December 7, 2024 • 20 mins
While we often feel the urge during the holiday season to donate more to charity than we usually would, food insecurity doesn’t care what time of the year it is. It’s a major issue here in Massachusetts, and food banks around the Commonwealth are really feeling the stretch. Thousands of families in Western Massachusetts alone are struggling to put healthy food on the table each and every day, and the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts in Chicopee is a crucial part of the pipeline to make sure as many people as possible get access to nutritious meals. Executive Director Andrew Morehouse talks with Nichole about their efforts and shares details about how you can help them keep going.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:07):
From WBZ News Radio in Boston. This is New England Weekend.
Each and every week we come together right here we
talk about all the topics important to you and the
place where you live. It is great to be back
with you again this week. I'm Nicole Davis. Now, this
time of year, we're often feeling the urge to give
a bit more to charity than we normally would. But frankly,
Food Insecurity does not care about what time of the
(00:30):
year it is. Our food banks are feeling the stretch
right now, and these food banks are a crucial part
of the pipeline all over the state to make sure
that everybody has access to nutritious meals. One of our
food banks is the aptly named Food Bank of Western
Massachusetts there in Chickapee. And here on the show to
talk about their need, their process and much more is
Andrew Moorehouse. He is the executive director at the food Bank. Andrew,
(00:53):
thank you so much for being here. I know it's
a super busy time of year. Give us more info
if you could, about who you serve in Western mass
and your mission here.
Speaker 2 (01:02):
The Food Bank of Western Massachusetts is located in Chickapee, Massachusetts,
in Hamden County. We serve all four counties of western Massachusetts,
everything from Franklin, Hampshire and Hampden Counties all the way
to western the most western part of the state Berkshire County.
(01:25):
So we border our service area borders Vermont, New York State,
and Connecticut, where we are one of four food banks
in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. And as we like to say,
we've got the western front covered.
Speaker 1 (01:39):
Yes, indeed, and we're grateful for you for that. So
how many people are you serving at this point each
and every year in your part of the state?
Speaker 2 (01:48):
Sure, we are providing food assistants to approximately one hundred
and nineteen thousand people every month over the course of
the last twelve months, and as recently as August, the
month for which we have the most recent available data,
we actually provided food assystems tow one hundred and twenty
(02:10):
four thousand people. We've seen the number tick up over
the course of the last year incrementally, and this is
due mainly because of the cumulative effects of higher prices
that have occurred over the last year with inflation. Even
though inflation is very low now, the cumulative increase in prices,
(02:35):
you know, is really posing a severe burden on people
who are trying to make ends meet on fixed incomes,
and even when they're working full time or perhaps even
working multiple jobs full time and beyond at minimum or
(02:56):
above minimum wages and still can't make ends.
Speaker 1 (02:59):
Meat from the latest data I've seen here in Massachusetts,
during the height of the pandemic, I think it was
April or May of twenty twenty, we peaked overall at
about twenty percent food insecurity, twenty percent of households saying
they were food insecure. And you know, over the past
few years the numbers fluctuated a bit, but we're still
pretty high up there. I just checked seventeen and a
(03:20):
half percent of households in Massachusetts identify as food insecure.
You say you're still serving more than one hundred thousand
households in western mass What are some of the factors
besides inflation that are really driving food insecurity specifically for
your part of the state.
Speaker 2 (03:37):
Well, I don't think it's unlike other parts of the state,
although it might not be quite as elevated in certain
certain instances. Clearly, the cost of housing is an incredible
and severe barrier for people to overcome and that's why
we've witnessed more and more people not only seeking food
(03:59):
assystem but asking us about where they can get affordable
housing assistants. Childcare is costs are an issue, Transportation costs
are an issue. You know, heating costs or an issue.
You know, it really runs a gambit, and of course
(04:20):
the price of food. So these are all, you know,
just out of pocket expenses that people face day in,
day out. When you know, a year or so ago,
I guess January of twenty twenty three, we began to
(04:41):
see the numbers tick up after they had fallen dramatically
due primarily to a tremendous investment on the part of
the federal government in pandemic area benefits that reduce poverty
by upwards to forty percent. And with the expiration the
sunsetting of those federal Pandemic Era benefits and the beginning
(05:04):
of inflation over the course of more than a year,
that's what's brought us to the situation where in now
where so many households, families, individuals, elders, children, working families
are facing the squeeze.
