FOOD MATTERS! SUMMER 2018 Free Food Market distributes more healthy food to people experiencing hunger. Fresh, nutritious, free Reinvented program aims to get produce where it s most needed Beautiful. So fresh. Mangoes are my favorite. As people go through the line at a recent Free Food Market they repeatedly comment on the high quality of the produce. For many who experience hunger, fresh produce is a luxury. For more than a dozen years, Oregon Food Bank, along with its partners, has been running free produce distributions. Once called Community Basket or Harvest Share, the programs were recently combined and renamed Free Food Market. Free Food Market clearly communicates what s being offered and it translates well into other languages, says Rob Rutledge-Shryock, Oregon Food Bank s community food programs coordinator. In addition to fresh produce the markets now have a small selection of pantry staples, such as chicken stock, rice and oil. Usually running in partnership with non-profit and community-led organizations, Free Food Market is held at 33 locations across the Portland-metro area. Food items can be adjusted to better match cultural and dietary needs of the community. Your support of Oregon Food Bank ensures that Free Food Market is able to hold monthly distributions of high-quality foods in underserved communities. To find out more about Free Food Market or other Community Food Programs, visit oregonfoodbank.org/freefoodmarket.
Improving veterans health Local, innovative screening program goes nationwide It takes a multitude of approaches to solve hunger from pantries and education to public policy and intervention programs. Four years ago, Oregon Food Bank piloted a program with health care professionals to screen for food insecurity (the inconsistent access to safe, nutritious food). When a person visited a medical provider, they were asked two easy questions about access to food; if a patient indicated they weren t eating well, they were guided to food resources before leaving the clinic. Your financial support has helped expand this program, paving the way for national implementation and getting attention and interest from food banks and healthcare systems across the country. One area of growth right in our backyard is our partnership with Oregon s Veterans Health System, which is now using this screening at clinics serving homeless veterans, a group at high risk of food insecurity. A year into the program, they shared their success of screening and connecting patients to food resources with national Veterans Health System leadership. Impressed with the result, the national leadership recently decided to implement the screening for all veterans accessing health care. The Center for Disease Prevention says that 86% of current health care costs can be attributed to chronic disease, almost all of which is diet related. Poor nutrition can imitate other health conditions or be masked by disease, so screening for food insecurity is vital to creating an effective treatment plan to improve health. Learn more about health care partnerships at oregonfoodbank.org/screenandintervene. More veterans are being screened for food insecurity. No yard? No problem! Container gardening class shows how to grow food in small spaces When spring finally takes hold, gardeners prepare their gardens and nurture seedlings. But what do you do if you don t have a yard or your yard isn t a good space to grow food? To make gardening more accessible, Oregon Food Bank now offers a container gardening class. teaches container gardening which is a much shorter version of the six-week Seed to Supper curriculum. I find that people are intimidated by having to do everything themselves. You have to convince them to try, says Peggy. They always say they are afraid of making mistakes, so I remind them that we are all learning as we go. The half-day class is full of information including what containers to use, what to plant and when to start. Volunteer Peggy Valenti I kill house plants, joked Carolyn, who attended the container gardening class in March. But since I ve lost a lot of weight and am eating more vegetables, I wanted to give container gardening a try.
Focusing on child hunger Ford Motor Company Foundation continues to help children in Oregon and Clark County, Washington get enough quality food. Through the Focus on Child Hunger campaign, Oregon Food Bank received a $110,000 grant to purchase pantry staples like beans, rice, pasta and oats. "Children cannot learn if they're hungry, says Larry Gregerson of Ford Motor Company Fund. Ford Fund supports child hunger programs so that every child has a chance to learn, grow and realize their potential." In mid-may, Ford dealers around the state collected and donated peanut butter for their local food banks. Thank you Ford Motor Company! VOICES PROJECT Food is not a luxury Getting by with help from SNAP and a food pantry Kathy lives with her 10-year-old son in low-income housing in Washington County. She s worked most of her life, but now lives on approximately $800 a month and less than $200 in SNAP benefits (formerly known as food stamps). Having food stamps is very helpful. If it was cut even in half I m not sure what I would do. Despite some serious health issues, once a week you can find Kathy volunteering at the food pantry where she supplements her groceries. Food is not a luxury. It should never be a luxury, she exclaims. Kathy and her neighbors try not to worry about the threats to cut this important human services program. I think it would be disastrous for everyone involved [if SNAP was cut]. Your support helps Kathy and her son have a more secure life. Read more stories of people who experience hunger at oregonfoodbank.org/voices.
