In this episode, we welcomed Julie Lewis, Senior Pantry Manager at People Helping People, Inc. in Burlington, Massachusetts.
Julie shares the realities of local hunger and food insecurity, how to change the assumptions that food pantries are only utilized by the poor, how usage has changed over the last four years, and how the stories about the real people who benefit from and volunteer for the pantry elicit impactful contributions from corporate and community donors.
To learn more about People Helping People, Inc. or to make a donation, visit https://peoplehelpingpeopleinc.org/.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Welcome to the Starfish Storytellers, the podcast that makes a difference one story
(00:04):
at a time by bringing storytelling to life.
So a few years ago, actually more than a few years ago now, it's probably about 20 years
ago, I attended a volunteer appreciation brunch for people helping people, which is the organization
(00:31):
I now work for.
And I remember the keynote speaker said something that really stuck with me.
He was a police commissioner, and I wish I could tell you his name.
I don't remember his name, I don't even remember what city he was a police commissioner for.
I think it was Boston, but I don't want to, I'm not totally sure.
(00:52):
But I remember him saying that something he always tells his new recruits is when you
walk into a situation, you meet a person no matter the scenario, lead with kindness and
respect and understanding, knowing that you don't know what they're going through, and
you don't know what their situation is, what their history is, you don't know anything
(01:16):
about them.
You know, and so that has always stuck with me still to this day.
And you know, it's been really kind of that feeling has been bolstered because a few years
after that, it was sort of flipped around on me because I have a 15 year old son and
(01:36):
he is autistic.
So he is pretty highly affected.
As time has gone on, we've realized like he's a person who won't be able to live on his
own.
He's, you know, he's pretty high needs individual.
And when he was a little kid, he would act out in public, you know, funny behaviors like
(01:59):
flapping his hands and things that people would turn, you know, turn their heads or,
you know, people looked at us a lot and sort of judged us.
And when I got over, you know, I have long since gotten over worrying about what people
think.
But it sort of made me realize that it doesn't matter what the situation is like you just
(02:21):
don't know, you know, people didn't know that he was that he had a disability and that
was why he was acting that way.
They just looked at us with judgment or not everybody, but some people did.
And so, you know, I've kind of come out of this that that sort of experience saying,
(02:41):
you know, that kid that's having a tantrum in public, I don't know their story.
I don't know what led to that.
This person that drove up to the food pantry, I don't know their story.
And I'm not in a place to judge them.
I'm just in a place to lead with compassion and kindness and understand that I don't know,
you know, what's going on with them, but I should help them.
(03:04):
And so that's that's my story.
(03:29):
Hello, my name is Leanna Henry and welcome to the Starfish Storytellers.
I'm the CEO of the Black Dog Group, a Markham and Project Management firm headquartered on
the east coast of the US in Quaint Colonial Bedford, Massachusetts.
I'm your host and passionate about storytelling.
I'm actually on a mission to raise up the next generation of storytellers.
(03:49):
We've named ourselves the Starfish Storytellers after the Starfish Story.
The moral of the Starfish Story is based on the power of one.
No matter how big the challenge, each action we take makes a difference and has an impact.
One step, one starfish or one story at a time.
Every episode we welcome a new storyteller who will share their story meant to inspire
(04:09):
and connect with you.
Then we'll break it down and offer tips for any listeners who are ready to tell their
own stories.
So thanks for tuning in.
Now let's get started.
Today's episode is about changing the narrative of local hunger, a community pantries battle
against food insecurity.
And with me is Julie Lewis, senior pantry manager at People Helping People.
(04:31):
People Helping People is a non-profit organization in Burlington, Massachusetts that oversees
the Burlington Community Food Pantry, the Burlington Covenant for Basic Needs, and the
Holiday Program.
As the senior pantry manager, Julie often has to share the realities of local hunger
and food insecurity across social media, during community engagement events, when guiding volunteers,
(04:55):
and when speaking publicly, which is no simple task.
So thank you for coming in to chat with us, Julie.
We're really happy you're here.
Thank you for having me.
I'm excited to be here.
So we like to get started every episode by having our guests introduce themselves a little
bit more.
So would you mind telling us our listeners a little bit more about you?
(05:16):
Sure.
Thank you.
Yep.
So my name is Julie Lewis.
I grew up in central New York, Ithaca area.
Ithaca is gorgeous.
And I moved to the Boston area with my husband about 20 years ago, and he got a job out here.
And then shortly after that, I attended culinary school at the Cambridge School for Culinary
(05:40):
Arts, and I have worked in food service and food service management for years since then.
I have three kids, 15.
My son is 15.
My daughter, middle daughter is 12, and my youngest is three.
He's also a girl.
And I love to, I'm a musician.
(06:02):
I love to play piano and sing.
I play the ukulele.
I sing in my church's band, and I have a lot of hobbies, but I'm especially passionate
about gardening.
So I have a huge vegetable garden, and I'm also passionate about cooking and baking,
you know, seeing as how I went to pastry school.
(06:24):
So yeah, that's me in a nutshell.
Wow, that sounds amazing.
I'm going to ask you some questions about your journey in a few minutes, but I just wanted
to thank you for sharing your story with us.
You know, I think it's important to have sort of for the lesson of compassion and to be sharing
(06:46):
that important lesson wherever we go.
You know, I think it sounds like, you know, at first it must have been hard to have, you
know, being out in public with a child with special needs and other people really not
understanding your sort of your journey, what he needs, what your struggles might be, what
(07:10):
challenges you face, how you're overcoming, like, you know, that's a snapshot in time
in that moment.
And, you know, and I think clearly you're carrying that compassion into your role as
pantry manager right now at the Burlington pantry, the Burlington food pantry.
(07:30):
You know, I know for a fact that, you know, for a lot of folks, local food pantries really
are a lifeline.
And y'all are the frontline heroes against the war on hunger and really just existing
in the community to ensure that people don't go hungry, you know, in an increasingly changing
(07:51):
economic environment.
The ability of local food pantries to provide for those experienced hunger is getting more
and more challenging.
I've been doing a lot of reading about it.
And nonprofit food pantries are continually trying to build outreach programs for families
that might be struggling or individuals who might be struggling.
Some folks might have known hunger for generations while some are just starting to rely on this
(08:14):
assistance for the very first time, not ever expecting that they would become hungry.
And you know, it's through food donations, financial contributions and grants that local
pantries are able to operate and offer.
Just that little bit of hope that just such a basic need can be cared for.
(08:34):
Do you have any thoughts on that?
Yeah, absolutely.
And you know, thank you so much for saying that about, you know, some individuals have
known hunger for generations.
And then there are some people who are just, you know, kind of realizing that they need
help for the first time.
And both situations are tough, but we, it doesn't matter the situation, we want to help.
(08:59):
So yeah, we make sure to, you know, as I mentioned in my story, like we lead with compassion
and that sort of starts at the top and we train our volunteers to always treat everyone
with kindness and respect.
You never know their story.
So you always want to treat everyone with respect and kindness.
(09:21):
And so we try to overcome some of those barriers of people feeling embarrassed, maybe to come
to the food pantry or being hesitant in some way by sort of upholding this reputation in
our community of being a place that people can come that is safe and that you're always
going to be treated with kindness when you come.
(09:44):
But yeah, we rely on financial contributions from individuals, from companies.
You know, we do get some grant money, but really it's those sort of, it's those regular
people that kind of send us money on, you know, we have some folks who contribute once
a month just as on a regular basis.
(10:05):
We really rely on that to keep the lights on, to keep, you know, we do have to purchase
some foods that we aren't able to get donated.
So it's really important for us to just on an ongoing basis to have that financial support
from the community.
Yeah.
And I think I was reading somewhere that the food donations are great.
(10:32):
But some, really the financial contributions give you an opportunity to be able to do more
on a whole different level.
Definitely.
And that those really do make a difference.
Yeah.
And it's not just, you know, because it's not just food that we do, we have other programs.
As you mentioned, we have the Covenant for Basic Needs where we support people financially
(10:54):
in hardship times.
So if they are facing a utility shutoff, for example, we have a program that can help
with that that we financially support.
And we have our holiday program.
So if we have the wish tree at the Burlington Mall and if there are wishes that aren't
purchased by the public, we use our funds to purchase them and make sure that all the
(11:16):
kids are getting their basic needs met as well as, you know, a couple of toys for the
holiday season.
And we do, we do backpacks.
We do the lunch program during the summer to feed kids who would normally get free lunches.
You know, all kids get free lunches, which is awesome.
But this all requires funding.
Right.
(11:37):
So, yeah.
Right.
You know, as we were talking, you know, we were looking at, you know, when this podcast
broadcasts and you start planning for the holidays pretty early.