Speaker 1 (05:19):
Yeah, well, you're working hard to stop that squeeze and
make life a little bit give people a little bit
more breathing room, I guess I could say. So, you know,
I'd love to learn more about the process about how
you do this, So tell me a bit about how
you get the food into the bank. I'm assuming you've
got all the food at the bank and then you
distribute this out to local partners around Western mass That's correct.
Speaker 2 (05:41):
Since we moved to our new food warehouse, Resource Education
and Advocacy Center, we actually have provided thirty one percent
more food over the last year than the prior year
when we were in a much smaller facility up in
Hampshire County. So with this increased capacity and efficiencies were
(06:06):
able to distribute so much more food. Last year, we
distributed the equivalent of seventeen million meals to a vast
network of member food pantries, meal sites, shelters. These are
the front line nonprofit and faith based organizations that we
distribute food to, who in turn then provided to members
(06:31):
of their community, people whom they know who trust them
for food assistants and other forms of assistance. So this
vast network of one hundred and ninety food pantries, meal
sites and shelters are really our partners to get that
food out to individuals and families. We also distribute food
(06:54):
directly through what we call our mobile Food Bank and
through our fifty one partner Senior Centers. We provide food
to individuals directly through those two channels. The food that
we receive comes from a variety of sources. About half
(07:15):
the food that we received is paid for either by
the federal government or the Commonwealth of Massachusetts through emergency
assistance programs that we benefit from as well as our
other three Massachusetts partner food banks. And then we also
receive about half of our inventory from the private food industry,
(07:40):
retail stores like Stop and Shop, Supermarket and Big Y
and Target and Walmart, Ocean State Job Lot, BJ's, and
then also dozens of local farmers. That's one of the
unique assets that we have out here in Western Massachusetts
(08:02):
is a vibrant farm community because of the incredibly fertile
land that we have, specifically in the Connecticut River Valley.
So we receive large donations of donated vegetables from our
farmers during the growing season, and we use some of
(08:22):
the state funds to purchase local vegetables from our local farmers.
I should also mention the food bank of Western Massachusetts
owns two farms of our own and we lease the
farm land mainly to three organic farmers who grow vegetables
(08:43):
on our farms, and then in lieu of cash rent,
we get a share of the harvest, and the remainder
of the harvest they sell to local retailers and also
to public schools in high poverty school districts that ultimately
we're addressing food insecurity in those communities as well, communities
(09:06):
like Chickapea and Springfield.
Speaker 1 (09:10):
I love that because, you know what a great way
to ensure that not just kids are eating fresh and local,
but everybody is eating fresh and local as many people
as possible. Because people who are food insecure, they deserve
to have fresh produce, fresh fruits, fresh vegetables. It's not
like just because somebody's food insecure. I feel like often
people equate food banks with boxes of mac and cheese, right,
(09:32):
and you know, campbell soup. It's so much more than that,
and people deserve to be healthy and happy.
Speaker 2 (09:37):
Absolutely. Food banks have evolved a great deal since the
days when people would refer to food banks as distributing
only mac and cheese. Over half the food that the
food bank of Western Massachusetts provides to our network and
ultimately to people who live with food insecurity is perishable
foods that food frozen meats that are donated to the
(10:02):
food bank, or that we purchase dairy products, and of course,
as I mentioned, a lot of local vegetables and beyond,
during the winter months when we don't have local bounty,
we're purchasing produce vegetables from as far away as Quebec,
(10:23):
Canada that store vegetables over the winter, and we're able
to thus provide a stream of fresh vegetables throughout the
year that we provide not only to our member pantries
and meal sites, but as I mentioned before, we put
them on our mobile Food Bank trucks that go to
twenty six different locations once or twice a month in
(10:48):
census tracks that have a high percentages of food and security,
and we provide those fresh vegetables as well as frozen
meats and dry goods to anywhere from one hundred and
fifty to two hundred and fifty people at each site
once or twice a month.
