June 30, 2025 • 18 mins
Karla Hagemeister of the Flint Hills Breadbasket shares remarkable statistics about their new facility and the rising need for food support in Manhattan. After moving to a larger location in May, they're now serving record numbers. With over 2,000 family visits in June alone, Karla reflects on both the community's generosity and growing economic challenges.
• The Breadbasket moved to a new, larger facility in late April, beginning operations May 8th
• Weekly visits have increased dramatically, with 601 families served in a single week
• Monthly household visits rose from 795 in April to 897 in June
• High housing costs and service industry jobs contribute to food insecurity in Manhattan
• Summer brings increased demand as children are home, while donations typically decrease
• SNAP benefits provide nine meals for every meal a food bank can provide
• A family of eight saved $1,000 in grocery costs in one month through Breadbasket support
• The organization welcomes K-State student interns who gain valuable nonprofit experience
• Volunteers are always needed to meet the growing demand
If you'd like to support the Flint Hills Breadbasket's efforts to combat hunger in our community, please consider volunteering your time or making a food or financial donation. Every contribution helps us serve our neighbors in need.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Philanthropy Today is brought to you by the Greater
Manhattan Community Foundation.
In this episode we feature arecently broadcast segment of
the GMCF Community Hour, asheard on NewsRadio KMAN.
Back with the GMCF CommunityHour, I'm Dave Lewis and we have
one of our regular guests goingto be jumping in here.
We are delighted to bring backCarla Hagemeister with the Flint
(00:23):
Hills Breadbasket.
Hello, good morning.
Hallelujah, you are here.
Speaker 2 (00:27):
I don't know if there's a hallelujah in there,
but I am here.
Speaker 1 (00:30):
It's Monday.
It is Monday.
I'm trying to talk myself intoit.
Speaker 2 (00:33):
It's holiday week.
We have Fourth of July on.
Speaker 1 (00:35):
Friday oh that's right, it is.
Yeah, it's the last day of June.
I don't think about that day of.
June.
Do you work on a fiscal yearbasis, july 1 through June 30th?
Okay, yep, today's the day Endof the fiscal year.
Speaker 2 (00:49):
So what's that mean for you?
Oh, it means we needed toapprove our budget a couple of
weeks ago, and how'd that go?
It was great I have a wonderfulboard that helps us plan for
the future and make sure we'redoing things on the up and up,
which, of course, we are Greatgroup of people and it's I mean
honestly, it doesn't mean much.
(01:09):
No, it's dates on a paper, it'swhere you start things over,
but we operate all year round.
Speaker 1 (01:16):
Well, let's look at the fiscal year that we are
concluding.
What a year it's been for theFlint Hills.
Speaker 2 (01:21):
Breadbasket.
Speaker 1 (01:22):
Yes, sir, it sure has has I mean not just the
calendar year, but everythingthat you have undergone.
When, when did you break ground?
Or we start the process.
Speaker 2 (01:32):
We knew it existed in march of 2024.
We did stuff last year, butconstruction started in january
of 2025 and we moved um, for allintents and purposes, at the
end of April and we startedoperating at the new location on
May 8th.
So we've been in there for justshy of two months now.
Speaker 1 (01:55):
And.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
And it's amazing, I think, that our guests walk
through the door and are just inawe of a space that looks and
feels great to them.
Our volunteers are enjoying it.
Our staff are enjoying it.
It's really gone as smoothly asa big move like that could
possibly go, which means thatwe've had rain, we've had some
(02:17):
leaks, we've had some ups anddowns and we've had to figure
out, you know, what worked orwhat.
Where something went at the oldlocation doesn't mean that
that's the best fit for it here,so we've had some transitional
stuff, but we're really workingout the kinks and I think that
we're we're on the right trackand we're feeling good.
Speaker 1 (02:36):
We're busy yeah, define what busy means and what
it's.
How have you gotten to that?
I mean, is it just a number ofpeople coming in?
Are you seeing an increase inpeople coming in?
Speaker 2 (02:49):
we're seeing an increase in people coming in.
I would say I mean, in allhonesty, we have seen a pretty
steady increase in people forthe entire three years that I've
been at the bread basket.
We're the frog in the pot.
So we started out saying toourselves 30 people, wow, what a
day.
That was crazy.
That was so busy.
And now 30 people is a quietday and we wonder what's going
(03:12):
on.
Where is everyone?
Just by way of example, ourmarket days now are Monday,
tuesday, thursday, friday.
Last week, on Monday we had 123households, tuesday we had 210.
Thursday we had 140.
And Friday we had 112.
Speaker 1 (03:31):
Are these all different households?
Speaker 2 (03:39):
Different households.
So when you top out the weekand add in, we have some special
programming on Wednesday thattook in 16 more guests.
