Local food banks/pantries

[bae]

Washington State has income guidelines for its Food Bank programs:

https://cms.agr.wa.gov/WSDAKentico/D...Guidelines.pdf

Roughly 1/2 the households on my island qualify. The cutoff income for a 1-person household is $60,240/year. I would qualify, as I deliberately keep my income well below this. I do not use the local Food Bank myself, both my parents do/did, as their income is entirely from their Social Security, and falls below the line easily.

To sign up, individuals must self-declare that their household income is at or below 400% of the Federal Poverty Level and that they are in need of food. They must also state their name, address, and household size, and reside in Washington State. Proof of income, ID, social security number, or immigration status is not required.

Our local food bank doesn't seem to think many people are abusing the system. I am aware of some specific cases of abuse, I think I have commented on the common one here in the past: mainland "visitors", usually 20-somethings, wearing $2k of top-end camping clothing/gear, asking "so, where's the food bank here?". Traveling grifters from outside the community. Over half of the monetary and food support for the Food Bank's operations here come from private donations by community members.

When my Dad first arrived on the island a few years ago, he initially was donating to them the value of the food he was receiving, as he was raised in a time/place that made it seem a moral failing to accept any sort of "public assistance". I have been tempted to do this myself, when I take Dad to the food bank's facility, their produce is often much nicer than what is available right across the street at our main grocery store.

In my community, I think what little abuse there is is indeed "bycatch".

[iris lilies]

Washington State has income guidelines for its Food Bank programs:

https://cms.agr.wa.gov/WSDAKentico/D...Guidelines.pdf

Roughly 1/2 the households on my island qualify. The cutoff income for a 1-person household is $60,240/year. I would qualify, as I deliberately keep my income well below this. I do not use the local Food Bank myself, both my parents do/did, as their income is entirely from their Social Security, and falls below the line easily.

To sign up, individuals must self-declare that their household income is at or below 400% of the Federal Poverty Level and that they are in need of food. They must also state their name, address, and household size, and reside in Washington State. Proof of income, ID, social security number, or immigration status is not required.

Our local food bank doesn't seem to think many people are abusing the system. I am aware of some specific cases of abuse, I think I have commented on the common one here in the past: mainland "visitors", usually 20-somethings, wearing $2k of top-end camping clothing/gear, asking "so, where's the food bank here?". Traveling grifters from outside the community. Over half of the monetary and food support for the Food Bank's operations here come from private donations by community members.

When my Dad first arrived on the island a few years ago, he initially was donating to them the value of the food he was receiving, as he was raised in a time/place that made it seem a moral failing to accept any sort of "public assistance". I have been tempted to do this myself, when I take Dad to the food bank's facility, their produce is often much nicer than what is available right across the street at our main grocery store.

In my community, I think what little abuse there is is indeed "bycatch".

is your father on a SNAP program?

I asked ChatGPT to run a scenario where a single senior citizen (like me) earning $30,000 a year from Social Security income ( like me) in a single person household could get on Washington SNAP benefits. CHAT says I wouldn’t qualify because my housing costs are too low. For housing costs I can count only utilities. I don’t have a mortgage and I don’t pay rent.

I understand the SNAP program is different from this temporary food assistance/food bank program we’re talking about here, but it’s all related.

[bae]

TEFAP, which is what my food-bank posting above was about, is not SNAP, different programs.

My understanding is that the Federal TEFAP budget was cut significantly a few months back, April I think. The USDA also cut the program that funds schools purchasing food from local farms, which I think caused some issues locally.

[iris lilies]

TEFAP, which is what my food-bank posting above was about, is not SNAP, different programs.

My understanding is that the Federal TEFAP budget was cut significantly a few months back, April I think. The USDA also cut the program that funds schools purchasing food from local farms, which I think caused some issues locally.

yes I know they’re different programs. I’m curious how SNAP and the temporary food bank program intersect.
I could see situations where people don’t qualify for SNAP, an ongoing food supplement benefit, but would qualify for temporary emergency food thru TEFAP.

edited to add: my state has a limit on TEFAP benefits and a recipient can only take food from a TEFAP food bank once a month, no more often

[bae]

The TEFAP qualifying income level is 400% or less of Federal Poverty Level. I think SNAP runs at 130% of poverty level.

Our food bank allows one visit a week, has special "quiet/slow" hours for senior citizens, and offers home delivery by volunteers for people who have trouble leaving their homes.

I find it interesting that in one of the wealthiest counties in the region, and #43 out of the ~3000 counties in the USA, we have so many people who qualify for, and use, our Food Bank. It also looks like about 6% of the people here are on SNAP.

Income, and wealth here are oddly distributed. Over the entire adult population, the distribution has two distinct "humps", with a big gap in between.

[Tybee]

Tradd, add me to the people who donated, thank you for the heads up! See it's headquartered in Geneva, where we used to go to church.

[Tybee]

We actually have a wood bank here, for firewood. I am encouraging my husband to go volunteer to cut wood with his chain saw. They are getting a splitter at cost from the hardware store. It just started up within the last year or so.
He just bought his third chainsaw (two need repair, and we decided to get a new one and repair the others, since they both broke after he just felled about ten trees in our meadow and he has to clean it up now) and I guess it would be like tithing on the new saw!

[rosarugosa]

There was a food drive here on Saturday. I was able to put together a nice bag to donate by shopping our storage shelves in the cellar. It made me think about how we have a life of such abundance that we can do this and not even feel an impact.

[happystuff]

We do a little bit of everything - monetary donations, food donations, etc. to a couple different local places. My grocery store also has the prepacked bags that someone else mentioned. I will do those when I see them.

[iris lilies]

There was a food drive here on Saturday. I was able to put together a nice bag to donate by shopping our storage shelves in the cellar. It made me think about how we have a life of such abundance that we can do this and not even feel an impact.

this is the time of year when Boy Scouts in this region do a food drive. They drop off to all households a brown paper sack with instructions to put food stuff in it and put it out for pick up on a certain date.