As a hunger action advocate for the Presbytery of Eastern Virginia, Jessica Fitzgerald loves to collect goods for farm laborers and their families, particularly migrants and seasonal workers who contribute to the state’s agriculture industry.
As Kaaleah J. from the Presbytery of Eastern Virginia spoke, photos of her father appeared on a screen above the stage in Purdue University’s Eliza Fowler Hall and he could be heard rapping, “When I’m gone, will they remember me?”
They bring food to our tables but are not invited to the feast.
Every year, about 5,500 migrant farm workers arrive on Virginia’s Eastern Shore in April and stay through the fall. They work 10 to 12 hours a day, seven days a week in the fields during the hottest months of the year. They are the backbone of the agricultural community. Yet they live in poverty and isolation.