Speaker 1 (11:05):
And getting the food out is one thing, but you've
also got great teams out there working in community to
connect people Essentially to resources. You've got a food assistance
Navigation team and a snap outreach team, so tell us
a bit more about that, sure.
Speaker 2 (11:19):
I mean, we embrace a really holistic approach to food
insecurity and ending hunger. So, in addition to distributing nutritious
food day in and day out, where and when people
need it, we have what we call a food Assistance
Navigation team of four individuals who work with community health
(11:39):
centers and hospitals to receive referrals from patients who screen
food insecure and then we assist them to access the
food through the food Assistance network of pantries and meal sites.
But we also provide them with food boxes vegetables grown
(12:03):
by area farmers. We also contract other elder service organizations
to prepare medically tailored meals that are then delivered to
elders with chronic diseases. We also provide an emergency basis
gift cards to supermarkets so people can buy food, and
(12:27):
we also provide them with cooking utensils so that they
can prepare healthy food. And our nutrition team of three
individuals assist both patients as well as the general population
elders and visitors and staff and volunteers at pantries and
(12:51):
meal sites with cooking lessons and recipes and how to
prepare the nutritious food that they receive from the food bank.
And we even take individuals on tours to supermarkets so
that they can learn how to identify nutritious food items
(13:16):
by looking at the nutritional value on them and purchasing
that food to cook with the recipes we provide when
we know that they particularly have tight budgets to purchase food.
Our SNAP team assists individuals who are eligible for the
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. That's the federal nutrition program that
(13:39):
used to be called food stamps that individuals can apply
for and if they're income eligible and they meet the
very strict requirements, we're able to assist them through the
application process so that they can gain approval and gain
those monthly benefits. Depending on the size of their household,
(14:01):
they will receive anywhere from twenty dollars a month to
several hundred dollars a month to purchase food at a
local supermarket with dignity, much like everybody else.
Speaker 1 (14:14):
Yeah, it's dignity, it's education, it's a sense of agency
because just because your food and secure and it kind
of goes back to what I was talking about a
few minutes ago. It doesn't mean you don't deserve to
be treated like a human right. And a lot of
people become food insecure for a variety of reasons, but
oftentimes they just feel they need agency and a bit
of control over their situation.
Speaker 2 (14:36):
Absolutely. Unfortunately, for far too long, there's a lot of
stigma and shame associated with seeking a hand up, and
particularly when you're not unable to provide food for your family.
And you know, we try our best through our education
and advocacy to dispel that myth that really stems from
(15:01):
this idea that people alone are responsible for their circumstances
without really taking into consideration the systemic barriers that people
face that are often hard to overcome in order to
be able to access opportunity and ultimately economic mobility. And
so we focus on the latter is trying to assist
(15:25):
people to gain access to food so that they can
then seek opportunities to improve their financial circumstances. And that
takes time and it certainly doesn't happen, and we're not
successful in assisting them when that stigma exists and people
(15:46):
aren't willing to open their hearts and minds to understand
why it is that folks who live with food in
security have the challenges they do to overcome their circumstances.
Speaker 1 (16:02):
Now, let's talk about getting you assistance to keep getting
this done. Because obviously it's the holidays, a lot of
people want to donate, they want to help, They've got
a bit of extra money that they want to put
toward good causes. I think that it's important to know
if somebody just wants to bring a bunch of cans
to the food bank, is that more helpful or is
money more helpful?
Speaker 2 (16:21):
Right now, what we encourage folks to do because we
welcome any kind of support, whether it's in terms of
food donations, fund donations, are getting involved right considering becoming
a volunteer at your local food bank or the local
food pantry or meal site in your community. Both are important.
(16:42):
Everything all of the above is important, But in terms
of food donations, we encourage folks to if they choose
to make a food donation, to bring that to the
local food pantry or meal site in their community that
desperately needs it. The food banks we're in the Commonwealth
and ourselves in Western Massachusetts really deal with very large volumes.
