Posted: Nov 19, 2017 8:12 PM ESTUpdated: Nov 20, 2017 7:15 AM EST
LOUISVILLE, Ky (WDRB) – Millions of people are getting ready for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, yet millions of others will struggle to put food on the table.
Sunday night dozens of Louisville residents remembered a 9-year-old boy who passed away because his family didn’t have enough to eat.
Bobby Ellis died of malnutrition on the eve of Thanksgiving in 1969 at his home near on Eddy Street in Louisville’s Russell Neighborhood.
Ellis’ death inspired the creation of the Dare to Care Food Bank – an organization that now provides meals to more than 20 million people in the greater Louisville area.
Events like Sunday’s walk make sure Ellis did not die in vain.
“Through the compassion and generosity of this community to make sure that what happened to Bobby never happens again,” said Dare to Care’s CEO Brian Riendeau. “The idea that someone in this community lacked enough food to live and he actually died because of that … that’s shocking.”
Community leaders including Mayor Greg Fischer also took part in Sunday night’s walk and vigil.
“We come together to mourn every year for Bobby Ellis and his family but can also celebrate the response to that and that is why Dare to Care continues to need everybody’s help,” Fischer said.
The one-mile walk began at Louisville’s Urban League, and ended at Muhammad Ali Boulevard and 22nd Street at a vacant lot – the location of the home where Ellis lived when he died.
The crowd walked in silence – each holding a candle to remember a boy who died nearly 50 years ago while supporting a battle against hunger that continues on.
“We still have children who we are concerned about during the holiday season … we have children we wonder about even on the weekends,” said Sadiqa Reynolds of the Louisville Urban League.
The walk is an annual event. The Bobby Ellis Foundation has been set up in the hopes of preventing more deaths because of malnutrition.
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Source: Louisville Community remembers 9-year-old boy who died of malnut – WDRB 41 Louisville News
