The trip wrapped up in early December and despite traveling in what was one of the worst winters ever, and with the uncertainty of housing, Emery said there's very little he would change.

"If I had to go back, I think I'd try to get more together at the beginning as far as setting up more stops for places to sleep or even more organizations to visit," Emery said. "We also could have used a bigger team of people to make calls and write letters for the fundraising."

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Although ACP fell short of its $1 million fundraising goal to be split among the organizations visited in each state, each of them will receive $102.67.

As the weeks rolled by, the duo found themselves asking different questions than when they started. Questions such as what are the challenges, what's being done to solve them, and can those solutions be implemented within other communities, exposed other underlying issues such as the minimum wage debate and food waste distribution and transportation.

"It all ties together. We tried to keep that food focus as much as possible but we learned in addressing solutions, it was just as important to see the whole picture and how all the pieces affect one other," Emery said.

The duo was particularly inspired by the Los Angeles Green Grounds and the New Orleans Area Habitat for Humanity.

With few local supermarkets and food choices that were generally limited to fast food restaurants, L.A. Green Grounds transformed South Los Angeles residential front lawns and public parkways into edible neighborhood gardens.

One local South Los Angeles family (shown at left) planted edible vegetation on the majority of their property. The watermelon the group enjoyed in the photo weighed more than 55 pounds.

"We met a couple, who, for the past two years, has replaced everything inedible, except for his wife's roses, on their property with something edible," Emery said. "There's zero grass to mow and they have edible cactus, watermelon, dragon fruit and more. I'm looking at my own yard with different eyes. The support network that has been created by L.A. Green Grounds is an invaluable community resource and adopting that grassroots model in other communities would be incredibly beneficial."

In New Orleans, the Habitat Urban Garden Fresh Food Initiative has helped Habitat for Humanity reduce the maintenance costs of its unused lots while helping create new resources for communities where NOAHH builds, Emery said.

Local groups leased the lots at a rate of $1 per year with a five-year lease paid up front. From fruit trees to honey, vegetable plots and soil manufacture, the lots have been providing sustainable, renewableresources for local businesses, community groups, and nonprofits. Some 40 lots have been leased like the one shown in the photo above.

"Habitat for Humanity sometimes receives housing lots in bulk. Other than the maintenance costs, some of the lots may sit for an extended period of time before they are utilized as a build site," Emery said. "This was an opportunity to give back and the first year the HUG Initiative was implemented, the cost of maintenance dropped from $120,000 to $70,000."

The potential partnerships that credit unions can form with communities are endless, Emery said.

"Why not team up with local farmers and put a small [five by 10]-foot market stand at your branches," he suggested. "Credit union staffers or even members going to a credit union on their lunch hour can also grab local produce as well."

There's also an opportunity for credit unions to be more than just a place for loans and deposits, Emery said.

"Ask more probing questions about their situation and develop relationships with others in the community," he offered. "Even if your credit union can't help them directly, imagine how they'd feel if you were able to provide access to a referral network of local partners, social service agencies or other service providers who may be able to help."