We do.
We do.
Yeah.
So, you know, here in, we start in August, September.
(12:00):
So we start registering our families in October, but all the planning has to start before that.
So we are starting to collect, you know, non-perishable foods for Thanksgiving.
And we've already got our turkey allotment all planned ahead of time for Thanksgiving.
And you know, our wish tree committee is already has already met and is meeting again next week,
(12:26):
actually, because, yeah, this all takes a lot of planning and a lot of collaboration
for months ahead of time.
On average, and I don't know if you can share this information, but on average, about how
many families are you serving for Thanksgiving?
So last year, the Thanksgiving program gave out 141 turkey dinners.
(12:49):
So what we give, what our program does is we give out a frozen turkey and the sides.
So we give out fresh vegetables, fresh rolls and pie, and all the non-perishable, so your
stuffing mix and your cranberry and stuff like that.
We give that out to, we gave that out to 141 families last year.
So that was about 350 individuals that were impacted by that.
(13:13):
So that's, that's, that was an average year.
We've had years where we've, we've had as many as 170 to 180 families come for the Thanksgiving.
Only during the pandemic, we had more.
But yeah, about an average, 140 to 150 families.
That's a lot of dinners.
Yeah.
So it's a lot of dinners and a lot of coordination to get all that food into one place for them.
(13:38):
So yes.
Yeah.
And I would imagine that you are also meeting volunteers to help with that, sorting all those
meals and helping, I don't know, deliveries or, you know, being there to, you know, just
box up stuff.
Oh yeah.
Yeah.
This particular effort, the Thanksgiving one requires two days of volunteers prepping
(14:03):
and getting ready.
I mean, and we have people that sort the donations, check the dates, organize, count things to
make sure we have enough.
We have people that have to go out and shop if we don't have enough.
And then we have, you know, we have to have, we usually have a Cub Scouts group that comes
in and sorts the vegetables into bags so that everybody gets the right amount of green beans
(14:27):
and et cetera.
We have people who actually go around and shop with the families because the families come
in to pick out their, what sides they want and things.
So our volunteers will go around and shop with them.
We have to have all those, you know, thousands of pounds of turkeys that need to get moved.
(14:47):
So it's a big coordination, big coordinated effort.
And we get a lot of community help from different range of volunteers.
We have, you know, Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts that help.
And we often have a Girl Scouts group that comes in and helps as well.
So there's a lot there.
A lot of volunteers needed for sure.
Are the turkeys don't, I mean, I'm guessing the turkeys are donated.
(15:09):
Do you get them like corporations donate or like, where did the turkeys come from?
So in years past, we had the Rotary Club in Burlington that used to purchase and donate
the turkeys.
Now we are affiliated with the Greater Boston Food Bank.
So we're able to get turkeys from them.
(15:29):
Some years we haven't been able to get quite enough and so we'll have to purchase some
out of donated money.
But this year I know we have enough turkeys coming from them.
But what happens is we get a whole pallet of turkeys sometime in October.
We can't store that at the pantry.
So Wegmans actually stores the pallet of turkeys for us in one of their freezers for a month
(15:52):
until we come and get them.
And now the Rotary Club, they still help.
They bring their pickup trucks and move all the turkeys for us to the United Church of
Christ Congregational, which is where the turkey distribution is out of.
Because there's also not enough room at the pantry to do all that.
So there's a church space that we use.
(16:14):
Really does take a community.
It does.
Takes a village, absolutely.
Takes a village for sure.
So all right, well I'm going to pivot a little because we'll talk more about this in a minute.
But I wanted to hear more about your journey.
You know, I checked out your LinkedIn profile and you've worked in food industry, food systems,
(16:35):
food services in one way or another your entire career from restaurants to catering to food
market departments and now you're at the people helping people pantry.
So my question was, did it feel as though this was the next natural step for you along
the way as you have worked with food, your whole career has hunger and food insecurity
(16:56):
been something sort of you've had a heart for?
You know, what exactly brought you here?
Yeah.
Well, that's very intuitive of you because that's really, you described it very well.
That's really how it happened.
I mean, I've always been passionate about food and cooking and baking and I'm kind of
a natural manager.
So every job I've gone to, I've ended up being a manager in some form.
(17:19):
You know, most recently I was at Wegmans for several years as a department manager.
And yeah, I, but all this time as I've been working in food service, I was always volunteering
as one of the coordinators of that Thanksgiving program that we talked about as a volunteer
through that church, through my church.
(17:40):
And so when this opportunity came up at people helping people, it was perfect timing for
me.
It was actually kind of at the tail end of the pandemic and I had left my job at Wegmans
because I had my third baby and you know, it was just that the timing was that.
So I was just starting to kind of look at going back to work and this opportunity came
(18:04):
up and I mean, how it couldn't have been more perfect.
It was like meant to be, you know, I'm able to marry my, my expertise and knowledge in
food service with my passion for helping people.
It really feels right.
I've been there, you know, three years now almost and it has still feels right.
Feels like this is what I'm supposed to be doing.
(18:26):
So it's so important.
I think we spend so much, so many hours of every day working, you know, in our work.
Yes.
And it can be our professional work.
It can be our parental work.
It can be, you know, other kinds of work, personal work, but, but it's so important,
I think, to find purpose because then it's not work work.
(18:49):
Exactly.
Yes.
Right.
I feel the same way.
Absolutely.
Yeah.
Yeah.
So you have to, as you're in your role as the senior pantry manager, you, I mean, I've
seen you, I met you at the, at the Burlington Chamber of Commerce and so you are out there.
(19:10):
You're out there networking and, you know, you, to, you know, for fundraising purposes
or to just get the word out, you, you have to, you know, lead community engagement events.
Do you find that when people approach you to have a conversation that they might not
fully understand hunger and food insecurity?
(19:33):
And do you, do you find, as people talk to you, that there's sort of like a poverty stigma
attached to that?
Is there a way for us to work on changing those assumptions?
Yeah.
I mean, definitely.
You know, a lot of that kind of goes back to my story and I, and I share it all the time.
I mean, I share it with my volunteers.
(19:53):
I share it with people that I'm just meeting.
You know, I'm really kind of plugged into the nonprofit world now.
I have a lot of friends at other nonprofits.
I actually have a collaborative of nonprofits that I started called the Burlington Community
Collaborative where we meet regularly to kind of share resources and ideas and thoughts
(20:15):
and just to be able to understand what's going on in the other nonprofits in the area.
But anyway, you know, there is a stigma and, and I want more people to understand that
every story is different and that there are so many factors that can lead to someone needing
assistance and it could be long term.
(20:39):
It could be that generational like you mentioned earlier.
And it also could be just one little thing that happened.
It could be a job loss.
It could be an illness.
It could be, you know, somebody passed away, unfortunately.
And these, these really tough situations happen to regular people all the time.
(21:01):
And you know, so I, this is another story just real quick, but this was maybe a year
ago or so.
We had a client pull into the food pantry and she was driving a nice car, right?
And there was a technician there, our volunteers, it doesn't phase them.
They don't judge anyone, but there was a technician there working on something and he started
(21:26):
talking to everybody about, my goodness, why is this person with this nice car at the food
pantry that doesn't make any sense?
How, how dare they?
And you know, I had to say to him, you don't know what led to this person being here.
You just don't know her story.
Maybe she's just borrowing that car from a friend because she might not have her own
car or maybe she just lost her job and that was the car she was driving.
(21:50):
Maybe she's working on trading it in or maybe that's the only thing that she has a value
and she's going to continue to drive it because it's easier.
You know, maybe she's got kids that she needs to take them to school in that car.
You just don't know.
So just don't judge a book by its cover, you know, as they say.
You can't judge a situation because you don't know the background.
(22:12):
So that's why with the stigma piece, you know, that's why I'm always making sure that I do
my best and we do our best as a team to make people feel comfortable coming to the pantry
because we want them to know that we just treat them as regular people because that
could be us any day, you know.
(22:33):
My husband just got laid off from his job.
So you know, I could technically use the food pantry now based on our income.
It could happen to anyone.
So yeah, that's a great question.
Thank you.
I hope I covered the whole thing.
No, I think you did.
I think that, you know, it goes back to sort of how we started this episode, which is
(22:53):
about compassion and I think it goes back to, you know, humility, seeing things as they
are not how I think they should be because you really don't know someone's story.
So just like you said, you know, food distribution recipients can come from all walks of life.
(23:14):
I read an article that a pantry manager had written and she wanted to learn how to tell
the story of hunger in her community, but she didn't want to just focus on like data
and numbers.
She wanted to talk about the stories of people in terms of people about people and the stories
behind their hunger.
