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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » NEWS NOW Police investigating expensive bike theft in east Medford ... BLM fee complicates Bandon golf course deal ... Assailant will spend no more time in jail ... Police investigating expensive bike theft in east Medford ... BLM fee complicates Bandon golf course deal ... Assailant will spend no more time in jail ... Mayors United ACCESS campaign kicks off Comment By Ryan Pfeil Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Ryan Pfeil Mail Tribune Posted Apr. 29, 2015 at 1:33 PM Updated Apr 29, 2015 at 5:09 PM By Ryan Pfeil Mail Tribune Posted Apr. 29, 2015 at 1:33 PM Updated Apr 29, 2015 at 5:09 PM » Social News Here's a number to consider: 800,000. That's how many meals the Mayors United ACCESS campaign has been able to provide since it began raising money in 2009 — about five meals on the dollar. The seventh annual fundraising effort, which brings together all 11 of Jackson County's mayors, kicked off Wednesday with a breakfast at the ACCESS Olsrud Nutrition Center in Medford. It will conclude Oct. 10 at the Bigham Knoll Event Center in Jacksonville, where all ticket and auction proceeds will go to ACCESS. The event, held from 4 to 7 p.m., will feature food tastings from local restaurants, wine and beer samples, live music, and live and silent auctions. "We still continue to see an increase across the county in the need (for food)," said Philip Yates, ACCESS nutrition programs director. "We're trying to respond." Mayors United chairman JR Wheeler says the October event started in 2009 as a way to fill the lull between summer and winter fundraising events. "We always felt there was a gap between the golf tournament, which is typically in June, and December," Wheeler said. "We wanted to let people know this was a year-round need in the community." Getting mayors from across the community was key, he added. It brought a deeper perspective of what each city faces in terms of hunger and poverty. "The mayors are really an important driver of this," Wheeler said. Mayors in attendance at the breakfast said the help ACCESS provides in their communities is vital for some families. Shady Cove Mayor Tom Anderson called the agency a "lifeline." "If you don't know where your next meal's coming from, you're desperate," Ashland Mayor John Stromberg said. Gold Hill Mayor Jan Fish said hunger's effects on children is especially troubling, affecting development and school performance. "It's pretty heartbreaking," Fish said. ACCESS officials said their 25 food pantries distributed about 3.3 million pounds of food in 2014, with one-third of that amount going to feed minors. Yates said ACCESS's primary focus through 2015 will be on making more fresh produce available and on continuing to teach basic cooking skills at their pantries in a partnership with Oregon State University Extension. "Our focus ... has been to increase the amount of fresh fruits and vegetables by 50 percent over the next three years," he said. For more information about purchasing tickets to the Oct. 10 fundraiser, see www.accesshelps.org or call 541-774-4312. Reach reporter Ryan Pfeil at 541-776-4468 or [email protected] . Follow him at www.twitter.com/ryanpfeil . By Ryan Pfeil Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Ryan Pfeil Mail Tribune Posted Apr. 29, 2015 at 1:33 PM Updated Apr 29, 2015 at 5:09 PM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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