Little Black Dress Initiative Launches in Jacksonville on November 12
Over 40 Jacksonville Women Take Stand to Make Poverty Unfashionable in Jacksonville

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (November 12, 2018) – The Little Black Dress Initiative (LBDI) is a grassroots awareness and fundraising campaign, which highlights the effects of poverty in Jack-sonville and the Junior League of Jacksonville’s efforts to alleviate some of those effects in our community. From Nov. 12 to Nov. 16, Junior League of Jacksonville members will commit to wearing the same black dress, each day, and encourage others to “Ask me about my dress” to spread awareness of the campaign.

The Junior League of Jacksonville is urging the community to get involved in making change in a non-bipartisan way by helping raise awareness of the 29 food deserts that are present in our Jacksonville community. Florida ranks 33rd in the nation for women living above the poverty line. In Duval County alone, there are an estimated 177,000 food insecure individuals and per the Florida Department of Health, 34 percent of the people living in Duval County’s health zone 1, are living in poverty. In 2016 the Duval County Community Health Status Assessment indicated 82.7 percent of adults ate less than 5 servings of fruit/vegetables per day and 66.2 percent of adults were overweight or obese. Only 20 percent of the population live within a half mile of a healthy food source. This year’s LBDI campaign goal is to raise $12,140, the federal poverty line for an individual (as reported by the Department of Health and Human Services).

The Jacksonville community can help the League raise awareness during the week of Nov. 12 through Nov. 16 by:

1. Sharing social media posts from the Junior League of Jacksonville during the campaign week
2. Donating directly to the League’s Little Black Dress Campaign: https://lbdi2018.cause-vox.com/
3. Joining us for a Shop for a Cause Event at Swoozie’s at the St. Johns Towncenter at 6 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 12, where a portion of the proceeds will be contributed to the League.
4. Participating in a special Happy Hour event at Kanine Social on Friday, Nov. 16 where a portion of the proceeds will be contributed to the League.

Funds raised through LBDI will be used to support the League’s Mission and community projects, currently focused on promoting the availability of healthy food, nutrition education and health and wellness to local low-income schools and communities. We – over 800 women of the Junior League – work tirelessly to build a better Jacksonville. Among many other efforts, we teach kids to make healthy food choices, volunteer at a farm located in one of Jacksonville’s food deserts, and lobby our lawmakers for favorable legislation to help our community combat food insecurity.

To donate or for more information, please visit www.jljacksonville.org/events/littleblackdressinitiative.

About The Junior League of Jacksonville

The Junior League of Jacksonville (JLJ) is an organization of women committed to promoting volunteerism, devel-oping the potential of women and improving the community through the effective action and leadership of trained volunteers. Its purpose is exclusively educational and charitable. During its rich history of over 95 years, JLJ has contributed over 1 million hours of service to our community and founded countless institutions in Jacksonville. For additional information about JLJ, visit www.jljacksonville.org or call (904) 387-9927