(23:34):
So like you said, I'm guessing you help a variety of families and individuals that
perhaps folks may be surprised to know utilize the pantry.
You know, what what are the top of mind?
Like, you know, what types of folks like who's who's out there in the community using the
pantry?
Yeah.
I mean, there's a wide range of people using the pantry.
(23:55):
We have, you know, we have a good a good number of our folks are seniors who are on a fixed
income and they just can't make ends meet with their income.
We have a lot of families with children that come to the pantry.
We have we have quite a few people who actually this is a great story that that I've learned
(24:16):
about recently, one of our volunteers was was previously a pantry client and she told
me her whole story recently and I was just blown away.
I had no idea, you know, she's in a successful career now.
She's remarried since that happened.
And but she was put in a terrible situation because her husband unfortunately became addicted
(24:40):
and basically used up all their savings, all the kids money that they had saved even took
the last of the money out of their safe and stole it, you know, because he he was suffering
from a terrible addiction.
And she was left with nothing with two kids to take care of.
And she had to basically just start at ground zero.
(25:01):
And she used the pantry for a couple of years until she got back on her feet.
And now she's, you know, a well known person in our community who has a career that you
would have never guessed, you know, she's got her feet under her.
And she's now a volunteer.
And like I said, I never knew I didn't even know that.
And I've known her for years.
(25:22):
So it's really it's it's really amazing.
Like it's all walks of life.
It's all people that could be in the situation.
It could be anyone.
Yep.
Yep.
And those are, you know, those are people that, you know, I can say I I've used a pantry
before I was recently divorced and I I was running a newspaper magazine company and we
(25:56):
had to shut down.
And right when we had to shut down, I was renting an apartment and the landlady it was
a it was a duplex and her family lived on one side and she lived somewhere else and
she decided she wanted to move back into the other half of the duplex so she could be close
to her grandkids and she asked us to move out.
(26:17):
And so here I was like, you know, now I had to figure out what happens next, you know,
and I have I had three kids, you know, very young school age kids.
And I was what do I do now?
And I had gone to a church in my town at the time and I was talking with the main pastor
(26:37):
and she's like, oh, we have a pantry here.
And she literally took me in the back and there was like a scout troop or something having
a meeting and she shot a shoot them off into another room.
And she took me to the pantry and she got a bag and she just like started filling it.
And I was so grateful because in that moment, you know, I was in a really difficult situation
(27:02):
and I, you know, and I'm and I think do you find because I found in that moment I was
grateful for the help.
But I was I felt a little like I shouldn't be here.
Like I should be leaving this for someone else.
Like I shouldn't be taking this because, you know, I just was just running a company and
now I'm, you know, and now I got to find a place to live and I don't have income.
(27:26):
And I don't, you know, oh yeah, you're not alone in that.
I hear that all the time.
Really?
I mean, I want to note the first sort of first couple of months that I started working at
the food pantry, a woman came in actually a woman and her boyfriend came in and they
were living out of their Jeep because they just had suddenly lost everything.
(27:49):
Both of them lost their jobs.
It was just, you know, just a compounding set of circumstances and all of a sudden they
found themselves homeless.
And she walked in and she was just sobbing because she was coming in asking for help
and she was like, I'm usually the one helping people.
I'm usually the one donating and volunteering my time.
And I just feel really wrong coming in and asking for help.
(28:12):
And that was that was the first time I remember using that sort of mindset of comforting people
and saying, we're here for you right now, you know, and maybe down the road when you
get your feedback under you, you can come and volunteer and you can be the one donating.
But we're all, we're all in a different place in our life at different times.
And right now you're the one who needs help and that's why we're here.
(28:34):
So please like, don't feel bad.
We have plenty of food to share.
Please like, let us help you, you know, and I mean the number of tears that have been
shed in the office at the food pantry for that reason, people feel like that.
I say the majority of people don't want to ask for help.
They just they're forced to.
(28:55):
They have to preserve what they have, you know, sometimes it's it's an actual hunger
situation where they're really, they really don't know where their next meal is coming
from.
But then there's also just the ongoing sort of need like, okay, I need to balance my
budget and I can't afford food and, you know, SNAP benefits don't have, don't aren't enough
(29:17):
to cover everyone in my family for the whole month.
So I need a little bit of supplement to keep the books balanced.
So there's both, there's both there, you know.
But yeah, it's it could be anyone and and some people come only a couple times and and
some people come for years.
(29:38):
Yeah.
You know, and that's that's fine, whatever they need, we were there for them.
I read somewhere some number like 40% of Americans and maybe this was a couple of years ago were
like one missed paycheck away from like needing assistance.
Like, yeah, because I think we're in a tough we're we've been in a tough economic environment
(30:06):
for some time, especially during COVID and so many people lost their jobs and so many
people were impacted by illness.
And there was just so much of that.
And we'll talk in a minute about sort of the actually that's my next question that I in
addition to that number, I also read that the need for food pantry services during the
pandemic just was like right through the roof, very sharp rise, like a really significant
(30:31):
number like 95% of food distribution recipients, there was an increase, you know, for food distribution
recipients.
Was was that your experience as well?
You were there after COVID though, right?
I was there after COVID but but I know I mean, I, I have heard about how it was and we've
(30:51):
kept some of the sort of the model of how we operate now.
Just then but but yes, there was, they had to suddenly pivot and how they operated because
of social distancing, but then also just that enormous increase in people using the food
pantry because so many people lost their jobs and so many people were ill.
(31:12):
And where were the donations coming from?
With donations also kind of went up at that time too.
You know, a lot of people who were in a position to be generous were more generous at that time.
And more grant money came out came out of the woodwork.
We were able to get some Massachusetts grant money to help us through that time.
(31:33):
So so that luckily the sort of the community rose with the rose to the challenge in terms
of getting taken care of people and in at least in that realm, you know, I have no opinions
about other things that happened at that time.
But you know, the food pantry in our case was taken care of thankfully, but it was a huge
effort, you know, a lot of volunteers stepped away because, you know, of fear and not, you
(31:58):
know, social distancing and not wanting to be there.
Or they got sick or whatever it was.
So it was a huge challenge for the staff at the time.
And in the staff was smaller than it is now.
So I really feel for for them, it was quite an experience from my understanding.
But you know, we continue to see the need even increasing now, it's kind of it kind
(32:23):
of leveled off quite a bit went down significantly as people went back to work and stuff.
But then we've seen a kind of an increase really gradually, but significantly over the
last year or so.
Over a year ago, the COVID era snap benefit increase was was eliminated.
(32:44):
So that was one factor.
And yeah, that was probably a year and a half ago now.
And we definitely see a saw sharp increase in usership when that happened, where people
had had were brought to the maximum of what their snap benefit could be.
Just should I explain what snap is just yeah, quick.
So snap is the is the supplemental nutrition assistance program.
(33:09):
So it's it's basically what used to be called food stamps.
So that's what people get to they get from the government if they're within a certain
income to feed their family.
And usually it's it's a it's supposed to be supplemental, you know, that's what it's
called.
So it's not enough to really buy groceries for your whole family, but it's enough to
(33:30):
help a little.
That's why people we encourage people who use snap to also come to the food pantry because
we're also supplemental.
So hopefully they can put it all together and have enough.
But so at the during COVID, the snap benefit was brought up to the maximum for any for
every family based based on just the family size.
(33:51):
So they were there were no deductions taken out for whatever they take deductions out
for now.
And then back in March of 2022.
Yeah.
No, 2023.
Sorry.
That that extra COVID benefit was taken away.
(34:12):
It ended because the emergency was over.
So then there were a lot of families who had been getting, you know, say $120 a month now
dropped back down to say $70 a month.
So that was tough for people.
So we saw a lot of people kind of register or come back to the pantry at that time.
And then, you know, since then we've just seen and I and I actually think it's a it's
(34:34):
a combination of the the the economy being tough right now with cost of goods and things.
And also word of mouth and just the outreach sort of efforts that we've made because we
know there's a lot of need out there that wasn't being met before.
So we've made a big effort in recent probably over the last two years or so to really get
(34:56):
out into the community.
As you mentioned, like, you know, the executive director Jim and myself are out networking
spreading the word that we're there.
I go to the schools.
I have a great relationship with Burlington Public Schools.
So we're we're making sure people know and are referring people to us as needed.
And so we've seen a lot of increase in usership over the last year or so.
(35:22):
And yeah, so we're, you know, again, like it's it's just oh and what I was going to say,
backing up was that because the economy is what it is and it's so hard for people to
make ends meet, like you said, some people are just one paycheck away from, you know,
having trouble paying their mortgage or whatever or their rent.
(35:47):
Our guidelines for using the food pantry, we use the MassGood neighbor energy guidelines,
which is more closer to actually the median income.
