On Tuesday, Feb. 11, the Warren County 4-H Teen Leaders group hosted an educational event for 4-H members, their families and community members. 

The event was made possible through a 2025 Missouri Farmers Care Foundation Drive to Feed Kids 4-H mini grant. The event was a hunger dinner, an immersion event to show that in every community there are people of different circumstances, and even though we may not see it, there is an issue of food insecurity right here in Warren County. 

When they arrived at dinner, each person drew their character. 50% of attendees drew a low-income persona, 20% drew a middle-income persona, 20% drew a high-income persona and the remaining 10% drew an in-between persona because here in Warren County about 10% of our population fluctuates between low and middle income levels depending on the time of the year. 

This split of income levels for the immersion event was a good representation of the population in our county. According to guest speaker Michelle Bernth, executive director at Agape, one in four children experiences food insecurity in Warren County. 

During the immersion event, each income level was provided with a meal that resembled what people in the various income levels might eat on a daily basis. This allowed people to experience different levels of food security and insecurity. 

Following the meal, the teens hosted a discussion for people to share how the experience made them feel. 

While the event was free, all attendees were asked to bring a donation for Agape and an assortment of dry goods, as well as personal hygiene items were collected. In addition to these donations, Agape was also presented with cash donations from the Warren County 4-H Teen Leaders, Prairie View 4-H Club, Rolling Stones 4-H Club and Elkhorn 4-H Club.