So our total for the week was601.
Families were supported byFlint Hills Breadbasket in the
course of one week.
Speaker 1 (03:51):
How does that compare to years in the past or days in
the past weeks?
Speaker 2 (03:55):
If I go back and I say I'm going to go to months,
now Okay.
Because that's the easiest way.
Even if I just look at April toJune, so April at our old
location we had 795 overallunduplicated household visits,
so 795.
May we had 815.
(04:16):
And June not including today,which is the 30th we are at 897.
So every month we're seeingabout 80 to 100 new families, so
people that haven't visited usbefore, and then at the same
time our guests can visit usonce a week.
So you've got folks who willcome once a month because they
(04:37):
just need you on occasion, andsome folks who will come once a
week because we're just part ofthat stability for them, who
will come once a week becausewe're just part of that
stability for them.
And this month, as of Fridayend of business, on Friday we
had served 1,956 total visits.
So once you work in today Itold you last Monday we served
(04:58):
123 households I can promise youthat we will serve more than 44
visits today.
We will top 2,000 visitors.
Goodness, In a month.
Speaker 1 (05:08):
What's that tell you about our community?
Speaker 2 (05:12):
It tells us two things at least.
It tells us that our communityis incredibly generous, that we
have a program like Flint HillsBreadbasket that has existed for
more than 40 years and that isseen as a resource that has
community support to be able toprovide support to all of those
people.
That I'm not here today cryingor panicking, but I am being
(05:37):
thoughtful about it and I amthinking about it because it
also tells us that second end ofwhat it tells us is that there
is a greater number of peoplethat are experiencing need in
our community.
We've always had a level ofneed and I would say right now
the needle is not moving in theright direction.
Speaker 1 (05:54):
Do you have a perspective on what is causing
that?
Speaker 2 (05:58):
Oh, you could highlight a list of things.
We know that Manhattan is anexpensive community to live in,
that our housing costs are high,that we are a service
industry-driven community.
So we've got, on the one end ofthings, we've got a lot of high
incomes, but then, on the flipof it, we've got a lot of folks
who are I think just last weekor the week before you talked
(06:19):
with Tara Clausen about Aliceasset-limited, income-constra,
constrained employed.
So we have a lot of people whoare working but don't
necessarily earn enough money intheir paycheck to meet their
basic living expenses or haveroom for the emergency, the
medical bill, the airconditioning that goes out, the
flat tire on a car.
And we know that prices haveincreased, that food prices have
(06:43):
increased.
We know that benefits are beingconstricted for folks.
So we're seeing all of thosethings happening all at once.
I'm a ray of sunshine on aMonday morning.
Speaker 1 (06:55):
Dave, it's a ray of reality.
Speaker 2 (06:59):
It's reality.
Speaker 1 (07:01):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (07:01):
And I guess that's one of the things that I like to
make sure that peopleunderstand is that I can be
excited about a great newlocation, and I truly am, but
the reality is is that manypeople in our community are
experiencing higher levels ofneed, new need, or maybe that
they needed us 20 years ago, goton the right track, got their
(07:25):
feet on the ground.
Speaker 1 (07:30):
And the timing of a new location then, in essence,
couldn't be any better.
Speaker 2 (07:34):
You are absolutely correct about that.
When I look at what we weredoing in a tiny space, it's just
mind-boggling.
We could not serve this volumeof people.
It would be.
Maybe we could do it.
It would be miserable.
It would be miserable for ourguests, for our volunteers, for
our staff, and we certainlycouldn't do it with the dignity
(07:58):
and care that we're doing itwith now.
Speaker 1 (08:01):
Speaking of let's just call it human resources.
You talk about staff.
You have a tremendous number ofvolunteers we do and you also
have interns.
Speaker 2 (08:12):
We do.
Speaker 1 (08:13):
And you brought one for show and tell.
Day on the GMCF Community Hour.
Speaker 2 (08:18):
And she's willing, she is game to be part of the
tell.
I'm really excited for that.
Speaker 1 (08:22):
Good morning Mia.
Correct, correct.
Mia.
Tell me, let's pull thatmicrophone a little bit or scoot
up a little.
There you go, there you go.
Tell me about yourself, mia.
Speaker 3 (08:35):
What's your last name ?
My name is Mia Wells.
I'm going to enter my secondyear of the Master's of Public
Administration program atK-State.
Speaker 1 (08:39):
Oh, you're ambitious.
Speaker 3 (08:40):
Yes, sir, as well as the graduate certificate in
nonprofit.
And so that is what drives myinternship this summer in a
nonprofit, very passionate aboutthat sector.
Speaker 1 (08:50):
What is it about working with the public that
intrigues you?