(17:06):
We receive tractor trailer loads of food every week, and
so we're better positioned to leverage our relationships with retailers
and farmers and our state and federal partners to source
large quantities of a vast variety of types of food
(17:28):
and increasingly perishable food items. So we would encourage folks
who want to make a donation to food banks to
consider making a cash donation because honestly, for every dollar donated,
we can provide the equivalent of three meals because of
the capacity we have to leverage those partnerships with all
(17:51):
of our food and fund donors, both locally and statewide,
and with the federal government.
Speaker 1 (18:01):
And that volunteer work is so important as well, because yeah,
you get the tractor trailers in, but somebody's got to
unload them right and put the palettes together and so
on and so forth.
Speaker 2 (18:11):
Yeah, that's right. We have upwards to about a thousand
volunteers a year who come to the food bank and
help us sort donated food in our sorting room, and
it's a lot of fun. Everybody seems to really enjoy
doing that. It's a great team building activity. Folks come
(18:32):
as individuals or groups through their employer or their church
or their social club and really learn how the food
bank operates and what our impact is. And it's a
real you know, they really feel like they're giving and
(18:52):
we do too. We're so grateful to all of our
volunteers in the same way that the local food pantries
and meal sites really also do rely on volunteers to
jointly carry out our mission to feed our neighbors and
ultimately seek the end hunger.
Speaker 1 (19:11):
And this is a year round mission too, So yes, well,
you want to donate in the holiday season, it's important
to note you need help in April and June as well.
Speaker 2 (19:20):
Every month of the year. Unfortunately, that is our charge
and we will continue to do it every month of
the year to ensure that everybody has access to nutritious food.
Speaker 1 (19:31):
All right, if somebody is listening, they need assistance, they
need help, or they want to find out more, where
can they get that information?
Speaker 2 (19:37):
Best place to go is our website Foodbank WMA dot org.
There's tons of information, ways to get involved, ways to
learn more about the issues of food and security and
hunger and our impact.
Speaker 1 (19:53):
All right, beautiful, Well, Andrew really appreciate your time on
the show. Thank you so much and all the best
for you this holiday.
Speaker 2 (20:00):
Thank you you as well. Appreciate the opportunity to talk
with you, and thanks for your support and getting the
word out.
Speaker 1 (20:06):
Have a safe and healthy weekend, Stay warm, and join
me again next week for another edition of the show.
I'm Nicole Davis from WBZ News Radio on iHeartRadio.
From WBZ News Radio in Boston. This is New England Weekend.
Each and every week we come together right here we
talk about all the topics important to you and the
place where you live. It is great to be back
with you again this week. I'm Nicole Davis. Now, this
time of year, we're often feeling the urge to give
a bit more to charity than we normally would. But frankly,
Food Insecurity does not care about what time of the
(00:30):
year it is. Our food banks are feeling the stretch
right now, and these food banks are a crucial part
of the pipeline all over the state to make sure
that everybody has access to nutritious meals. One of our
food banks is the aptly named Food Bank of Western
Massachusetts there in Chickapee. And here on the show to
talk about their need, their process and much more is
Andrew Moorehouse. He is the executive director at the food Bank. Andrew,
(00:53):
thank you so much for being here. I know it's
a super busy time of year. Give us more info
if you could, about who you serve in Western mass
and your mission here.
Speaker 2 (01:02):
The Food Bank of Western Massachusetts is located in Chickapee, Massachusetts,
in Hamden County. We serve all four counties of western Massachusetts,
everything from Franklin, Hampshire and Hampden Counties all the way
to western the most western part of the state Berkshire County.
(01:25):
So we border our service area borders Vermont, New York State,
and Connecticut, where we are one of four food banks
in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. And as we like to say,
we've got the western front covered.
Speaker 1 (01:39):
Yes, indeed, and we're grateful for you for that. So
how many people are you serving at this point each
and every year in your part of the state?
