry; these programs feed people. That’s why access is so important.”
Newman’s Own Foundation has been supporter of EHC! since 2012, in line with our mission to nourish and transform the lives of children who face adversity. Lucy said, “Newman’s Own Foundation has been critical [in particular] to our work as advocates – funding specific to advocacy is so hard to find. Knowing there’s an organization like Newman’s Own in your corner helps build success.”
Newman’s Own Foundation’s CEO Alex Amouyel shared, “The impact of End Hunger Connecticut! shows the power of working with communities to drive change. Their work to build and support a coalition of child advocates ensures that food justice in Connecticut starts in the classroom—with kids’s own voices.”