Speaker 3 (08:58):
What intrigues me about working with the public?
That intrigues you.
What intrigues me about workingwith the public is that, first,
it's a passion that just camenaturally and, second, the need
is there, and it's always goingto be there and the needs are
different as well as thecommunity is always going to be
there.
Speaker 1 (09:12):
Where are you from?
Speaker 3 (09:13):
45 minutes west of Chicago.
Speaker 1 (09:16):
Oh, does the town have a name?
Speaker 3 (09:18):
Batavia, Illinois.
Speaker 1 (09:19):
What brought you to Kansas State?
Speaker 3 (09:21):
Dad is from Russell Kansas.
Speaker 1 (09:23):
Is he?
Speaker 3 (09:24):
Grandma and grandpa retired in Manhattan, and so
I've gotten the privilege myentire life to travel to Russell
for a little bit, but starttraveling to Manhattan every
single year since I was a littlebaby Now.
Speaker 1 (09:34):
Did you get your undergrad here, correct?
Yes, okay, so you've been herefor a while.
Yes, sir, yeah, what do youlike about what happens here in
Manhattan, kansas?
Speaker 3 (09:43):
That people are here to help you and want to help you
.
Speaker 1 (09:47):
How's that different from what you found in Illinois?
Speaker 3 (09:54):
Independent society.
I think the United States is anindependent society or culture,
and up in Illinois,specifically closer to Chicago,
people work for and withthemselves.
Here people kind of are lookingat that collectivist working
with and for one another.
Speaker 1 (10:07):
What do you hope to learn by your efforts here at
the Breadbasket?
Speaker 3 (10:11):
I've already learned, I think, two really important
lessons and I'm excited to learnmore, but the two that I have
learned.
So I'm kind of switching yourquestion.
But is people who receivesocial services do not always
need to be tremendously filledwith gratitude and happiness
that day?
Speaker 1 (10:28):
It's okay to it's an overwhelming and overpowering
feeling, isn't it?
Speaker 3 (10:34):
Yes, it's okay to feel the the sad feelings as
well, um, and then also, carlalooked at me one day and she
said if someone told me theirlevel of income, that tells me
nothing about them, that doesn'ttell me about medical debt, it
doesn't tell me, um, about howmany kids they have.
And so every single day, I'mlearning those little lessons
(10:56):
and I will probably continue to.
Speaker 1 (10:58):
All right, how long are you going to be here with
the Breadbasket?
Are you just interning for thesummer?
Speaker 3 (11:02):
This summer.
Speaker 1 (11:03):
Okay.
Speaker 2 (11:04):
It's amazing.
We have great people that cometo us through KC.
Speaker 1 (11:07):
How did you latch on to her?
Oh my gosh.
Speaker 2 (11:10):
I reached out to this daily school and I said, hey,
I've still got an opportunityfor the summer in the great, in
the scheme of the move andeverything else that was going
on, and that was one of thethings that just wasn't
necessarily on my radar of.
Oh, we love having an internbecause we have We've had
wonderful interns that have cometo us through K-State, and so I
(11:32):
reached out kind of late in thegame and said, if you still
have somebody, we would love tohave somebody with us and I've
got the space and the time andthe capacity for it.
So they directed me ourdirection and it's been just
amazing.
She's been a great help to us.
But also, I think for us,having interns with us is, and
giving us the opportunity toteach is also an opportunity for
(11:55):
us to always be back in touchwith our values.
Speaker 1 (11:57):
And there's always an opportunity to volunteer.
Speaker 2 (12:00):
Absolutely.
There's always something to dowith the bread basket.
Speaker 1 (12:03):
Let's get back on track with some of the prepared
questions that we have for you.
Um, because you know, when youand I get together, we talk, and
we're really good at it.
It.
Let's talk a bit aboutsummertime and what that means,
what the demands that you haveat the Flint Hills Breadbasket
and how you fulfill those, andwhat is it you may need to help
(12:24):
fulfill those needs.
Speaker 2 (12:25):
Well, these days I'm pretty much telling folks
there's not much I will turndown, because with that increase
in families you can just see asmuch comes in is going right
back out again.
But summertime in particular isalways going to be a time where
there's more people coming inbecause kids are home from
school.
So if you've had a kid in yourhousehold during the summer
(12:46):
months you know that they liketo eat Some of the programs,
that although we have gotobviously summer feeding
programs through the schooldistrict and other stuff, the
more hours your kids spend athome, the more time that they're
spending at the cabinet or atthe refrigerator looking for
snacks or something.
We also know that a lot of ourorganizations just aren't.
(13:07):
They're in summer mode.
So businesses, they've gotpeople on vacation, that
everybody is just kind of doingtheir own thing during the
summer months.
