Letter From Kent

Wow, it seems like I just wrote one of these last month. I told a friend and a former work colleague last night over dinner that writing my letter monthly gives me new respect for guys like him who

wrote a column every day. Of course, he had the world news to serve as a thought generator and I need to try and stay focused on food. Speaking of food, those of you who know me well know that I seldom miss a meal. I know I will have dinner tonight, but I don’t know what it will be. One in four of our friends and neighbors are asking themselves not “What am I having for dinner?” Rather the question in their mind is “Am I having dinner at all.” It is hard to comprehend there is so much need in our area, but with housing, utilities, medical expenses, there simply is not enough money to go around. That is where our local food pantries come in. Throughout the four county area there are approximately 130 places where someone down on his or her luck can go to and get enough food to last them a few days. That’s right, I said a few days. Food pantries are not and have never been a substitute for the grocery stores. Food pantries are there to help their patrons through the rough patches and to supplement and support.

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A couple of months ago, I had the opportunity to address a local civic club to tell the Food Bank Story. I had one of those, boy I wish I would have said this, moments. We all have them one time or another. A gentleman posed the question, “Haven’t you heard that if you give a man a fish, you feed him for a day, but if you teach the man to fish you feed him for a lifetime.” I meekly replied that I had and mumbled some kind of response…….but as I got in the car to drive back to the office, this reply came to me and I thought to myself what I should have said is “Yes that is true, but our role is to keep that man from starving to death if the fish aren’t biting.” While our mission is not to teach the man to fish, we are taking some steps to give that hungry man a hand up and not just a handout. Recently we added several links to our website nwafoodbank.org to places where jobs are either being posted or being advertised. We feel if a client is looking to our web site to find places to get food, there may be a chance to help them find work if they need it. Another way we are helping that fisherman is to work with area colleges, technical and training schools to establish on site pantries to make nutrition readily available. It is a fact that students do not learn well if they are worried about where their next meal is coming from. So while we don’t want to lose sight that our mission is to help feed the hungry, through some collaborative efforts we can help get more trained fishermen out there and help make sure the fish are biting.

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Did you know that by combining our donations and our buying power, your dollar can provide five meals? I sure wish I could do that at home. I share this factoid to let you know your donation helps feed people no matter how small. We have a program that all ages of donors can participate in. My two granddaughters, Stella and Hattie, are 6 and 4. Recently I gave them a Food Bank piggy bank to decorate. They are to use it like any other piggy bank except that they want to give the money to Pops because he will use it to feed hungry people. They have asked Nana several times if she will bring them to where Pops feeds hungry people. I’m not sure they fully grasp how I do that and I fear they might be disappointed when they get here, but like showing children the big ole press at the newspaper, showing the girls our big ole freezer might allow me to save face. If you have young people in your life that would like to have a piggy bank for hunger, please give us a call and we can set you up.

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For those of you keeping track, I have just completed six (6) months here at the Food Bank. While I have learned a lot, there is so much more to learn. I’m blessed to have a committed board of directors to work with who give me the freedom to develop my ideas and the support necessary to see them through. I am blessed to have a staff who is patient with me when I ask the same question, “Why do we do it that way?” over and over. I am blessed to have the support of my family and friends when I start rambling about truckloads of potatoes or pallets of produce. I am blessed to have the support of two little girls who don’t exactly know what I do, but they know Pops feeds people and they want to help by giving me their nickels and dimes. And I am blessed to have the support of all you who do so much to help the Food Bank or one of the agencies in our fight against hunger. Thank you all for helping me transition into this role and I look forward to the journey of the future. Please, when you have some free time, stop by the NWA Food Bank. I would love to give you a tour of our facilities.

Thank you for your continued support.

K