The Palouse Food Bank (now the Palouse Food Pantry) serves the residents of Palouse, WA 99161 by providing supplemental food to those people in need. Palouse Food Bank is sponsored by the Council on Aging of Colfax, WA. Council on Aging provides a monthly commodity food allotment, special food distributions, arranges Second Harvest of the Northwest to bring food to Palouse and assists with transpo
rtation costs.
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A LETTER FROM OUR CO-FOUNDER
Dear reader,
The idea of a supplemental source of food in the city of Palouse was the result of learning of these appalling statistics; Palouse is remote, and for residents without vehicles it is difficult to access food banks in Pullman or Colfax. Last spring, I contacted Scott Hallett of the Council on Aging in Colfax, which supplies monthly commodity distributions to Palouse and other towns in Whitman County. Building on this model, Palouse Food Bank now provides supplemental food from Second Harvest of the Northwest in addition to a monthly commodity distribution. We are holding ongoing food drives through local religious centers, schools, and Boy Scout troops, and have donation bins throughout Palouse. We collaborate with many community organizations in the greater Palouse region, including WSU’s Center for Civic Engagement (CCE), Pullman Child Welfare, Project ACCESS, Palouse Cares, and others. Palouse Food Bank has a small but dedicated group of volunteers. The CCE in particular is an excellent source of volunteers and resources. In addition to direct alleviation of hunger through food assistance, Palouse Food Bank aims to provide other resources to help people manage their economic situations, specifically through education on food purchasing and the development of nutritious, appealing recipes from basic foods. One goal is to create meals for a family of four at a cost of less than $3.00. (Please see our project website, www.putfoodonyourtable.com, for sample recipes.) Some of the more stalwart members of our advisory board are actually attempting to create the reality of living on a $31.50-per-week food budget. These efforts have already increased awareness of what millions of Americans face daily, and are leading to collaborative work toward viable solutions. I have experienced hunger. I was a single parent with two teenage children and, for a number of years, fed my family on little more than eggs, peanut butter, milk, and oatmeal. I had no outside assistance from any social programs during this time. This lengthy experience of near-homelessness, cold, and hunger made me very aware of the need that is hidden in our society, especially in rural, remote areas like Palouse. Despite all of this, we managed to escape from the grip of poverty’s crippling effects. My daughter was one of the 2005 Pullman High School valedictorians and went on to graduate in the top ten percent of her class at Harvard. Other families, with help, can learn to manage as well. I appeal to you to support Palouse Food Bank’s efforts to fight hunger and hunger’s detrimental effects, especially on the young and very old. All monies will be used to: (1) purchase fuel to make runs to Spokane’s Second Harvest of the Northwest, which provides us with thousands of pounds of free food per trip, (2) obtain supplies for the storage of food, and (3) provide community outreach. All of this is directed toward the overall goal of providing relief to the most vulnerable citizens of Palouse: senior citizens, single mothers, and children. Palouse Food Bank’s mission is to alleviate hunger and its effects by providing supplemental food, educating the community, and generating awareness of possible solutions to this problem. Thank you very much for your consideration and concern for the community. Sincerely,
Annette Klover
Co-founder, Palouse Food Bank