So it's a time period where someof those donations kind of dip
down a little bit.
So we're not thinking about itlike we do at the holidays or
end of school type of things.
Summer for a lot of families isjust a time to escape, spend
(13:30):
time with their families andstuff.
So it doesn't necessarilyalways equate into a big bump.
For us it's more of a lull inthe time of donations.
So I like to bring people'sawareness to that because it's
that double hit.
It's the double hit of we'vegot more people who need our
support at the same time thatwe're having a little bit of a
(13:52):
lull in donations.
Speaker 1 (13:54):
Let's talk a bit about meeting some of those
needs, and you know there's allkinds of policies that you have
in play that sometimes can beabsolutely beneficial, but there
also has to be some workableopportunities to make sure that
you fulfill the needs of thepeople that may lie outside some
(14:14):
of the things that you dopolicy-wise.
How's that challenge these days?
Speaker 2 (14:20):
We just always have to remember that we live in a
greater society, we live in acommunity, we live in a state,
we live in a nation, and thatthe policies that are happening
all across whether it's a local,regional, state or national
those have impacts on us Inparticular.
Right now we are talking andlooking at the impact to SNAP
(14:42):
benefits for our guests and forpeople who maybe are not needing
to come to us right now becausethey have that safety net of
their SNAP benefits, but ifthose benefits go away, they
will absolutely be visiting us Alot of concern there about that
these days.
There is a lot of concern aboutthat.
I think people don't alwaysunderstand the benefit that SNAP
(15:05):
has, the efficiency and thebenefit for every meal that I
can provide through the breadbasket or that Harvesters
provides or any food programprovides.
Snap benefits provide nine so Ican provide one meal at the
same value or cost that SNAPbenefits can provide nine meals.
(15:28):
So if you think about it,losing that benefit is not just
a one-to-one ratio, it's notjust I have to replace that one
meal.
I'm looking at replacing thenine meals.
Speaker 1 (15:41):
We don't really get into the politics of everything,
but you know, there is asentiment and there's many
people that have this sentimentthat there are a lot of people
that take advantage of thesystem.
Do you see that here locally?
Speaker 2 (15:54):
I don't.
I really don't Snap benefits orbenefits just in general, but
I'll stay with Snap.
It's a 27 page application thatrequires it requires a lot of
information.
It requires bank information,asset information, requires you
to be down.
You can't have a savingsaccount and apply for SNAP or
(16:15):
qualify for SNAP, so there's alot of requirements in place
already, and it requiresreporting to your
recertification or reportingback in, and so it's a program
that is really a lifeline forfamilies and it has a lot of
checks and balances in italready.
(16:36):
Do I have time to share onequick story, really quick, okay.
Got an email from a guest theother day that I'm just going to
read.
I'll be fast about it.
This was a Friday email For themonth of June.
I've been able to visit.
I'll be fast about it.
This was a Friday email For themonth of June.
I've been able to visit thebreadbasket every week and I'm
so grateful for the change inhours that now fit my schedule
as a student.
The previous hours made itimpossible for me to come, so
(16:57):
this new schedule has truly beena blessing.
In May I faced a difficultmoment when I received a letter
saying that I had lost my SNAPbenefits.
I cried when I saw it.
Being a family of eight,groceries are a huge expense.
Usually I spend over a thousanddollars each month at the
grocery store just to feed myfamily dinner during the school
year.
But thanks to the support fromthe food pantry this June I've
(17:18):
been able to stop going to thestore for that weekly expense,
which has saved me around athousand dollars.
The assistance has allowed meto do so much more enrolling my
kids in summer camp, packingtheir lunches, buying clothes
for my daughter, saving forschool clothes and even starting
a daycare to create a betterfuture for my family.
The love, effort and heart thateveryone at the pantry puts
(17:39):
into their work have truly madethis possible for us.
Words cannot fully express therelief and gratitude I feel,
especially when I think aboutthe worry of how to feed my
family and what we'll have fordinner or to eat each day.
I feel so blessed and I justwant to take a moment to say
thank you from the bottom of myheart.
The kindness and friendlinessfrom everyone I've met there
(17:59):
mean the world to me and myfamily.
Speaker 1 (18:01):
Thanks from a family of eight, and that's why we have
the Flynn Hills bread basket.
It is.
It said it all.
What a wonderful testimonial.
Speaker 2 (18:06):
It said it all.
Speaker 1 (18:07):
Did you cry when you read that?
Sure did yeah.
Speaker 2 (18:10):
Sure did, and I think that that's the story.
That family lost their benefitsand we were the stopgap, we
were the thing that came in andI'm so glad that we can do that.
I hate that we have to.
Speaker 1 (18:22):
And the demand's only going to increase.
That's true, got to roll.