PANTRY PROFILE Northeast Emergency Food Program Part of Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon s community ministry network, Northeast Emergency Food Program is firmly rooted in Portland s Cully Neighborhood. Information provided by Program Manager Travis Niemann. Memorable moment: We once had an abundance of catfish. Since we didn t have much space to store it we were giving it away to everyone. That day everyone was chatting with each other with such excitement, sharing recipes. African Americans, white folks, Chinese, Russian, Vietnamese, you name it, they all had a different way they liked to eat catfish, and everyone was talking about it. It was a real intercultural moment centered on food! What makes the neighborhood unique: The Cully neighborhood is one of the most diverse parts of the entire state of Oregon. A lot of effort is being put into resisting displacement of long-term, low-income Northeast Emergency Food Program serves a diverse group of clients. residents. When I think about meeting the cultural needs of our clients, I just think that as long as we have some fresh vegetables and meat or another protein, then we have culturally appropriate food for whomever we serve. Languages spoken: Eight languages are commonly spoken, but there are many others. Families served: 800 per month, this includes visits by Cully Mobile Food Pantry. Letter carriers do a lot of heavy lifting for Stamp Out Hunger. Going the extra mile to Stamp Out Hunger Rain, snow, wind or heat nothing stops letter carriers from delivering the mail. On Saturday, May 12, they went the extra mile and helped collect more than a million pounds of food. Volunteers unloaded food at the post offices and assisted letter carriers in picking up food along the mail routes. The annual National Association of Letter Carriers Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive is the largest one-day food collection event in the country. The food stays in the community where it was collected and will help many pantries make it through the summer months. Thank you UFCW Local 555, AWS Elemental and everyone who contributed to another successful drive!
Why we need to protect SNAP A battle is waging in Congress over legislation that will affect millions of Americans who experience hunger. A core issue is funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or SNAP (formerly known as food stamps). Some believe in expanding work requirements and restricting access to the program. In Oregon, approximately 645,000 people are enrolled in SNAP. A majority of those recipients are children, seniors and people with disabilities. Changes to the program would increase demands on local food banks, quickly reaching levels impossible to achieve through charitable donations. economic activity. This shows that SNAP is also an economic stimulus program, bringing in $80 million in federal nutrition funds each month to Oregon. Visit oregonfoodbank.org/advocate and sign up for Action Alerts. You will receive emails to tell you when action is necessary. Cuts to SNAP would mean farmers and retailers would lose income, and in some cases grocery stores may cut staff or close. For every $1 spent in SNAP benefits, it generates approximately $1.79 in Preserving SNAP means seniors and children will get nutritous food. Challenge Hunger Day-long event educates, empowers Columbia Gorge leaders Building a community to end hunger in the Gorge. Rural Oregon faces higher rates of hunger than urban areas. Lack of access to grocery stores, climbing housing costs and few living wage jobs make it difficult for many people to stock their pantries with nutritious food. A one-day hunger prevention seminar in The Dalles was organized by Columbia Gorge Food Bank (an interim branch of Oregon Food Bank) in April to educate community leaders on the issues and available resources. Workshops included topics such as SNAP (formerly known as food stamps) and the Farm Bill, summer food programs, and farm to school. In Sherman County, child food insecurity is at 26.4%. A mobile farmer s market is adding the county to its list of stops. I am thrilled they will match SNAP, and accept Veggie Rx, WIC and senior vouchers, says Ariana Bradley, a family care coordinator at Mid-Columbia Center for Living, who attended the seminar. The event set the stage for establishing leadership on the issues of hunger and poverty in the region, but more training and information is needed to help the community increase food security.
Did you know? You can support Oregon Food Bank through your will or trust. If you would like more information, call Jill Beidler at 503-439-1950 or email her at jbeidler@oregonfoodbank.org. Oregon Food Bank Network of Regional Food Banks Thank you to our corporate partners for your generous support! A $45,000 donation from Tektronix will provide 135,000 meals for our neighbors who experience hunger. The Enterprise Rent-A-Car Foundation donated $25,000 to address food insecurity as part of the Fill Your Tank program, which is committed to donating $60 million over six years to fight hunger around the globe. Thank you to AWS Elemental and employees for raising over $15,000 to support efforts to feed the human spirit in Oregon and Clark County, Washington. And thank you to the following: Wheeler Foundation Portland Children s Levy The Emily Georges Gottfried Fund of the Oregon Jewish Community Foundation ESCO Foundation Providence Health & Services Meyer Memorial Trust MJ Chelsea Fund, LLC B.P. Lester and Regina John Foundation Lamb-Baldwin Foundation DEQ The Autzen Foundation Hayes Family Foundation Newman's Own Foundation Oregon State Society of Washington, D.C. Nordstrom Subway Pickn-Pull, a Schnitzer Steel Company TJX Foundation Dutch Bros Coffee s Dutch Luv Day Operated by Oregon Food Bank Metro Services, PORTLAND Southeast Oregon Services, ONTARIO Tillamook County Services, TILLAMOOK Washington County Services, BEAVERTON Columbia Gorge Food Bank serving Wasco, Hood River & Sherman Counties, THE DALLES Regional Food Banks ACCESS Food Share, MEDFORD CAPECO Food Share, PENDLETON CCA Regional Food Bank, ASTORIA Clark County Food Bank, VANCOUVER, WA Columbia Pacific Food Bank, ST. HELENS Community Connection, LA GRANDE FOOD for Lane County, EUGENE Food Share of Lincoln County, NEWPORT Josephine County Food Bank, GRANTS PASS Klamath/Lake Counties Food Bank, KLAMATH FALLS Linn-Benton Food Share, CORVALLIS Marion-Polk Food Share, SALEM NeighborImpact, REDMOND South Coast Food Share, COOS BAY UCAN Food Bank, ROSEBURG YCAP Regional Food Bank, MCMINNVILLE Follow us online: Get the latest news from our Facebook, Twitter and Instagram feeds plus, visit our website. oregonfoodbank.org @oregonfoodbank Oregon Food Bank is a certified affiliate of Feeding America. oregonfoodbank.org (503) 282-0555