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♪
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(audience applauding)
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♪
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I have the audacity to believe
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that peoples everywhere
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can have three meals a day for their bodies,
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education and culture for their minds,
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and dignity, equality and freedom for their spirits.
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I believe that what self-centered men have torn down,
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men other-centered can build up.
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♪
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Welcome to Cleveland Clinic's
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2025 Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Celebration.
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I'm Vickie Johnson.
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And I'm Tom Mihaljevic.
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Today, we're inspired by Dr. King's speech
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when accepting the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964.
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In it, he emphasized the connection between hunger
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and social inequalities related to race,
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educational status, and economic opportunity.
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Sadly, 60 years later, this is still the case.
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Black communities are disproportionately affected
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by food insecurity.
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According to the USDA,
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more than 9 million Black Americans
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cannot access enough food to lead a healthy, active life.
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Nationwide, one in four Black children
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live in homes without reliable access to food,
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a rate that is twice that of other children.
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Clearly, this is unacceptable.
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Every life has value.
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And everyone deserves an opportunity
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to reach their full potential and promise.
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Cleveland Clinic's goal is to help build a community
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in which all people have access to the resources and care
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they need to thrive.
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Food is one of the cornerstones of good health.
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Children who are hungry are at higher risk
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of developing medical conditions.
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In a world of plenty, no family should be unable
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to feed their loved ones.
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No child should ever go hungry.
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At Cleveland Clinic, we believe we have a role
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in nurturing healthy communities,
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which includes providing access to healthy foods.
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Almost exactly one year ago, Fairfax Market opened.
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In partnership with Meyer and other community partners,
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Cleveland Clinic helped to bring an end
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to Fairfax's 50-year-long designation as a food desert.
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We have community pantries now available at four locations
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throughout Cleveland Clinic Health System.
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We have pledged more than $10 million
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over the next five years to fund several local initiatives
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to address childhood hunger.
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These efforts include establishing teaching kitchens
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to provide free nutrition education
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and cooking demonstrations,
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as well as offering food vouchers
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and grocery delivery services
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for patients and their families.
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In total, Cleveland Clinic's investment and efforts
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are helping feed an additional 13,000 children
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in our community.
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Our newest program, Healthy Moms and Babies,
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is delivering nutritious food
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to pregnant women living in food deserts.
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This is especially important when one considers
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that Black women in America are three times more likely
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to die from pregnancy-related complications.
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And Black babies are more than twice as likely
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to die before their first birthday.
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In the following video, we will hear
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how the program is fulfilling the nutritional needs
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of both mothers and their babies,
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supporting better birth outcomes
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and offering children a healthier start in life.
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I have three kids:
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three years old, a year old, and four months.
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The best part about being a mom is the love,
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the hugs, the kisses.
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I like being a mom.
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When I'm low on funds from, you know, paying rent, bills,
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buying the kids diapers and wipes, it was a struggle.
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Especially being pregnant, you eat a lot.
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It was always, "Okay, how many times am I gonna eat a day
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"and what specifically am I going to eat?"
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Because when you eat healthy, your baby is healthy.
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♪
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Healthy nutrition during pregnancy is key.
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We know that moms who do not have access to healthy food
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are more prone to have complications during pregnancy.
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Cleveland Clinic started
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the Healthy Moms and Babies Initiative.
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It's a food delivery program
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that provides healthy food options for pregnant moms.
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They can order the groceries,
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have them delivered right to their home.
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Honestly, I was always longing for healthy foods.
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The Healthy Moms and Babies Program
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is a very great resource.
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It's one of the best things that has happened to me.
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Oh, what else?
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What else would you like?
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Want some fruit?
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I can go through the app, and it takes about an hour.
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The food that I get now is plums, peaches, strawberries,
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bananas, a bunch of different salads (laughs)
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that I love to try.
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They're actually connected
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with a community health worker.
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Hello, look at you.
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This is somebody who's at their side
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throughout their pregnancy and into the delivery
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and helps them address many of life's challenges.