Carla, always a delight to haveyou and thanks for sharing your
story.
Same and Mia Wells delighted tosee you and have you in, and
thanks for playing along withCarla and the work that you do,
and good luck to you in yourfuture.
Speaker 3 (18:38):
Thank you very much.
Speaker 1 (18:40):
After the break, we're going to be talking about
the YES Fund, which is gettinglaunched tomorrow.
Debbie Mercer is waiting in thewings and Vern Henricks is
going to be back.
It's the GMCF Community Hour.
Every Monday morning we get todo this here on NewsRadio KMAN.
Philanthropy Today is brought to you by the Greater
Manhattan Community Foundation.
In this episode we feature arecently broadcast segment of
the GMCF Community Hour, asheard on NewsRadio KMAN.
Back with the GMCF CommunityHour, I'm Dave Lewis and we have
one of our regular guests goingto be jumping in here.
We are delighted to bring backCarla Hagemeister with the Flint
(00:23):
Hills Breadbasket.
Hello, good morning.
Hallelujah, you are here.
Speaker 2 (00:27):
I don't know if there's a hallelujah in there,
but I am here.
Speaker 1 (00:30):
It's Monday.
It is Monday.
I'm trying to talk myself intoit.
Speaker 2 (00:33):
It's holiday week.
We have Fourth of July on.
Speaker 1 (00:35):
Friday oh that's right, it is.
Yeah, it's the last day of June.
I don't think about that day of.
June.
Do you work on a fiscal yearbasis, july 1 through June 30th?
Okay, yep, today's the day Endof the fiscal year.
Speaker 2 (00:49):
So what's that mean for you?
Oh, it means we needed toapprove our budget a couple of
weeks ago, and how'd that go?
It was great I have a wonderfulboard that helps us plan for
the future and make sure we'redoing things on the up and up,
which, of course, we are Greatgroup of people and it's I mean
honestly, it doesn't mean much.
(01:09):
No, it's dates on a paper, it'swhere you start things over,
but we operate all year round.
Speaker 1 (01:16):
Well, let's look at the fiscal year that we are
concluding.
What a year it's been for theFlint Hills.
Speaker 2 (01:21):
Breadbasket.
Speaker 1 (01:22):
Yes, sir, it sure has has I mean not just the
calendar year, but everythingthat you have undergone.
When, when did you break ground?
Or we start the process.
Speaker 2 (01:32):
We knew it existed in march of 2024.
We did stuff last year, butconstruction started in january
of 2025 and we moved um, for allintents and purposes, at the
end of April and we startedoperating at the new location on
May 8th.
So we've been in there for justshy of two months now.
Speaker 1 (01:55):
And.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
And it's amazing, I think, that our guests walk
through the door and are just inawe of a space that looks and
feels great to them.
Our volunteers are enjoying it.
Our staff are enjoying it.
It's really gone as smoothly asa big move like that could
possibly go, which means thatwe've had rain, we've had some
(02:17):
leaks, we've had some ups anddowns and we've had to figure
out, you know, what worked orwhat.
Where something went at the oldlocation doesn't mean that
that's the best fit for it here,so we've had some transitional
stuff, but we're really workingout the kinks and I think that
we're we're on the right trackand we're feeling good.
Speaker 1 (02:36):
We're busy yeah, define what busy means and what
it's.
How have you gotten to that?
I mean, is it just a number ofpeople coming in?
Are you seeing an increase inpeople coming in?
Speaker 2 (02:49):
we're seeing an increase in people coming in.
I would say I mean, in allhonesty, we have seen a pretty
steady increase in people forthe entire three years that I've
been at the bread basket.
We're the frog in the pot.
So we started out saying toourselves 30 people, wow, what a
day.
That was crazy.
That was so busy.
And now 30 people is a quietday and we wonder what's going
(03:12):
on.
Where is everyone?
Just by way of example, ourmarket days now are Monday,
tuesday, thursday, friday.
Last week, on Monday we had 123households, tuesday we had 210.
Thursday we had 140.
And Friday we had 112.
Speaker 1 (03:31):
Are these all different households?
Speaker 2 (03:39):
Different households.
So when you top out the weekand add in, we have some special
programming on Wednesday thattook in 16 more guests.
So our total for the week was601.
Families were supported byFlint Hills Breadbasket in the
course of one week.
Speaker 1 (03:51):
How does that compare to years in the past or days in
the past weeks?
Speaker 2 (03:55):
If I go back and I say I'm going to go to months,
now Okay.
Because that's the easiest way.
Even if I just look at April toJune, so April at our old
location we had 795 overallunduplicated household visits,
so 795.
May we had 815.
(04:16):
And June not including today,which is the 30th we are at 897.