So a lot of people might not even realize, but they could qualify based on their family
size to use the food pantry.
And we so snap benefits, they use a different guideline, they use the USDA guideline, which
(36:11):
is closer to the it's, I believe, 30 or 40% of the federal poverty limit.
This is a much higher cap.
So people who may not qualify for a snap because their income is too high, they still might
be able to use the food pantry.
So we're trying to spread the word about that too, because if they're just having trouble
making ends meet, or they are maybe one paycheck away from losing, you know, their rent or
(36:34):
their whatever it may be, not being able to make a utility payment, they may be able to
get help that they don't realize is out there.
So no, it's great to know because I think you're right.
I don't think people understand.
Again, that poverty stigma, I think people just maybe don't understand that it's it's
not just that's not the only reason that you exist.
(36:56):
You know, that it's about helping.
Yes, absolutely.
Yeah.
Yeah.
We had, you know, you have to do a fair amount of community engagement for fundraising and
to get the word out to potential donors, right?
And you know, we had recently broadcast another podcast where we were talking about donor and
(37:17):
fundraising stories and how, you know, nonprofits are constantly looking for innovative ways
to inspire donors and storytelling has the power to touch hearts and evoke empathy.
Fundraising storytelling especially is powerful for igniting emotions, fostering connections
and driving impactful contributions.
(37:40):
When you are out networking or during engagement events or even guiding volunteers, do you
have the opportunity to tell stories about the ways that the pantry is making a difference?
Yeah, definitely.
You know, I we've definitely sort of over the last couple of years, like I mentioned,
(38:04):
the executive director, Jim and I have been trying to really work on that fundraising
piece as far as how to get the messaging out to people.
And we have started kind of sharing stories more, you know, we have a wine tasting fundraiser
in February and at the last one, I got up and said a few things and I shared a story
(38:29):
about one of our clients who had recently removed herself from a domestic abuse situation.
And you know, I kind of told some details about without any identifying factors, obviously,
about how she had left everything behind with her two boys and just got out of there, had
(38:51):
to, you know, disappear from the map and just started at zero.
And she had come into the pantry after a few months of using the pantry and we'd also given
her holiday help.
And she she used the wish tree for her kids is what I mean.
(39:12):
And she came in and just sat down in the office.
Could we gotten to know her a little bit at this point?
We talked to her a lot.
She's really, really nice lady.
And she started just tearing up and just said, you guys absolutely saved my life.
And she wasn't, you know, she was being literal and figurative about that.
(39:32):
She was like, you know, you fed my kids, you made it.
So I had a safe space to come to where I could, you know, talk and be be myself and not be
not feel because she was living in a state of fear at that time.
And her life had really gotten turned upside down.
So, you know, I shared that story with with the audience at our fundraiser.
(39:58):
And that's the kind of thing that we want to do more of because we know that once people
hear that these are relatable people and individuals, they understand that we need,
you know, we need donations to support, keep supporting folks because there's going to
be another person walking in the door next week and the next week and the next week is
(40:19):
just that that's life.
And that's just the reality.
Yeah.
And messaging, you have to be careful, obviously, because of the identifying information and
confidentiality and all of that.
But I think you're right.
I think being able to humanize what you do instead of just they're just clients, they're
(40:42):
just recipients, you know, these are real people with these real stories.
Yeah.
And these journeys that got them here and that this could be this incredible stepping
stone for them along the way.
Yep, definitely.
I couldn't have put it better.
So, yeah, for sure.
Yeah.
So, you engage with community, other groups, I mean, you know, corporations or donors,
(41:08):
everyday individuals can be donors, other organizations like scout organizations or,
you know, other nonprofits or other, you know, church groups and things like that might be
donors.
All the types of events that you're doing, which ones do you find are most impactful?
I know that you have a game show style event coming up very soon.
(41:32):
So how's the planning going with that?
Oh, it's good.
It's going to be a really fun event.
So we decided we were sort of brainstorming because we had our one big fundraiser each
year, which was the wine tasting I mentioned.
And then we would do a couple of sort of smaller ones like raffles and things.
But we really need to keep with that fundraising cycle every year.
(41:55):
So we were trying to come up with one for the fall time that would be more community-based.
So one of our fabulous board members who's been with the board for many, many years,
Janet, she's awesome, I love her.
And she came up with this idea.
She was like, I woke up in the middle of the night and I had this idea in my head.
(42:16):
And so we just went with it.
It's called Burlington Feud.
And the idea is that we want to bring the whole community together.
So we're bringing in teams from different boards and committees throughout the town.
Is this going to be like a family feud?
Yes.
Oh, OK.
So it's like family feud.
(42:37):
And the teams that consist of Burlington sort of people that know, you know, that are
recognizable in Burlington.
So we have a team from the police department.
We have a team from, we have the select board as a team and the school committee.
So people like that, you know, so recognizable people.
And they're going to compete against each other.
(42:58):
And you know, it's just supposed to be a friendly, healthy competition.
And then there'll be dinner and we have a lot of raffle items.
So we're hoping that this will be sort of our other big event-based fundraiser, just
like the wine tasting that we have in February, which is huge and always sells out.
It's at Cafe Esca Drill, very popular and has been going on.
(43:20):
I believe this will be maybe our twelfth year doing it.
Well, eleventh or twelfth, yeah.
So it's been going on a long time and it's so popular.
So we're hoping that this one gets to that point too.
This is our first year.
So we'll see how it goes.
I think it's going to be great.
Well, it'll be fun, I think, because you said it's like a family-focused, family-fun
one.
So that's going to be...
Yes.
(43:40):
Kids are welcome.
So that's going to be a family's there.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Absolutely.
And then they'll be able to see the people they know.
Do you have any like, do you have any teams from like schools?
Yes.
Like teachers coming in today?
We do.
We have a Burlington Public Schools team.
So...
The kids will definitely recognize those folks.
Yep, yep, exactly.
Oh, that's so fun.
Well, good luck.
I hope that...
(44:01):
You know, is the goal...
You know, and how is that going to work?
Is it people who participate, bring food donations or financial contributions or something like
that?
It's a ticket-based.
Oh, okay.
So they'll buy a ticket for the event.
They get the show.
They get to see the show and then the dinner is included in the ticket price.
And then we'll also have raffles to sell so they can buy raffle tickets there.
(44:24):
And that'll hopefully bring in extra income for the event.
Nice.
Yeah.
Oh, I wish you luck on that.
That sounds fun.
Thank you.
That sounds fun.
So my hope is that once folks hear this episode that they will be moved to...
Donate or volunteer.
If folks wanted to get involved, what should they do?
(44:48):
The first place to go would be our website, peoplehelvingpeopleinc.org.
And that's going to show you what volunteer opportunities we have.
We have a form on our new website, which by this time should be published.
It's so close.
And you can fill out the form and kind of indicate what you're interested in doing in
(45:12):
terms of volunteerism.
Or you can always make a contribution.
Of course, we always welcome that.
Or food donations are also important, non-perishable, unexpired, non-perishable foods.
We have a donation center at our location at 21 Murray-Avon Burlington that's on a timed
lock so you can just open the door and go in any time between 7 and 7 every day.
(45:37):
So we have people that are in and out of there all the time making food donations, which
is huge.
And if you're ever wondering what we need, we have a list on our website of what we
need because we can get certain things from the Greater Boston Food Bank.
So there are other things that we don't get from them that we ask for from the public.
So for example, we can often get peanut butter from the Greater Boston Food Bank, but we
(46:02):
can't get jelly.
So we ask for jelly, but not peanut butter.
And we still use the peanut butter that people donate.
Don't get me wrong.
We'll gladly accept it.
But there are just things that if people want to be more intentional about their food donations,
we have a suggested list on our website.
Yeah.
I mean, I would imagine getting lots and lots and lots of something that you already have
(46:23):
but not getting anything of other things.
I've also heard that sometimes food pantries need things like toiletries and things like
toilet paper and those kinds of things too.
It's not going to just be food.
Yeah, absolutely.
We give out toilet paper, tissues, toiletries, and baby products too.
(46:46):
Diapers are a huge, huge thing in formula.
And also feminine hygiene products too are another thing that we like to give out when
we have them.
Right.
Well, those are good to know.
It's good to know.
So, well, that is all the time we have for today.
I want to thank you so much for being here and telling your story and really making the
(47:11):
theme of today about compassion.
My hope is, like I said, I hope that when folks hear the episode that they will be moved
to do something to take an action and to help.
So just thanks again.
Thanks so much for being here.
Thank you.
This was a great conversation.
I really appreciate it.
(47:32):
Thank you so much for having me.