Speaker 2 (01:48):
Sure, we are providing food assistants to approximately one hundred
and nineteen thousand people every month over the course of
the last twelve months, and as recently as August, the
month for which we have the most recent available data,
we actually provided food assystems tow one hundred and twenty
(02:10):
four thousand people. We've seen the number tick up over
the course of the last year incrementally, and this is
due mainly because of the cumulative effects of higher prices
that have occurred over the last year with inflation. Even
though inflation is very low now, the cumulative increase in prices,
(02:35):
you know, is really posing a severe burden on people
who are trying to make ends meet on fixed incomes,
and even when they're working full time or perhaps even
working multiple jobs full time and beyond at minimum or
(02:56):
above minimum wages and still can't make ends.
Speaker 1 (02:59):
Meat from the latest data I've seen here in Massachusetts,
during the height of the pandemic, I think it was
April or May of twenty twenty, we peaked overall at
about twenty percent food insecurity, twenty percent of households saying
they were food insecure. And you know, over the past
few years the numbers fluctuated a bit, but we're still
pretty high up there. I just checked seventeen and a
(03:20):
half percent of households in Massachusetts identify as food insecure.
You say you're still serving more than one hundred thousand
households in western mass What are some of the factors
besides inflation that are really driving food insecurity specifically for
your part of the state.
Speaker 2 (03:37):
Well, I don't think it's unlike other parts of the state,
although it might not be quite as elevated in certain
certain instances. Clearly, the cost of housing is an incredible
and severe barrier for people to overcome and that's why
we've witnessed more and more people not only seeking food
(03:59):
assystem but asking us about where they can get affordable
housing assistants. Childcare is costs are an issue, Transportation costs
are an issue. You know, heating costs or an issue.
You know, it really runs a gambit, and of course
(04:20):
the price of food. So these are all, you know,
just out of pocket expenses that people face day in,
day out. When you know, a year or so ago,
I guess January of twenty twenty three, we began to
(04:41):
see the numbers tick up after they had fallen dramatically
due primarily to a tremendous investment on the part of
the federal government in pandemic area benefits that reduce poverty
by upwards to forty percent. And with the expiration the
sunsetting of those federal Pandemic Era benefits and the beginning
(05:04):
of inflation over the course of more than a year,
that's what's brought us to the situation where in now
where so many households, families, individuals, elders, children, working families
are facing the squeeze.
Speaker 1 (05:19):
Yeah, well, you're working hard to stop that squeeze and
make life a little bit give people a little bit
more breathing room, I guess I could say. So, you know,
I'd love to learn more about the process about how
you do this, So tell me a bit about how
you get the food into the bank. I'm assuming you've
got all the food at the bank and then you
distribute this out to local partners around Western mass That's correct.
Speaker 2 (05:41):
Since we moved to our new food warehouse, Resource Education
and Advocacy Center, we actually have provided thirty one percent
more food over the last year than the prior year
when we were in a much smaller facility up in
Hampshire County. So with this increased capacity and efficiencies were
(06:06):
able to distribute so much more food. Last year, we
distributed the equivalent of seventeen million meals to a vast
network of member food pantries, meal sites, shelters. These are
the front line nonprofit and faith based organizations that we
distribute food to, who in turn then provided to members
(06:31):
of their community, people whom they know who trust them
for food assistants and other forms of assistance. So this
vast network of one hundred and ninety food pantries, meal
sites and shelters are really our partners to get that
food out to individuals and families. We also distribute food
(06:54):
directly through what we call our mobile Food Bank and
through our fifty one partner Senior Centers. We provide food
to individuals directly through those two channels. The food that
we receive comes from a variety of sources. About half
(07:15):
the food that we received is paid for either by
the federal government or the Commonwealth of Massachusetts through emergency
assistance programs that we benefit from as well as our
other three Massachusetts partner food banks. And then we also
receive about half of our inventory from the private food industry,
(07:40):
retail stores like Stop and Shop, Supermarket and Big Y
and Target and Walmart, Ocean State Job Lot, BJ's, and
then also dozens of local farmers. That's one of the
unique assets that we have out here in Western Massachusetts
(08:02):
is a vibrant farm community because of the incredibly fertile
land that we have, specifically in the Connecticut River Valley.
So we receive large donations of donated vegetables from our
farmers during the growing season, and we use some of
(08:22):
the state funds to purchase local vegetables from our local farmers.