So every month we're seeingabout 80 to 100 new families, so
people that haven't visited usbefore, and then at the same
time our guests can visit usonce a week.
So you've got folks who willcome once a month because they
(04:37):
just need you on occasion, andsome folks who will come once a
week because we're just part ofthat stability for them, who
will come once a week becausewe're just part of that
stability for them.
And this month, as of Fridayend of business, on Friday we
had served 1,956 total visits.
So once you work in today Itold you last Monday we served
(04:58):
123 households I can promise youthat we will serve more than 44
visits today.
We will top 2,000 visitors.
Goodness, In a month.
Speaker 1 (05:08):
What's that tell you about our community?
Speaker 2 (05:12):
It tells us two things at least.
It tells us that our communityis incredibly generous, that we
have a program like Flint HillsBreadbasket that has existed for
more than 40 years and that isseen as a resource that has
community support to be able toprovide support to all of those
people.
That I'm not here today cryingor panicking, but I am being
(05:37):
thoughtful about it and I amthinking about it because it
also tells us that second end ofwhat it tells us is that there
is a greater number of peoplethat are experiencing need in
our community.
We've always had a level ofneed and I would say right now
the needle is not moving in theright direction.
Speaker 1 (05:54):
Do you have a perspective on what is causing
that?
Speaker 2 (05:58):
Oh, you could highlight a list of things.
We know that Manhattan is anexpensive community to live in,
that our housing costs are high,that we are a service
industry-driven community.
So we've got, on the one end ofthings, we've got a lot of high
incomes, but then, on the flipof it, we've got a lot of folks
who are I think just last weekor the week before you talked
(06:19):
with Tara Clausen about Aliceasset-limited, income-constra,
constrained employed.
So we have a lot of people whoare working but don't
necessarily earn enough money intheir paycheck to meet their
basic living expenses or haveroom for the emergency, the
medical bill, the airconditioning that goes out, the
flat tire on a car.
And we know that prices haveincreased, that food prices have
(06:43):
increased.
We know that benefits are beingconstricted for folks.
So we're seeing all of thosethings happening all at once.
I'm a ray of sunshine on aMonday morning.
Speaker 1 (06:55):
Dave, it's a ray of reality.
Speaker 2 (06:59):
It's reality.
Speaker 1 (07:01):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (07:01):
And I guess that's one of the things that I like to
make sure that peopleunderstand is that I can be
excited about a great newlocation, and I truly am, but
the reality is is that manypeople in our community are
experiencing higher levels ofneed, new need, or maybe that
they needed us 20 years ago, goton the right track, got their
(07:25):
feet on the ground.
Speaker 1 (07:30):
And the timing of a new location then, in essence,
couldn't be any better.
Speaker 2 (07:34):
You are absolutely correct about that.
When I look at what we weredoing in a tiny space, it's just
mind-boggling.
We could not serve this volumeof people.
It would be.
Maybe we could do it.
It would be miserable.
It would be miserable for ourguests, for our volunteers, for
our staff, and we certainlycouldn't do it with the dignity
(07:58):
and care that we're doing itwith now.
Speaker 1 (08:01):
Speaking of let's just call it human resources.
You talk about staff.
You have a tremendous number ofvolunteers we do and you also
have interns.
Speaker 2 (08:12):
We do.
Speaker 1 (08:13):
And you brought one for show and tell.
Day on the GMCF Community Hour.
Speaker 2 (08:18):
And she's willing, she is game to be part of the
tell.
I'm really excited for that.
Speaker 1 (08:22):
Good morning Mia.
Correct, correct.
Mia.
Tell me, let's pull thatmicrophone a little bit or scoot
up a little.
There you go, there you go.
Tell me about yourself, mia.
Speaker 3 (08:35):
What's your last name ?
My name is Mia Wells.
I'm going to enter my secondyear of the Master's of Public
Administration program atK-State.
Speaker 1 (08:39):
Oh, you're ambitious.
Speaker 3 (08:40):
Yes, sir, as well as the graduate certificate in
nonprofit.
And so that is what drives myinternship this summer in a
nonprofit, very passionate aboutthat sector.
Speaker 1 (08:50):
What is it about working with the public that
intrigues you?
Speaker 3 (08:58):
What intrigues me about working with the public?
That intrigues you.
What intrigues me about workingwith the public is that, first,
it's a passion that just camenaturally and, second, the need
is there, and it's always goingto be there and the needs are
different as well as thecommunity is always going to be
there.
Speaker 1 (09:12):
Where are you from?
Speaker 3 (09:13):
45 minutes west of Chicago.
Speaker 1 (09:16):
Oh, does the town have a name?
Speaker 3 (09:18):
Batavia, Illinois.
Speaker 1 (09:19):
What brought you to Kansas State?