And to our listeners, whether you hear us locally from the BTV studios in Bedford, Massachusetts,
or across the globe on such podcast channels as Spotify, Apple Podcast, or Amazon Prime,
thanks for listening.
We hope you enjoyed this episode and we'll see you next time.
Be storytelling.
Welcome to the Starfish Storytellers, the podcast that makes a difference one story
(00:04):
at a time by bringing storytelling to life.
So a few years ago, actually more than a few years ago now, it's probably about 20 years
ago, I attended a volunteer appreciation brunch for people helping people, which is the organization
(00:31):
I now work for.
And I remember the keynote speaker said something that really stuck with me.
He was a police commissioner, and I wish I could tell you his name.
I don't remember his name, I don't even remember what city he was a police commissioner for.
I think it was Boston, but I don't want to, I'm not totally sure.
(00:52):
But I remember him saying that something he always tells his new recruits is when you
walk into a situation, you meet a person no matter the scenario, lead with kindness and
respect and understanding, knowing that you don't know what they're going through, and
you don't know what their situation is, what their history is, you don't know anything
(01:16):
about them.
You know, and so that has always stuck with me still to this day.
And you know, it's been really kind of that feeling has been bolstered because a few years
after that, it was sort of flipped around on me because I have a 15 year old son and
(01:36):
he is autistic.
So he is pretty highly affected.
As time has gone on, we've realized like he's a person who won't be able to live on his
own.
He's, you know, he's pretty high needs individual.
And when he was a little kid, he would act out in public, you know, funny behaviors like
(01:59):
flapping his hands and things that people would turn, you know, turn their heads or,
you know, people looked at us a lot and sort of judged us.
And when I got over, you know, I have long since gotten over worrying about what people
think.
But it sort of made me realize that it doesn't matter what the situation is like you just
(02:21):
don't know, you know, people didn't know that he was that he had a disability and that
was why he was acting that way.
They just looked at us with judgment or not everybody, but some people did.
And so, you know, I've kind of come out of this that that sort of experience saying,
(02:41):
you know, that kid that's having a tantrum in public, I don't know their story.
I don't know what led to that.
This person that drove up to the food pantry, I don't know their story.
And I'm not in a place to judge them.
I'm just in a place to lead with compassion and kindness and understand that I don't know,
you know, what's going on with them, but I should help them.
(03:04):
And so that's that's my story.
(03:29):
Hello, my name is Leanna Henry and welcome to the Starfish Storytellers.
I'm the CEO of the Black Dog Group, a Markham and Project Management firm headquartered on
the east coast of the US in Quaint Colonial Bedford, Massachusetts.
I'm your host and passionate about storytelling.
I'm actually on a mission to raise up the next generation of storytellers.
(03:49):
We've named ourselves the Starfish Storytellers after the Starfish Story.
The moral of the Starfish Story is based on the power of one.
No matter how big the challenge, each action we take makes a difference and has an impact.
One step, one starfish or one story at a time.
Every episode we welcome a new storyteller who will share their story meant to inspire
(04:09):
and connect with you.
Then we'll break it down and offer tips for any listeners who are ready to tell their
own stories.
So thanks for tuning in.
Now let's get started.
Today's episode is about changing the narrative of local hunger, a community pantries battle
against food insecurity.
And with me is Julie Lewis, senior pantry manager at People Helping People.
(04:31):
People Helping People is a non-profit organization in Burlington, Massachusetts that oversees
the Burlington Community Food Pantry, the Burlington Covenant for Basic Needs, and the
Holiday Program.
As the senior pantry manager, Julie often has to share the realities of local hunger
and food insecurity across social media, during community engagement events, when guiding volunteers,
(04:55):
and when speaking publicly, which is no simple task.
So thank you for coming in to chat with us, Julie.
We're really happy you're here.
Thank you for having me.
I'm excited to be here.
So we like to get started every episode by having our guests introduce themselves a little
bit more.
So would you mind telling us our listeners a little bit more about you?
(05:16):
Sure.
Thank you.
Yep.
So my name is Julie Lewis.
I grew up in central New York, Ithaca area.
Ithaca is gorgeous.
And I moved to the Boston area with my husband about 20 years ago, and he got a job out here.
And then shortly after that, I attended culinary school at the Cambridge School for Culinary
(05:40):
Arts, and I have worked in food service and food service management for years since then.
I have three kids, 15.
My son is 15.
My daughter, middle daughter is 12, and my youngest is three.
He's also a girl.
And I love to, I'm a musician.
(06:02):
I love to play piano and sing.
I play the ukulele.
I sing in my church's band, and I have a lot of hobbies, but I'm especially passionate
about gardening.
So I have a huge vegetable garden, and I'm also passionate about cooking and baking,
you know, seeing as how I went to pastry school.
(06:24):
So yeah, that's me in a nutshell.
Wow, that sounds amazing.
I'm going to ask you some questions about your journey in a few minutes, but I just wanted
to thank you for sharing your story with us.
You know, I think it's important to have sort of for the lesson of compassion and to be sharing
(06:46):
that important lesson wherever we go.
You know, I think it sounds like, you know, at first it must have been hard to have, you
know, being out in public with a child with special needs and other people really not
understanding your sort of your journey, what he needs, what your struggles might be, what
(07:10):
challenges you face, how you're overcoming, like, you know, that's a snapshot in time
in that moment.
And, you know, and I think clearly you're carrying that compassion into your role as
pantry manager right now at the Burlington pantry, the Burlington food pantry.
(07:30):
You know, I know for a fact that, you know, for a lot of folks, local food pantries really
are a lifeline.
And y'all are the frontline heroes against the war on hunger and really just existing
in the community to ensure that people don't go hungry, you know, in an increasingly changing
(07:51):
economic environment.
The ability of local food pantries to provide for those experienced hunger is getting more
and more challenging.
I've been doing a lot of reading about it.
And nonprofit food pantries are continually trying to build outreach programs for families
that might be struggling or individuals who might be struggling.
Some folks might have known hunger for generations while some are just starting to rely on this
(08:14):
assistance for the very first time, not ever expecting that they would become hungry.
And you know, it's through food donations, financial contributions and grants that local
pantries are able to operate and offer.
Just that little bit of hope that just such a basic need can be cared for.
(08:34):
Do you have any thoughts on that?
Yeah, absolutely.
And you know, thank you so much for saying that about, you know, some individuals have
known hunger for generations.
And then there are some people who are just, you know, kind of realizing that they need
help for the first time.
And both situations are tough, but we, it doesn't matter the situation, we want to help.
(08:59):
So yeah, we make sure to, you know, as I mentioned in my story, like we lead with compassion
and that sort of starts at the top and we train our volunteers to always treat everyone
with kindness and respect.
You never know their story.
So you always want to treat everyone with respect and kindness.
(09:21):
And so we try to overcome some of those barriers of people feeling embarrassed, maybe to come
to the food pantry or being hesitant in some way by sort of upholding this reputation in
our community of being a place that people can come that is safe and that you're always
going to be treated with kindness when you come.
(09:44):
But yeah, we rely on financial contributions from individuals, from companies.
You know, we do get some grant money, but really it's those sort of, it's those regular
people that kind of send us money on, you know, we have some folks who contribute once
a month just as on a regular basis.
(10:05):
We really rely on that to keep the lights on, to keep, you know, we do have to purchase
some foods that we aren't able to get donated.
So it's really important for us to just on an ongoing basis to have that financial support
from the community.
Yeah.
And I think I was reading somewhere that the food donations are great.
(10:32):
But some, really the financial contributions give you an opportunity to be able to do more
on a whole different level.
Definitely.
And that those really do make a difference.
Yeah.
And it's not just, you know, because it's not just food that we do, we have other programs.
As you mentioned, we have the Covenant for Basic Needs where we support people financially
(10:54):
in hardship times.
So if they are facing a utility shutoff, for example, we have a program that can help
with that that we financially support.
And we have our holiday program.
So if we have the wish tree at the Burlington Mall and if there are wishes that aren't
purchased by the public, we use our funds to purchase them and make sure that all the
(11:16):
kids are getting their basic needs met as well as, you know, a couple of toys for the
holiday season.
And we do, we do backpacks.
We do the lunch program during the summer to feed kids who would normally get free lunches.
You know, all kids get free lunches, which is awesome.
But this all requires funding.
Right.
(11:37):
So, yeah.
Right.
You know, as we were talking, you know, we were looking at, you know, when this podcast
broadcasts and you start planning for the holidays pretty early.
We do.
We do.
Yeah.
So, you know, here in, we start in August, September.
(12:00):
So we start registering our families in October, but all the planning has to start before that.
So we are starting to collect, you know, non-perishable foods for Thanksgiving.