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I was in their position at one time.
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Not everybody has the courage to say, "I'm hungry."
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So just by them being able to have that extra $200 a month
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has been a blessing to a lot of women.
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I usually do get sweet peas.
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I do corn on the cob.
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I do fresh ground beef.
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I do fresh chicken.
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As their program is coming to an end,
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we try to make sure that we have connected them to resources
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that they might be able to receive afterwards,
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like WIC or SNAP.
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You guys are the best thing that happened
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to pregnant moms in need.
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It's a very beautiful experience, very beautiful thing.
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♪
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We definitely believe that these programs
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will have a long-term impact.
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Things like this don't happen overnight.
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They happen over time and they happen one family at a time.
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It's hard, especially when you don't have
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that village and that support system.
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And so when you have people that care enough
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to give these things out to moms, it's very helpful.
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As we care for our community,
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our community will be healthier.
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There will be healthier kids, healthier adults,
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vibrant members of our community.
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It's definitely given me a better outlook on life
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now that I have access to food,
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healthy food, beneficial food for both me and my sons.
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♪
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Next, we are fortunate to hear
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from Claire Babineaux-Fontenot,
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the Chief Executive Officer of Feeding America,
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the largest charity working to end hunger
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in the United States.
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With a nationwide network of over 200 food banks
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and 60,000 meal programs,
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Feeding America aims to provide people with access to food
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without judgment or stigma.
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In 2022, the organization helped distribute
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5.2 billion meals nationwide.
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In addition to providing meal assistance,
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Feeding America is focused on addressing the root causes
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of food insecurity.
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Welcome, Claire.
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Thank you so much, Dr. Mihaljevic.
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As you said, I am Claire Babineaux-Fontenot.
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And it is my great privilege to serve
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as CEO of Feeding America.
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And I'm honored by this opportunity
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to speak to the Cleveland Clinic family
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as well as your partners across the country.
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One thing it does is it gives me a chance
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to say thank you for everything that we're doing together.
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But as I thought about this opportunity,
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there are three different things that came to mind
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that made it feel special.
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One, the occasion.
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Second would be the context.
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And the third is the moment.
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You've given me a chance on this occasion
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to talk about Dr. King.
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I know he's many things to many people.
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But for us, he was like family.
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In fact, his picture hung in our home
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right next to grandparents and great-grandparents.
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And we looked to his words similarly
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to the way that we look to our other elders.
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I know he's famous for having said many things.
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But there's some particular words
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that he's not as famous for
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but that really resonated with our family.
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With your indulgence, I'll read them now.
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"Everybody can be great because everybody can serve.
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"You don't have to have a college degree to serve.
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"You don't have to make your subject
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"and verb agree to serve.
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"You only need a heart full of grace,
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"a soul generated by love."
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Those words deeply resonated in my family.
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I think they still do.
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You see, my grandparents on both sides,
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they didn't have the opportunity to go to school at all.
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And neither of my brilliant parents
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had the opportunity to graduate high school.
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But they knew quite a bit about service.
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In fact, my mother and father,
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they served inside of our family.
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I am one of 108 children
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through biology, adoption, and fostering.
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And as excited as I am
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to have this opportunity to speak to you,
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I know that I have already experienced
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the ultimate opportunity to speak,
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and that was when I provided the keynote address
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when my parents were inducted
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into the National Adoption Hall of Fame.
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They taught us all about service.
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There are other things that we learned
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growing up in that home.
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We learned what hunger looks like.
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There's not one child in our family
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that ever had to be chided to eat our broccoli
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because there were hungry children in some distant shore.
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Because we all knew there were hungry children right here.
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And most of us, most of us had experienced hunger ourselves.
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I am the face of hunger.
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So are your neighbors.
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So are many of you.
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In fact, in this country, nearly 50 million people
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are experiencing hunger right now,
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nearly 14 million of whom are children.
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Hmm, those numbers may feel daunting,
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but they shouldn't.
