Mark Crea is the Executive Director/CEO of Feed My Starving Children. 

We couldn’t save Jane. 

When our partner Richard from African Children Today found her at her father’s funeral, she was barely clinging to life.

He rushed Jane to the hospital. She was so malnourished, the doctor said her system could only handle clear liquids.

She was too weak to speak, but Richard told me that she mustered every bit of strength she had left to whisper, “I want the food.” So Richard made her a promise.

He promised her that as soon as she got a little better she could eat the MannaPack™ Rice, and that she could have as much as she wanted.

But he couldn’t keep that promise. Jane died that night.

You might be wondering why we are sharing such a heart wrenching story with you. The fact is, we don’t want to share it. And under ordinary circumstances, we never would.

But these aren’t ordinary circumstances. Hunger continues to rise, and this year, our partners have asked us for more food than we can provide. We are dealing with a 70 million meal gap. This gap leaves children like Jane without food and without hope.

And for the first time in more than five years, we are unable to accept food aid applications for new partnerships.

This means lives are at stake. Your continued financial support is critical. Simply put, we can’t feed kids without you.

I keep Jane’s photo in my notebook. She’s with me every day, and I’ll tell you why. I never want to get so caught up in my daily life that I forget that this is a reality for so many precious children around the world.

We really do have the ability to save them one by one. You are the difference between whether or not children have a reliable daily meal.

Whether you respond today with a monthly gift as a Hope Sustainer or a one-time gift, know that lives will be changed.

You provide food when it matters most. You are the difference between whether or not children like Jane have a reliable daily meal. Will you help us keep our promise to feed God's children?