Speaker 3 (09:21):
Dad is from Russell Kansas.
Speaker 1 (09:23):
Is he?
Speaker 3 (09:24):
Grandma and grandpa retired in Manhattan, and so
I've gotten the privilege myentire life to travel to Russell
for a little bit, but starttraveling to Manhattan every
single year since I was a littlebaby Now.
Speaker 1 (09:34):
Did you get your undergrad here, correct?
Yes, okay, so you've been herefor a while.
Yes, sir, yeah, what do youlike about what happens here in
Manhattan, kansas?
Speaker 3 (09:43):
That people are here to help you and want to help you
.
Speaker 1 (09:47):
How's that different from what you found in Illinois?
Speaker 3 (09:54):
Independent society.
I think the United States is anindependent society or culture,
and up in Illinois,specifically closer to Chicago,
people work for and withthemselves.
Here people kind of are lookingat that collectivist working
with and for one another.
Speaker 1 (10:07):
What do you hope to learn by your efforts here at
the Breadbasket?
Speaker 3 (10:11):
I've already learned, I think, two really important
lessons and I'm excited to learnmore, but the two that I have
learned.
So I'm kind of switching yourquestion.
But is people who receivesocial services do not always
need to be tremendously filledwith gratitude and happiness
that day?
Speaker 1 (10:28):
It's okay to it's an overwhelming and overpowering
feeling, isn't it?
Speaker 3 (10:34):
Yes, it's okay to feel the the sad feelings as
well, um, and then also, carlalooked at me one day and she
said if someone told me theirlevel of income, that tells me
nothing about them, that doesn'ttell me about medical debt, it
doesn't tell me, um, about howmany kids they have.
And so every single day, I'mlearning those little lessons
(10:56):
and I will probably continue to.
Speaker 1 (10:58):
All right, how long are you going to be here with
the Breadbasket?
Are you just interning for thesummer?
Speaker 3 (11:02):
This summer.
Speaker 1 (11:03):
Okay.
Speaker 2 (11:04):
It's amazing.
We have great people that cometo us through KC.
Speaker 1 (11:07):
How did you latch on to her?
Oh my gosh.
Speaker 2 (11:10):
I reached out to this daily school and I said, hey,
I've still got an opportunityfor the summer in the great, in
the scheme of the move andeverything else that was going
on, and that was one of thethings that just wasn't
necessarily on my radar of.
Oh, we love having an internbecause we have We've had
wonderful interns that have cometo us through K-State, and so I
(11:32):
reached out kind of late in thegame and said, if you still
have somebody, we would love tohave somebody with us and I've
got the space and the time andthe capacity for it.
So they directed me ourdirection and it's been just
amazing.
She's been a great help to us.
But also, I think for us,having interns with us is, and
giving us the opportunity toteach is also an opportunity for
(11:55):
us to always be back in touchwith our values.
Speaker 1 (11:57):
And there's always an opportunity to volunteer.
Speaker 2 (12:00):
Absolutely.
There's always something to dowith the bread basket.
Speaker 1 (12:03):
Let's get back on track with some of the prepared
questions that we have for you.
Um, because you know, when youand I get together, we talk, and
we're really good at it.
It.
Let's talk a bit aboutsummertime and what that means,
what the demands that you haveat the Flint Hills Breadbasket
and how you fulfill those, andwhat is it you may need to help
(12:24):
fulfill those needs.
Speaker 2 (12:25):
Well, these days I'm pretty much telling folks
there's not much I will turndown, because with that increase
in families you can just see asmuch comes in is going right
back out again.
But summertime in particular isalways going to be a time where
there's more people coming inbecause kids are home from
school.
So if you've had a kid in yourhousehold during the summer
(12:46):
months you know that they liketo eat Some of the programs,
that although we have gotobviously summer feeding
programs through the schooldistrict and other stuff, the
more hours your kids spend athome, the more time that they're
spending at the cabinet or atthe refrigerator looking for
snacks or something.
We also know that a lot of ourorganizations just aren't.
(13:07):
They're in summer mode.
So businesses, they've gotpeople on vacation, that
everybody is just kind of doingtheir own thing during the
summer months.
So it's a time period where someof those donations kind of dip
down a little bit.
So we're not thinking about itlike we do at the holidays or
end of school type of things.
Summer for a lot of families isjust a time to escape, spend
(13:30):
time with their families andstuff.
So it doesn't necessarilyalways equate into a big bump.
For us it's more of a lull inthe time of donations.
So I like to bring people'sawareness to that because it's
that double hit.
It's the double hit of we'vegot more people who need our
support at the same time thatwe're having a little bit of a
(13:52):
lull in donations.