And we've already got our turkey allotment all planned ahead of time for Thanksgiving.
And you know, our wish tree committee is already has already met and is meeting again next week,
(12:26):
actually, because, yeah, this all takes a lot of planning and a lot of collaboration
for months ahead of time.
On average, and I don't know if you can share this information, but on average, about how
many families are you serving for Thanksgiving?
So last year, the Thanksgiving program gave out 141 turkey dinners.
(12:49):
So what we give, what our program does is we give out a frozen turkey and the sides.
So we give out fresh vegetables, fresh rolls and pie, and all the non-perishable, so your
stuffing mix and your cranberry and stuff like that.
We give that out to, we gave that out to 141 families last year.
So that was about 350 individuals that were impacted by that.
(13:13):
So that's, that's, that was an average year.
We've had years where we've, we've had as many as 170 to 180 families come for the Thanksgiving.
Only during the pandemic, we had more.
But yeah, about an average, 140 to 150 families.
That's a lot of dinners.
Yeah.
So it's a lot of dinners and a lot of coordination to get all that food into one place for them.
(13:38):
So yes.
Yeah.
And I would imagine that you are also meeting volunteers to help with that, sorting all those
meals and helping, I don't know, deliveries or, you know, being there to, you know, just
box up stuff.
Oh yeah.
Yeah.
This particular effort, the Thanksgiving one requires two days of volunteers prepping
(14:03):
and getting ready.
I mean, and we have people that sort the donations, check the dates, organize, count things to
make sure we have enough.
We have people that have to go out and shop if we don't have enough.
And then we have, you know, we have to have, we usually have a Cub Scouts group that comes
in and sorts the vegetables into bags so that everybody gets the right amount of green beans
(14:27):
and et cetera.
We have people who actually go around and shop with the families because the families come
in to pick out their, what sides they want and things.
So our volunteers will go around and shop with them.
We have to have all those, you know, thousands of pounds of turkeys that need to get moved.
(14:47):
So it's a big coordination, big coordinated effort.
And we get a lot of community help from different range of volunteers.
We have, you know, Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts that help.
And we often have a Girl Scouts group that comes in and helps as well.
So there's a lot there.
A lot of volunteers needed for sure.
Are the turkeys don't, I mean, I'm guessing the turkeys are donated.
(15:09):
Do you get them like corporations donate or like, where did the turkeys come from?
So in years past, we had the Rotary Club in Burlington that used to purchase and donate
the turkeys.
Now we are affiliated with the Greater Boston Food Bank.
So we're able to get turkeys from them.
(15:29):
Some years we haven't been able to get quite enough and so we'll have to purchase some
out of donated money.
But this year I know we have enough turkeys coming from them.
But what happens is we get a whole pallet of turkeys sometime in October.
We can't store that at the pantry.
So Wegmans actually stores the pallet of turkeys for us in one of their freezers for a month
(15:52):
until we come and get them.
And now the Rotary Club, they still help.
They bring their pickup trucks and move all the turkeys for us to the United Church of
Christ Congregational, which is where the turkey distribution is out of.
Because there's also not enough room at the pantry to do all that.
So there's a church space that we use.
(16:14):
Really does take a community.
It does.
Takes a village, absolutely.
Takes a village for sure.
So all right, well I'm going to pivot a little because we'll talk more about this in a minute.
But I wanted to hear more about your journey.
You know, I checked out your LinkedIn profile and you've worked in food industry, food systems,
(16:35):
food services in one way or another your entire career from restaurants to catering to food
market departments and now you're at the people helping people pantry.
So my question was, did it feel as though this was the next natural step for you along
the way as you have worked with food, your whole career has hunger and food insecurity
(16:56):
been something sort of you've had a heart for?
You know, what exactly brought you here?
Yeah.
Well, that's very intuitive of you because that's really, you described it very well.
That's really how it happened.
I mean, I've always been passionate about food and cooking and baking and I'm kind of
a natural manager.
So every job I've gone to, I've ended up being a manager in some form.
(17:19):
You know, most recently I was at Wegmans for several years as a department manager.
And yeah, I, but all this time as I've been working in food service, I was always volunteering
as one of the coordinators of that Thanksgiving program that we talked about as a volunteer
through that church, through my church.
(17:40):
And so when this opportunity came up at people helping people, it was perfect timing for
me.
It was actually kind of at the tail end of the pandemic and I had left my job at Wegmans
because I had my third baby and you know, it was just that the timing was that.
So I was just starting to kind of look at going back to work and this opportunity came
(18:04):
up and I mean, how it couldn't have been more perfect.
It was like meant to be, you know, I'm able to marry my, my expertise and knowledge in
food service with my passion for helping people.
It really feels right.
I've been there, you know, three years now almost and it has still feels right.
Feels like this is what I'm supposed to be doing.
(18:26):
So it's so important.
I think we spend so much, so many hours of every day working, you know, in our work.
Yes.
And it can be our professional work.
It can be our parental work.
It can be, you know, other kinds of work, personal work, but, but it's so important,
I think, to find purpose because then it's not work work.
(18:49):
Exactly.
Yes.
Right.
I feel the same way.
Absolutely.
Yeah.
Yeah.
So you have to, as you're in your role as the senior pantry manager, you, I mean, I've
seen you, I met you at the, at the Burlington Chamber of Commerce and so you are out there.
(19:10):
You're out there networking and, you know, you, to, you know, for fundraising purposes
or to just get the word out, you, you have to, you know, lead community engagement events.
Do you find that when people approach you to have a conversation that they might not
fully understand hunger and food insecurity?
(19:33):
And do you, do you find, as people talk to you, that there's sort of like a poverty stigma
attached to that?
Is there a way for us to work on changing those assumptions?
Yeah.
I mean, definitely.
You know, a lot of that kind of goes back to my story and I, and I share it all the time.
I mean, I share it with my volunteers.
(19:53):
I share it with people that I'm just meeting.
You know, I'm really kind of plugged into the nonprofit world now.
I have a lot of friends at other nonprofits.
I actually have a collaborative of nonprofits that I started called the Burlington Community
Collaborative where we meet regularly to kind of share resources and ideas and thoughts
(20:15):
and just to be able to understand what's going on in the other nonprofits in the area.
But anyway, you know, there is a stigma and, and I want more people to understand that
every story is different and that there are so many factors that can lead to someone needing
assistance and it could be long term.
(20:39):
It could be that generational like you mentioned earlier.
And it also could be just one little thing that happened.
It could be a job loss.
It could be an illness.
It could be, you know, somebody passed away, unfortunately.
And these, these really tough situations happen to regular people all the time.
(21:01):
And you know, so I, this is another story just real quick, but this was maybe a year
ago or so.
We had a client pull into the food pantry and she was driving a nice car, right?
And there was a technician there, our volunteers, it doesn't phase them.
They don't judge anyone, but there was a technician there working on something and he started
(21:26):
talking to everybody about, my goodness, why is this person with this nice car at the food
pantry that doesn't make any sense?
How, how dare they?
And you know, I had to say to him, you don't know what led to this person being here.
You just don't know her story.
Maybe she's just borrowing that car from a friend because she might not have her own
car or maybe she just lost her job and that was the car she was driving.
(21:50):
Maybe she's working on trading it in or maybe that's the only thing that she has a value
and she's going to continue to drive it because it's easier.
You know, maybe she's got kids that she needs to take them to school in that car.
You just don't know.
So just don't judge a book by its cover, you know, as they say.
You can't judge a situation because you don't know the background.
(22:12):
So that's why with the stigma piece, you know, that's why I'm always making sure that I do
my best and we do our best as a team to make people feel comfortable coming to the pantry
because we want them to know that we just treat them as regular people because that
could be us any day, you know.
(22:33):
My husband just got laid off from his job.
So you know, I could technically use the food pantry now based on our income.
It could happen to anyone.
So yeah, that's a great question.
Thank you.
I hope I covered the whole thing.
No, I think you did.
I think that, you know, it goes back to sort of how we started this episode, which is
(22:53):
about compassion and I think it goes back to, you know, humility, seeing things as they
are not how I think they should be because you really don't know someone's story.
So just like you said, you know, food distribution recipients can come from all walks of life.
(23:14):
I read an article that a pantry manager had written and she wanted to learn how to tell
the story of hunger in her community, but she didn't want to just focus on like data
and numbers.
She wanted to talk about the stories of people in terms of people about people and the stories
behind their hunger.
(23:34):
So like you said, I'm guessing you help a variety of families and individuals that
perhaps folks may be surprised to know utilize the pantry.
You know, what what are the top of mind?
Like, you know, what types of folks like who's who's out there in the community using the
pantry?
Yeah.
I mean, there's a wide range of people using the pantry.
