Reverend Robert Hahn, Pastor of Chesapeake Church in Huntingtown and founder of End Hunger Calvert, has come in second in the latest Compassionate Marylander Awards.
To be eligible for the awards, participants had to submit an essay last year.
Marylanders then selected the ten finalist by voting for their favorite story online with voting ending January 9. A review committee compiled of members from the Governor’s Office and CareFirst will donate $5,000 in each winner’s name to the charity of their choice (a total of $25,000 is available).
Early on, Rev. Hahn led the pack, after a social media blitz, but by the end of the voting period had dropped to second with 22%, 6,138 votes.
Rev. Hahn recognized supporters on his Facebook page with this message: “THANK YOU to everyone who voted and Tweeted and Facebooked and got everyone they knew to vote for End Hunger Calvert. We got second place which keeps us in the running for one of the $5,000 grants. We did this together – harnessed social media to feed the hungry and created community. I cannot list all of you – you know who you are and went above and beyond. Life in Calvert is better because of you.”
Of the more than 27,800 votes cast, the top vote-getter was Rich Blake, a marine combat vet from Baltimore wrote an impassioned letter about “Operation Oliver”, an effort to repopulate the city with families. He received 25%, or 6,966 votes.
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Compassion is defined as “a feeling of deep sympathy and sorrow for another who is stricken by misfortune, accompanied by a strong desire to alleviate the suffering.” I would like to nominate Rev. Robert P. Hahn, Chairman of End Hunger In Calvert County as my Compassionate Marylander.
Rev. Hahn has been the Senior Pastor of Chesapeake Church for over 20 years and in 2006 he began a countywide movement that lead to the establishment of End Hunger In Calvert County. Rev.Hahn was inspired to launch End Hunger In Calvert County when he learned that while Calvert is one of the wealthiest counties in the United States, it suffers from rising poverty and hunger rates. Upon hearing that the majority of Calvert food pantry clients are children and the remainder already hold full‐time jobs, he was gripped by the vision of what could be accomplished if churches, schools, nonprofits,businesses and other organizations joined together. His mission is to not only feed people but to get to the root causes of local hunger and equip people to become self‐sufficient.
In its existence, End Hunger In Calvert County has grown into a grassroots partnership of over 25 churches, 11 food pantries, and more than 60 businesses united behind the idea that hunger in Calvert County can be defeated. Every October is now officially End Hunger In Calvert County Month, declared by a joint resolution of the Maryland State Senate and the House of Delegates as well as Calvert County Board of Commissioners. Rev. Hahn serves as an active partner on the board of Governor O’Malley’s Partnership to End Childhood Hunger.
Rev. Hahn’s vision for change has always involved people and inspiring others to envision what can be accomplished when they banned together to serve the greater good; one of his and End Hunger In Calvert County’s core values is that life change happens through relationships. And if you ever hear him speak on the issue of hunger, one thing is always unmistakably clear, hunger is not a food problem, it’s an awareness problem and together we can make a difference for thousands of people.
Determined to rally a people, Rev. Hahn has relentlessly spent the last six ‐ years unifying the community of Calvert County to care for the least fortunate. Because of his leadership and vision End Hunger In Calvert County’s 11 partnering food pantries serve over 10,000 residents each year. Every October, End Hunger In Calvert County hosts a countywide food drive in partnership with the Calvert County Public School System, Calvert Memorial Hospital, Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant, College of Southern Maryland, as as countless individuals, community groups, and local businesses. Just this October, over 200,000 lbs of food were collected to fill the shelves of the local food pantries.
2011 also launched The Farms of End Hunger, eleven acres of farmland completely dedicated to providing fresh produce to local food pantries to provide healthy food options for low‐income families. Over 160,000 pounds of produce were
harvested just this year.
Rev. Hahn also united the County clergy by spearheading a movement founded on the value that although they may disagree on some things; they can all agree that no person should go hungry. For the first time in Calvert County history, clergy members across all faith backgrounds, in a display of unity, stood together as the Clergy of End Hunger In Calvert County, demonstrating that religious and racial divisions can be defeated when we unite behind a common need. Because of this movement, two new church‐based food pantries have opened and the level of awareness about hunger in Calvert County has grown.
Rev. Hahn has also had a great impact on the business community. As stated,over 60 local businesses make up the End Hunger In Calvert County network.Because of End Hunger’s relationship with the College of Southern Maryland and
Calvert Memorial Hospital the life of Elena Hutchinson will never be the same. Elena is a mother of four, who came to End Hunger In Calvert County through the Red Cross after her husband had committed suicide and two weeks later lost her home in Hurricane Katrina. She now has her degree as an Occupational Therapist, holds a full-time job to care for her family and for the first time in her life she has a saving account.
Here is another story of a changed life. Because of End Hunger In Calvert County’s relationship with a local car dealership, Shawn Englert was provided with a specialty van after a diving accident left him paralyzed from the shoulders down. This vehicle now allows him to build a more independent lifestyle and continue to
pursue his college degree.
It’s not about numbers, but behind those numbers are the faces of real people whose lives have been touched and transformed by the work of End Hunger In Calvert County. That success only comes from a compassionate vision combined
with the courage and passion to make it happen.
Because of Rev. Hahn’s compassion for people thousands of less fortunate families lives have been impacted. But even more, Rev. Hahn has united Calvert County. His work has influenced others to be compassionate people compelled to
make a difference in the lives of their neighbors. His legacy will live on long past his years. And that is why Rev. Robert P. Hahn is my Compassionate Marylander.

The evening of Nov. 3 was an exciting one for Calvert County 4-H. It started out very cold, as 4-Hers waited outside for the Southern Maryland Meats truck to show up at the Chesapeake Cares Food Pantry. When the truck arrived, the 4-Hers climbed into the trailer and unloaded approximately 450 pounds of pork. The 4-H members donated some of the pork from their 4-H livestock projects to the End Hunger in Calvert County campaign. Their donation was truly a labor of love, as the youngsters tend and raise the livestock in their 4-H work.
There was lots of help, as the 4-H members headed inside with the boxes of meat, to put it in the pantry freezers. It only took about 15 minutes to get the meat into the freezers, thanks to the help of the proud 4-Hers. Cathy Ring, director of operations at the Chesapeake Cares Food Pantry, thanked the group. Ring further indicated that the children helped to end the hunger of more than 130 families with their donation.
The goal of 4-H is to develop citizenship, leadership, responsibility and life skills of youth through experiential learning programs, using a positive youth development approach. Though typically thought of as an agriculturally focused organization, 4-H today focuses on much more. Projects surround citizenship, healthy living, science, engineering and the arts. There is definitely something for everyone in 4-H, and programs are open to all citizens. To learn more about opportunities in Calvert County 4-H, contact the University of Maryland Extension, Calvert office, at 410-535-3662 or 301-855-1150, or email Ari Strahl astrahl@umd.edu or Elaine Long Bailey elbailey@umd.edu. To see 4-H members in action, “Like” University of Maryland Extension, Calvert County 4-H on Facebook.
End Hunger in Calvert County is an ongoing community project. Every year food is donated to help needy families in Calvert. There is a need to feed more families each year. Even young people, such as 4-H members, decide to help, without being asked. To help End Hunger in Calvert County, call 410-257-5672, or “Like” End Hunger in Calvert County on Facebook.