Lew Finfer, long time activisit talked about his concerns at the elimination in the state budget of youth violence prevention and job training programs. Massachusetts has a three billion dollar budget deficit due to corporate tax breaks and lack of state income tax increases.

Pat Maher, Nurse for Cambridge Health Care for the Homeless spoke about the lack of comprehensive services for homeless women.

Boston Globe Article about Kip's Fast

Please read this article!


http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2009/06/03/still_striking_at_hunger/

Roca young people gave performances and testimony about how the programs had helped them, Stuart Herrara, Chino Kan, Mercedes Pagan, and Jennifer Gonzales.

Mary Quinn, Rene Scott Gray, Laurie Taymor Berry talked about the struggles for equal justice for poor women at the Boston Women's Fund and Survivors, Inc.

Diane Sullivan, Homes for Families talked about the 2700 families living in shelter, 700 in motels where she had lived not being able to feed her families. The voucher program has not been funded and would result in more families becoming homeless.

Day three of Kip's Fast was opened with a message from Pat Baker, Chair, of the Massachusetts Food Stamp Coalition. "Our work continues today in honor of and inspired by Rosie's Place founder Kip Tiernan. She seeks to raise awareness of the continued growth in homelessness and hunger facing the Commonwealth, and to call on elected leaders to own their responsibility to appropriate the funds needed to ensure the Commonwealth meets these most basic human needs."

Before we ended yesterday, Gabriella Snyder Stelmack spoke about the 24% increase in need at the Bread of Life food program in Malden. She reported that the director Tom Feagley was fasting in solidarity with Kip.

Debbie Socolar from the Boston University school of Public Health spoke about the importance of nutrition and safe housing being included in the definition of health care.