(23:55):
We have, you know, we have a good a good number of our folks are seniors who are on a fixed
income and they just can't make ends meet with their income.
We have a lot of families with children that come to the pantry.
We have we have quite a few people who actually this is a great story that that I've learned
(24:16):
about recently, one of our volunteers was was previously a pantry client and she told
me her whole story recently and I was just blown away.
I had no idea, you know, she's in a successful career now.
She's remarried since that happened.
And but she was put in a terrible situation because her husband unfortunately became addicted
(24:40):
and basically used up all their savings, all the kids money that they had saved even took
the last of the money out of their safe and stole it, you know, because he he was suffering
from a terrible addiction.
And she was left with nothing with two kids to take care of.
And she had to basically just start at ground zero.
(25:01):
And she used the pantry for a couple of years until she got back on her feet.
And now she's, you know, a well known person in our community who has a career that you
would have never guessed, you know, she's got her feet under her.
And she's now a volunteer.
And like I said, I never knew I didn't even know that.
And I've known her for years.
(25:22):
So it's really it's it's really amazing.
Like it's all walks of life.
It's all people that could be in the situation.
It could be anyone.
Yep.
Yep.
And those are, you know, those are people that, you know, I can say I I've used a pantry
before I was recently divorced and I I was running a newspaper magazine company and we
(25:56):
had to shut down.
And right when we had to shut down, I was renting an apartment and the landlady it was
a it was a duplex and her family lived on one side and she lived somewhere else and
she decided she wanted to move back into the other half of the duplex so she could be close
to her grandkids and she asked us to move out.
(26:17):
And so here I was like, you know, now I had to figure out what happens next, you know,
and I have I had three kids, you know, very young school age kids.
And I was what do I do now?
And I had gone to a church in my town at the time and I was talking with the main pastor
(26:37):
and she's like, oh, we have a pantry here.
And she literally took me in the back and there was like a scout troop or something having
a meeting and she shot a shoot them off into another room.
And she took me to the pantry and she got a bag and she just like started filling it.
And I was so grateful because in that moment, you know, I was in a really difficult situation
(27:02):
and I, you know, and I'm and I think do you find because I found in that moment I was
grateful for the help.
But I was I felt a little like I shouldn't be here.
Like I should be leaving this for someone else.
Like I shouldn't be taking this because, you know, I just was just running a company and
now I'm, you know, and now I got to find a place to live and I don't have income.
(27:26):
And I don't, you know, oh yeah, you're not alone in that.
I hear that all the time.
Really?
I mean, I want to note the first sort of first couple of months that I started working at
the food pantry, a woman came in actually a woman and her boyfriend came in and they
were living out of their Jeep because they just had suddenly lost everything.
(27:49):
Both of them lost their jobs.
It was just, you know, just a compounding set of circumstances and all of a sudden they
found themselves homeless.
And she walked in and she was just sobbing because she was coming in asking for help
and she was like, I'm usually the one helping people.
I'm usually the one donating and volunteering my time.
And I just feel really wrong coming in and asking for help.
(28:12):
And that was that was the first time I remember using that sort of mindset of comforting people
and saying, we're here for you right now, you know, and maybe down the road when you
get your feedback under you, you can come and volunteer and you can be the one donating.
But we're all, we're all in a different place in our life at different times.
And right now you're the one who needs help and that's why we're here.
(28:34):
So please like, don't feel bad.
We have plenty of food to share.
Please like, let us help you, you know, and I mean the number of tears that have been
shed in the office at the food pantry for that reason, people feel like that.
I say the majority of people don't want to ask for help.
They just they're forced to.
(28:55):
They have to preserve what they have, you know, sometimes it's it's an actual hunger
situation where they're really, they really don't know where their next meal is coming
from.
But then there's also just the ongoing sort of need like, okay, I need to balance my
budget and I can't afford food and, you know, SNAP benefits don't have, don't aren't enough
(29:17):
to cover everyone in my family for the whole month.
So I need a little bit of supplement to keep the books balanced.
So there's both, there's both there, you know.
But yeah, it's it could be anyone and and some people come only a couple times and and
some people come for years.
(29:38):
Yeah.
You know, and that's that's fine, whatever they need, we were there for them.
I read somewhere some number like 40% of Americans and maybe this was a couple of years ago were
like one missed paycheck away from like needing assistance.
Like, yeah, because I think we're in a tough we're we've been in a tough economic environment
(30:06):
for some time, especially during COVID and so many people lost their jobs and so many
people were impacted by illness.
And there was just so much of that.
And we'll talk in a minute about sort of the actually that's my next question that I in
addition to that number, I also read that the need for food pantry services during the
pandemic just was like right through the roof, very sharp rise, like a really significant
(30:31):
number like 95% of food distribution recipients, there was an increase, you know, for food distribution
recipients.
Was was that your experience as well?
You were there after COVID though, right?
I was there after COVID but but I know I mean, I, I have heard about how it was and we've
(30:51):
kept some of the sort of the model of how we operate now.
Just then but but yes, there was, they had to suddenly pivot and how they operated because
of social distancing, but then also just that enormous increase in people using the food
pantry because so many people lost their jobs and so many people were ill.
(31:12):
And where were the donations coming from?
With donations also kind of went up at that time too.
You know, a lot of people who were in a position to be generous were more generous at that time.
And more grant money came out came out of the woodwork.
We were able to get some Massachusetts grant money to help us through that time.
(31:33):
So so that luckily the sort of the community rose with the rose to the challenge in terms
of getting taken care of people and in at least in that realm, you know, I have no opinions
about other things that happened at that time.
But you know, the food pantry in our case was taken care of thankfully, but it was a huge
effort, you know, a lot of volunteers stepped away because, you know, of fear and not, you
(31:58):
know, social distancing and not wanting to be there.
Or they got sick or whatever it was.
So it was a huge challenge for the staff at the time.
And in the staff was smaller than it is now.
So I really feel for for them, it was quite an experience from my understanding.
But you know, we continue to see the need even increasing now, it's kind of it kind
(32:23):
of leveled off quite a bit went down significantly as people went back to work and stuff.
But then we've seen a kind of an increase really gradually, but significantly over the
last year or so.
Over a year ago, the COVID era snap benefit increase was was eliminated.
(32:44):
So that was one factor.
And yeah, that was probably a year and a half ago now.
And we definitely see a saw sharp increase in usership when that happened, where people
had had were brought to the maximum of what their snap benefit could be.
Just should I explain what snap is just yeah, quick.
So snap is the is the supplemental nutrition assistance program.
(33:09):
So it's it's basically what used to be called food stamps.
So that's what people get to they get from the government if they're within a certain
income to feed their family.
And usually it's it's a it's supposed to be supplemental, you know, that's what it's
called.
So it's not enough to really buy groceries for your whole family, but it's enough to
(33:30):
help a little.
That's why people we encourage people who use snap to also come to the food pantry because
we're also supplemental.
So hopefully they can put it all together and have enough.
But so at the during COVID, the snap benefit was brought up to the maximum for any for
every family based based on just the family size.
(33:51):
So they were there were no deductions taken out for whatever they take deductions out
for now.
And then back in March of 2022.
Yeah.
No, 2023.
Sorry.
That that extra COVID benefit was taken away.
(34:12):
It ended because the emergency was over.
So then there were a lot of families who had been getting, you know, say $120 a month now
dropped back down to say $70 a month.
So that was tough for people.
So we saw a lot of people kind of register or come back to the pantry at that time.
And then, you know, since then we've just seen and I and I actually think it's a it's
(34:34):
a combination of the the the economy being tough right now with cost of goods and things.
And also word of mouth and just the outreach sort of efforts that we've made because we
know there's a lot of need out there that wasn't being met before.
So we've made a big effort in recent probably over the last two years or so to really get
(34:56):
out into the community.
As you mentioned, like, you know, the executive director Jim and myself are out networking
spreading the word that we're there.
I go to the schools.
I have a great relationship with Burlington Public Schools.
So we're we're making sure people know and are referring people to us as needed.
And so we've seen a lot of increase in usership over the last year or so.
(35:22):
And yeah, so we're, you know, again, like it's it's just oh and what I was going to say,
backing up was that because the economy is what it is and it's so hard for people to
make ends meet, like you said, some people are just one paycheck away from, you know,
having trouble paying their mortgage or whatever or their rent.
(35:47):
Our guidelines for using the food pantry, we use the MassGood neighbor energy guidelines,
which is more closer to actually the median income.
So a lot of people might not even realize, but they could qualify based on their family
size to use the food pantry.
And we so snap benefits, they use a different guideline, they use the USDA guideline, which
(36:11):
is closer to the it's, I believe, 30 or 40% of the federal poverty limit.
