What do bratwurst and USDA have in common? The ability to
mobilize community members to donate to Feds Feed Families! On
sizzling hot summer days in Madison, Wisconsin, employees of the
Agricultural Research Service’s Dairy Forage Research Center
fire up their grills with hot dogs, hamburgers, veggie burgers,
and of course, brats (short for bratwurst, a German sausage that
is especially popular in Wisconsin) to incentivize donors to
keep giving to feed hungry families. This creative idea was
sparked by Jane Marita, a plant molecular geneticist, who wanted
to add some energy and excitement to the 2011 Feds Feed Families
Campaign. By offering her co-workers free brats in exchange for
food pantry donations, Marita noticed a marked increase in
donations which resulted in a tremendous total of 2,800 pounds
of food collected by the research center in 2011. Read more »
Satellite image with enhanced low cloud-top temperatures for
6:45 a.m. EST (NOAA) Weekend thundershowers provided limited and
localized relief to a f