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At the Fredericksburg Area Food Bank yesterday, employees Lidia Slyke (left) and Susan Newton fill emergency baskets
RIGHT: Volunteers at the Cynthia Ellis (left) loads groceries yesterday at the Fredericksburg Area Food Bank, where recent hurricane-relief efforts emptied shelves. The charity received about $4,000 from Giant Food this week. |
By NATASHA ALTAMIRANO
Hurricane-relief efforts nearly depleted supplies at area food banks, but thanks to community response, agencies are restocking their shelves.
"This place was empty--there was no food," said Oya Oliver, executive director of the Fredericksburg Area Food Bank. "As soon as word got out, our local community responded. We're really grateful to them."
The food bank assists people in Stafford, Spotsylvania, Caroline and King George counties and the city of Fredericksburg.
The Blue Ridge Area Food Bank Network, which serves Charlottesville and the Shenandoah Valley, saw a similar decline in food and monetary donations during the first three weeks of September compared with the same time last year.
"We're afraid what we call the 'Katrina effect' might affect us and a lot of other nonprofits and food banks," said Mark Hackley, spokesman for the Blue Ridge food bank.
"I think the long-term effects are going to hurt the local people in Virginia, because there are only so many resources, and it leaves you with an extra need."
Balancing national and local demands for food is a concern, said Lynn Brantley, president and CEO of the Capital Area Food Bank in Washington.
"We have to keep our everyday operation going here--there's poverty here every day," Brantley said. "Meeting that need is our mission, so we have to remain faithful to that."
The three food banks are affiliated with America's Second Harvest, a national food-bank network.
Giant Food Inc. this week mailed out checks totaling $200,000 to nine food banks in the Mid-Atlantic region. The Fredericksburg food bank received about $4,000, the Blue Ridge food bank received about $9,700 and the Washington food bank received about $112,000, according to Giant spokesman Jamie Miller.
The money was raised during the grocery-store chain's Check Out Hunger campaign from July 10 to Aug. 31.
Still, food-bank officials stressed the need for ongoing donations.
"This place is full now, but we can put out 3,000 to 4,000 pounds by the end of the day," Oliver said, waving toward the shelves of food in the Alum Spring Road warehouse. "That could be depleted. It's an endless job--you constantly have to restock."
Oliver said there are hungry people to feed here year-round. In the summer, families with children eligible for free school breakfasts and lunches need extra help feeding their children. In the winter, seasonal workers seek help, and there's always an increased demand from Thanksgiving into the new year.
"The holiday season is going to be here before we turn around," she said.
Donations typically increase in the fall and around the holidays because there are more food drives. For instance, the Kids and Cans program will collect food in schools for the Fredericksburg Area Food Bank. In addition, The Free Lance-Star Cos. have a goal of collecting 20,000 pounds of nonperishable food for the nonprofit food bank by Oct. 22 as part of Make A Difference Day.
The Fredericksburg food bank is preparing for a holiday mailing campaign, Oliver said.
The Blue Ridge food bank also is gearing up for its largest campaign season and urgently needs donations, Hackley said.
But he remains optimistic about the public's ability to meet needs in the face of disaster.
"It seems like people always come through. It's kind of good to know in the back of your mind," he said.
Storehouse Ministries, a Christian organization in Fredericksburg that feeds between 2,000 and 2,500 people a week, has experienced outpourings of support.
The organization, across from the Fredericksburg Fairgrounds off Routes 2 and 17, collected water and nonperishable food to contribute to the Gulf states, but hasn't had problems meeting needs in town.
"It didn't impact the local supply," said the Rev. Charlie Olivieri, pastor of Promised Land Praise and Worship Center, who runs Storehouse Ministries with founder Ray MacAnanny. "God is good to us. The more we give, the more we get."
To reach NATASHA ALTAMIRANO:
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Want to donate? Storehouse Ministries, 2303 Airport Ave.; call for hours, 540/654-5281.Fredericksburg Area Food Bank, 1327 Alum Spring Road, 540/371-7666 or fredfood.org. Open 9 a.m.-4 p.m. weekdays. Also, drop-off bins are available at: Rappahannock Area YMCA, 212 Butler Road Bob Evans restaurant, State Route 3 (2305 Plank Road) Avery-Hess, Realtors, 774 Warrenton Road |