This is a much higher cap.
So people who may not qualify for a snap because their income is too high, they still might
be able to use the food pantry.
So we're trying to spread the word about that too, because if they're just having trouble
making ends meet, or they are maybe one paycheck away from losing, you know, their rent or
(36:34):
their whatever it may be, not being able to make a utility payment, they may be able to
get help that they don't realize is out there.
So no, it's great to know because I think you're right.
I don't think people understand.
Again, that poverty stigma, I think people just maybe don't understand that it's it's
not just that's not the only reason that you exist.
(36:56):
You know, that it's about helping.
Yes, absolutely.
Yeah.
Yeah.
We had, you know, you have to do a fair amount of community engagement for fundraising and
to get the word out to potential donors, right?
And you know, we had recently broadcast another podcast where we were talking about donor and
(37:17):
fundraising stories and how, you know, nonprofits are constantly looking for innovative ways
to inspire donors and storytelling has the power to touch hearts and evoke empathy.
Fundraising storytelling especially is powerful for igniting emotions, fostering connections
and driving impactful contributions.
(37:40):
When you are out networking or during engagement events or even guiding volunteers, do you
have the opportunity to tell stories about the ways that the pantry is making a difference?
Yeah, definitely.
You know, I we've definitely sort of over the last couple of years, like I mentioned,
(38:04):
the executive director, Jim and I have been trying to really work on that fundraising
piece as far as how to get the messaging out to people.
And we have started kind of sharing stories more, you know, we have a wine tasting fundraiser
in February and at the last one, I got up and said a few things and I shared a story
(38:29):
about one of our clients who had recently removed herself from a domestic abuse situation.
And you know, I kind of told some details about without any identifying factors, obviously,
about how she had left everything behind with her two boys and just got out of there, had
(38:51):
to, you know, disappear from the map and just started at zero.
And she had come into the pantry after a few months of using the pantry and we'd also given
her holiday help.
And she she used the wish tree for her kids is what I mean.
(39:12):
And she came in and just sat down in the office.
Could we gotten to know her a little bit at this point?
We talked to her a lot.
She's really, really nice lady.
And she started just tearing up and just said, you guys absolutely saved my life.
And she wasn't, you know, she was being literal and figurative about that.
(39:32):
She was like, you know, you fed my kids, you made it.
So I had a safe space to come to where I could, you know, talk and be be myself and not be
not feel because she was living in a state of fear at that time.
And her life had really gotten turned upside down.
So, you know, I shared that story with with the audience at our fundraiser.
(39:58):
And that's the kind of thing that we want to do more of because we know that once people
hear that these are relatable people and individuals, they understand that we need,
you know, we need donations to support, keep supporting folks because there's going to
be another person walking in the door next week and the next week and the next week is
(40:19):
just that that's life.
And that's just the reality.
Yeah.
And messaging, you have to be careful, obviously, because of the identifying information and
confidentiality and all of that.
But I think you're right.
I think being able to humanize what you do instead of just they're just clients, they're
(40:42):
just recipients, you know, these are real people with these real stories.
Yeah.
And these journeys that got them here and that this could be this incredible stepping
stone for them along the way.
Yep, definitely.
I couldn't have put it better.
So, yeah, for sure.
Yeah.
So, you engage with community, other groups, I mean, you know, corporations or donors,
(41:08):
everyday individuals can be donors, other organizations like scout organizations or,
you know, other nonprofits or other, you know, church groups and things like that might be
donors.
All the types of events that you're doing, which ones do you find are most impactful?
I know that you have a game show style event coming up very soon.
(41:32):
So how's the planning going with that?
Oh, it's good.
It's going to be a really fun event.
So we decided we were sort of brainstorming because we had our one big fundraiser each
year, which was the wine tasting I mentioned.
And then we would do a couple of sort of smaller ones like raffles and things.
But we really need to keep with that fundraising cycle every year.
(41:55):
So we were trying to come up with one for the fall time that would be more community-based.
So one of our fabulous board members who's been with the board for many, many years,
Janet, she's awesome, I love her.
And she came up with this idea.
She was like, I woke up in the middle of the night and I had this idea in my head.
(42:16):
And so we just went with it.
It's called Burlington Feud.
And the idea is that we want to bring the whole community together.
So we're bringing in teams from different boards and committees throughout the town.
Is this going to be like a family feud?
Yes.
Oh, OK.
So it's like family feud.
(42:37):
And the teams that consist of Burlington sort of people that know, you know, that are
recognizable in Burlington.
So we have a team from the police department.
We have a team from, we have the select board as a team and the school committee.
So people like that, you know, so recognizable people.
And they're going to compete against each other.
(42:58):
And you know, it's just supposed to be a friendly, healthy competition.
And then there'll be dinner and we have a lot of raffle items.
So we're hoping that this will be sort of our other big event-based fundraiser, just
like the wine tasting that we have in February, which is huge and always sells out.
It's at Cafe Esca Drill, very popular and has been going on.
(43:20):
I believe this will be maybe our twelfth year doing it.
Well, eleventh or twelfth, yeah.
So it's been going on a long time and it's so popular.
So we're hoping that this one gets to that point too.
This is our first year.
So we'll see how it goes.
I think it's going to be great.
Well, it'll be fun, I think, because you said it's like a family-focused, family-fun
one.
So that's going to be...
Yes.
(43:40):
Kids are welcome.
So that's going to be a family's there.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Absolutely.
And then they'll be able to see the people they know.
Do you have any like, do you have any teams from like schools?
Yes.
Like teachers coming in today?
We do.
We have a Burlington Public Schools team.
So...
The kids will definitely recognize those folks.
Yep, yep, exactly.
Oh, that's so fun.
Well, good luck.
I hope that...
(44:01):
You know, is the goal...
You know, and how is that going to work?
Is it people who participate, bring food donations or financial contributions or something like
that?
It's a ticket-based.
Oh, okay.
So they'll buy a ticket for the event.
They get the show.
They get to see the show and then the dinner is included in the ticket price.
And then we'll also have raffles to sell so they can buy raffle tickets there.
(44:24):
And that'll hopefully bring in extra income for the event.
Nice.
Yeah.
Oh, I wish you luck on that.
That sounds fun.
Thank you.
That sounds fun.
So my hope is that once folks hear this episode that they will be moved to...
Donate or volunteer.
If folks wanted to get involved, what should they do?
(44:48):
The first place to go would be our website, peoplehelvingpeopleinc.org.
And that's going to show you what volunteer opportunities we have.
We have a form on our new website, which by this time should be published.
It's so close.
And you can fill out the form and kind of indicate what you're interested in doing in
(45:12):
terms of volunteerism.
Or you can always make a contribution.
Of course, we always welcome that.
Or food donations are also important, non-perishable, unexpired, non-perishable foods.
We have a donation center at our location at 21 Murray-Avon Burlington that's on a timed
lock so you can just open the door and go in any time between 7 and 7 every day.
(45:37):
So we have people that are in and out of there all the time making food donations, which
is huge.
And if you're ever wondering what we need, we have a list on our website of what we
need because we can get certain things from the Greater Boston Food Bank.
So there are other things that we don't get from them that we ask for from the public.
So for example, we can often get peanut butter from the Greater Boston Food Bank, but we
(46:02):
can't get jelly.
So we ask for jelly, but not peanut butter.
And we still use the peanut butter that people donate.
Don't get me wrong.
We'll gladly accept it.
But there are just things that if people want to be more intentional about their food donations,
we have a suggested list on our website.
Yeah.
I mean, I would imagine getting lots and lots and lots of something that you already have
(46:23):
but not getting anything of other things.
I've also heard that sometimes food pantries need things like toiletries and things like
toilet paper and those kinds of things too.
It's not going to just be food.
Yeah, absolutely.
We give out toilet paper, tissues, toiletries, and baby products too.
(46:46):
Diapers are a huge, huge thing in formula.
And also feminine hygiene products too are another thing that we like to give out when
we have them.
Right.
Well, those are good to know.
It's good to know.
So, well, that is all the time we have for today.
I want to thank you so much for being here and telling your story and really making the
(47:11):
theme of today about compassion.
My hope is, like I said, I hope that when folks hear the episode that they will be moved
to do something to take an action and to help.
So just thanks again.
Thanks so much for being here.
Thank you.
This was a great conversation.
I really appreciate it.
(47:32):
Thank you so much for having me.
And to our listeners, whether you hear us locally from the BTV studios in Bedford, Massachusetts,
or across the globe on such podcast channels as Spotify, Apple Podcast, or Amazon Prime,
thanks for listening.
We hope you enjoyed this episode and we'll see you next time.
Be storytelling.
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