I should also mention the food bank of Western Massachusetts
owns two farms of our own and we lease the
farm land mainly to three organic farmers who grow vegetables
(08:43):
on our farms, and then in lieu of cash rent,
we get a share of the harvest, and the remainder
of the harvest they sell to local retailers and also
to public schools in high poverty school districts that ultimately
we're addressing food insecurity in those communities as well, communities
(09:06):
like Chickapea and Springfield.
Speaker 1 (09:10):
I love that because, you know what a great way
to ensure that not just kids are eating fresh and local,
but everybody is eating fresh and local as many people
as possible. Because people who are food insecure, they deserve
to have fresh produce, fresh fruits, fresh vegetables. It's not
like just because somebody's food insecure. I feel like often
people equate food banks with boxes of mac and cheese, right,
(09:32):
and you know, campbell soup. It's so much more than that,
and people deserve to be healthy and happy.
Speaker 2 (09:37):
Absolutely. Food banks have evolved a great deal since the
days when people would refer to food banks as distributing
only mac and cheese. Over half the food that the
food bank of Western Massachusetts provides to our network and
ultimately to people who live with food insecurity is perishable
foods that food frozen meats that are donated to the
(10:02):
food bank, or that we purchase dairy products, and of course,
as I mentioned, a lot of local vegetables and beyond,
during the winter months when we don't have local bounty,
we're purchasing produce vegetables from as far away as Quebec,
(10:23):
Canada that store vegetables over the winter, and we're able
to thus provide a stream of fresh vegetables throughout the
year that we provide not only to our member pantries
and meal sites, but as I mentioned before, we put
them on our mobile Food Bank trucks that go to
twenty six different locations once or twice a month in
(10:48):
census tracks that have a high percentages of food and security,
and we provide those fresh vegetables as well as frozen
meats and dry goods to anywhere from one hundred and
fifty to two hundred and fifty people at each site
once or twice a month.
Speaker 1 (11:05):
And getting the food out is one thing, but you've
also got great teams out there working in community to
connect people Essentially to resources. You've got a food assistance
Navigation team and a snap outreach team, so tell us
a bit more about that, sure.
Speaker 2 (11:19):
I mean, we embrace a really holistic approach to food
insecurity and ending hunger. So, in addition to distributing nutritious
food day in and day out, where and when people
need it, we have what we call a food Assistance
Navigation team of four individuals who work with community health
(11:39):
centers and hospitals to receive referrals from patients who screen
food insecure and then we assist them to access the
food through the food Assistance network of pantries and meal sites.
But we also provide them with food boxes vegetables grown
(12:03):
by area farmers. We also contract other elder service organizations
to prepare medically tailored meals that are then delivered to
elders with chronic diseases. We also provide an emergency basis
gift cards to supermarkets so people can buy food, and
(12:27):
we also provide them with cooking utensils so that they
can prepare healthy food. And our nutrition team of three
individuals assist both patients as well as the general population
elders and visitors and staff and volunteers at pantries and
(12:51):
meal sites with cooking lessons and recipes and how to
prepare the nutritious food that they receive from the food bank.
And we even take individuals on tours to supermarkets so
that they can learn how to identify nutritious food items
(13:16):
by looking at the nutritional value on them and purchasing
that food to cook with the recipes we provide when
we know that they particularly have tight budgets to purchase food.
Our SNAP team assists individuals who are eligible for the
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. That's the federal nutrition program that
(13:39):
used to be called food stamps that individuals can apply
for and if they're income eligible and they meet the
very strict requirements, we're able to assist them through the
application process so that they can gain approval and gain
those monthly benefits. Depending on the size of their household,
(14:01):
they will receive anywhere from twenty dollars a month to
several hundred dollars a month to purchase food at a
local supermarket with dignity, much like everybody else.
Speaker 1 (14:14):
Yeah, it's dignity, it's education, it's a sense of agency
because just because your food and secure and it kind
of goes back to what I was talking about a
few minutes ago. It doesn't mean you don't deserve to
be treated like a human right. And a lot of
people become food insecure for a variety of reasons, but
oftentimes they just feel they need agency and a bit
of control over their situation.