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Because of partnerships
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like the one we already have with Cleveland Clinic
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and with so many others across the country,
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we are making progress.
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So the moment...
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This is a moment to do something else
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that Dr. King was famous for having said,
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"I have the audacity to believe that peoples everywhere
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"can have three meals a day for their bodies,
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"education and culture for their minds,
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"and dignity, equality and freedom for their spirits."
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So what moment am I talking about?
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This is a moment for audacity.
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It's a moment for us, undaunted, to accept the challenge
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and to know that it's possible
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to eradicate hunger in this country.
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It can happen.
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And in fact, it will happen
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in partnerships with people like all of you.
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One of the things that makes our partnership extra special
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with Cleveland Clinic is that
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we know that food can in fact be medicine.
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So many people who struggle with chronic diseases
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also struggle with hunger.
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And we know that access to nutrition
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can be the answer for both.
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We also know that at moments like this,
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when we gather together and put the work in
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to help with hunger,
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we are contributing to thriving communities
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all across the country.
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Every single element that Dr. King aspired to
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in that last quote can be made more likely
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when people get access to nutrition that they need.
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So thank you so much, Cleveland Clinic.
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Thank you to every single one of your partners.
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Thank you for everything that you're already doing.
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Thank you for the hope
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that comes with what we will do together.
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Thank you, Claire.
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We admire your work and are proud to join you
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in service to our community.
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To reach our goals of racial justice and health equity,
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each of us must ask ourselves,
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"What can I do to make a difference?"
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We must be intentional in our actions.
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We must stand for fairness
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and live up to our ideals every day.
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We must realize that we are all equally responsible
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for making the world a better, safer, more equitable place.
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Cleveland Clinic takes our obligation
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to the community seriously.
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It is an intrinsic part of our mission.
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We invest our resources to make a real difference
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in the lives of our patients
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and the neighbors in every community we serve.
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And we cannot do it alone.
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We have worked diligently to build a broad coalition
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of partners with hospitals, businesses, elected officials,
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nonprofits, and neighbors.
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Working together, we are making a difference
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in the lives of our neighbors
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and building a healthy community for everyone.
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In America, everyone,
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regardless of race, color, creed, or income,
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should have the opportunity to live their healthiest lives.
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Vickie and I both thank you for joining us today.
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And now, Reverend Lisa Zambarano, Senior Director
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of Cleveland Clinic Center for Spiritual Care,
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will offer a benediction to close out
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2025 Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Celebration.
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Thank you.
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We opened today's program
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with the words of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
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as he accepted the 1964 Nobel Peace Prize
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for his nonviolent struggle for civil rights
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in the African American community.
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("Life Every Voice and Sing")
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("Life Every Voice and Sing")
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His words are a powerful expression of hope, conviction,
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and moral vision for a just and equitable world.
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They encapsulate his deep belief in human dignity
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and the interconnectedness of the physical, intellectual,
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and spiritual needs of every person.
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Let us pause together to reflect on his message,
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inspiring our own commitment and call to action.
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May we have the audacity
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to be expressions of a living hope.
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May our eyes and our hearts
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be fixed on the dream of a better world,
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believing that all people everywhere
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can know the fullness of life,
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that each person can be nourished with three meals a day,
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that minds can be filled with knowledge and creativity,
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and that hearts can soar in dignity, equality, and freedom.
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Let us recognize that what selfishness has torn down,
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love and unity can rebuild.
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Where division has darkened our world,
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may compassion light the way.
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Where injustice has reigned,
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may peace and righteousness prevail.
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We ask for the courage and humility
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to live with an other-centered love,
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that we may work for a world
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where every human being is valued and every voice is heard.
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May we build bridges in place of walls,
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and sow seeds of hope where despair has taken root.
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May we live with the audacity to believe
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in the beauty of all creation, in the power of community,
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and in the boundless potential for good
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in every human heart.
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This is our call.
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This is our charge.
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This is our time.
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("Life Every Voice and Sing" fades)