Speaker 1 (13:54):
Let's talk a bit about meeting some of those
needs, and you know there's allkinds of policies that you have
in play that sometimes can beabsolutely beneficial, but there
also has to be some workableopportunities to make sure that
you fulfill the needs of thepeople that may lie outside some
(14:14):
of the things that you dopolicy-wise.
How's that challenge these days?
Speaker 2 (14:20):
We just always have to remember that we live in a
greater society, we live in acommunity, we live in a state,
we live in a nation, and thatthe policies that are happening
all across whether it's a local,regional, state or national
those have impacts on us Inparticular.
Right now we are talking andlooking at the impact to SNAP
(14:42):
benefits for our guests and forpeople who maybe are not needing
to come to us right now becausethey have that safety net of
their SNAP benefits, but ifthose benefits go away, they
will absolutely be visiting us Alot of concern there about that
these days.
There is a lot of concern aboutthat.
I think people don't alwaysunderstand the benefit that SNAP
(15:05):
has, the efficiency and thebenefit for every meal that I
can provide through the breadbasket or that Harvesters
provides or any food programprovides.
Snap benefits provide nine so Ican provide one meal at the
same value or cost that SNAPbenefits can provide nine meals.
(15:28):
So if you think about it,losing that benefit is not just
a one-to-one ratio, it's notjust I have to replace that one
meal.
I'm looking at replacing thenine meals.
Speaker 1 (15:41):
We don't really get into the politics of everything,
but you know, there is asentiment and there's many
people that have this sentimentthat there are a lot of people
that take advantage of thesystem.
Do you see that here locally?
Speaker 2 (15:54):
I don't.
I really don't Snap benefits orbenefits just in general, but
I'll stay with Snap.
It's a 27 page application thatrequires it requires a lot of
information.
It requires bank information,asset information, requires you
to be down.
You can't have a savingsaccount and apply for SNAP or
(16:15):
qualify for SNAP, so there's alot of requirements in place
already, and it requiresreporting to your
recertification or reportingback in, and so it's a program
that is really a lifeline forfamilies and it has a lot of
checks and balances in italready.
(16:36):
Do I have time to share onequick story, really quick, okay.
Got an email from a guest theother day that I'm just going to
read.
I'll be fast about it.
This was a Friday email For themonth of June.
I've been able to visit.
I'll be fast about it.
This was a Friday email For themonth of June.
I've been able to visit thebreadbasket every week and I'm
so grateful for the change inhours that now fit my schedule
as a student.
The previous hours made itimpossible for me to come, so
(16:57):
this new schedule has truly beena blessing.
In May I faced a difficultmoment when I received a letter
saying that I had lost my SNAPbenefits.
I cried when I saw it.
Being a family of eight,groceries are a huge expense.
Usually I spend over a thousanddollars each month at the
grocery store just to feed myfamily dinner during the school
year.
But thanks to the support fromthe food pantry this June I've
(17:18):
been able to stop going to thestore for that weekly expense,
which has saved me around athousand dollars.
The assistance has allowed meto do so much more enrolling my
kids in summer camp, packingtheir lunches, buying clothes
for my daughter, saving forschool clothes and even starting
a daycare to create a betterfuture for my family.
The love, effort and heart thateveryone at the pantry puts
(17:39):
into their work have truly madethis possible for us.
Words cannot fully express therelief and gratitude I feel,
especially when I think aboutthe worry of how to feed my
family and what we'll have fordinner or to eat each day.
I feel so blessed and I justwant to take a moment to say
thank you from the bottom of myheart.
The kindness and friendlinessfrom everyone I've met there
(17:59):
mean the world to me and myfamily.
Speaker 1 (18:01):
Thanks from a family of eight, and that's why we have
the Flynn Hills bread basket.
It is.
It said it all.
What a wonderful testimonial.
Speaker 2 (18:06):
It said it all.
Speaker 1 (18:07):
Did you cry when you read that?
Sure did yeah.
Speaker 2 (18:10):
Sure did, and I think that that's the story.
That family lost their benefitsand we were the stopgap, we
were the thing that came in andI'm so glad that we can do that.
I hate that we have to.
Speaker 1 (18:22):
And the demand's only going to increase.
That's true, got to roll.
Carla, always a delight to haveyou and thanks for sharing your
story.
Same and Mia Wells delighted tosee you and have you in, and
thanks for playing along withCarla and the work that you do,
and good luck to you in yourfuture.
Speaker 3 (18:38):
Thank you very much.
Speaker 1 (18:40):
After the break, we're going to be talking about
the YES Fund, which is gettinglaunched tomorrow.
Debbie Mercer is waiting in thewings and Vern Henricks is
going to be back.
It's the GMCF Community Hour.
Every Monday morning we get todo this here on NewsRadio KMAN.
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