Speaker 2 (14:36):
Absolutely. Unfortunately, for far too long, there's a lot of
stigma and shame associated with seeking a hand up, and
particularly when you're not unable to provide food for your family.
And you know, we try our best through our education
and advocacy to dispel that myth that really stems from
(15:01):
this idea that people alone are responsible for their circumstances
without really taking into consideration the systemic barriers that people
face that are often hard to overcome in order to
be able to access opportunity and ultimately economic mobility. And
so we focus on the latter is trying to assist
(15:25):
people to gain access to food so that they can
then seek opportunities to improve their financial circumstances. And that
takes time and it certainly doesn't happen, and we're not
successful in assisting them when that stigma exists and people
(15:46):
aren't willing to open their hearts and minds to understand
why it is that folks who live with food in
security have the challenges they do to overcome their circumstances.
Speaker 1 (16:02):
Now, let's talk about getting you assistance to keep getting
this done. Because obviously it's the holidays, a lot of
people want to donate, they want to help, They've got
a bit of extra money that they want to put
toward good causes. I think that it's important to know
if somebody just wants to bring a bunch of cans
to the food bank, is that more helpful or is
money more helpful?
Speaker 2 (16:21):
Right now, what we encourage folks to do because we
welcome any kind of support, whether it's in terms of
food donations, fund donations, are getting involved right considering becoming
a volunteer at your local food bank or the local
food pantry or meal site in your community. Both are important.
(16:42):
Everything all of the above is important, But in terms
of food donations, we encourage folks to if they choose
to make a food donation, to bring that to the
local food pantry or meal site in their community that
desperately needs it. The food banks we're in the Commonwealth
and ourselves in Western Massachusetts really deal with very large volumes.
(17:06):
We receive tractor trailer loads of food every week, and
so we're better positioned to leverage our relationships with retailers
and farmers and our state and federal partners to source
large quantities of a vast variety of types of food
(17:28):
and increasingly perishable food items. So we would encourage folks
who want to make a donation to food banks to
consider making a cash donation because honestly, for every dollar donated,
we can provide the equivalent of three meals because of
the capacity we have to leverage those partnerships with all
(17:51):
of our food and fund donors, both locally and statewide,
and with the federal government.
Speaker 1 (18:01):
And that volunteer work is so important as well, because yeah,
you get the tractor trailers in, but somebody's got to
unload them right and put the palettes together and so
on and so forth.
Speaker 2 (18:11):
Yeah, that's right. We have upwards to about a thousand
volunteers a year who come to the food bank and
help us sort donated food in our sorting room, and
it's a lot of fun. Everybody seems to really enjoy
doing that. It's a great team building activity. Folks come
(18:32):
as individuals or groups through their employer or their church
or their social club and really learn how the food
bank operates and what our impact is. And it's a
real you know, they really feel like they're giving and
(18:52):
we do too. We're so grateful to all of our
volunteers in the same way that the local food pantries
and meal sites really also do rely on volunteers to
jointly carry out our mission to feed our neighbors and
ultimately seek the end hunger.
Speaker 1 (19:11):
And this is a year round mission too, So yes, well,
you want to donate in the holiday season, it's important
to note you need help in April and June as well.
Speaker 2 (19:20):
Every month of the year. Unfortunately, that is our charge
and we will continue to do it every month of
the year to ensure that everybody has access to nutritious food.
Speaker 1 (19:31):
All right, if somebody is listening, they need assistance, they
need help, or they want to find out more, where
can they get that information?
Speaker 2 (19:37):
Best place to go is our website Foodbank WMA dot org.
There's tons of information, ways to get involved, ways to
learn more about the issues of food and security and
hunger and our impact.
Speaker 1 (19:53):
All right, beautiful, Well, Andrew really appreciate your time on
the show. Thank you so much and all the best
for you this holiday.
Speaker 2 (20:00):
Thank you you as well. Appreciate the opportunity to talk
with you, and thanks for your support and getting the
word out.
Speaker 1 (20:06):
Have a safe and healthy weekend, Stay warm, and join
me again next week for another edition of the show.
I'm Nicole Davis from WBZ News Radio on iHeartRadio.
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