by Lindsay Fujimoto, Hunger-Free Pierce County VISTA
As a parent, imagine watering
down your family’s food in the hopes that it’ll last you until the next
time you can get to a food pantry or afford to get groceries. As an older
sibling, imagine trying to help your family by working
a part-time job on top of going to school and still not being able to
afford enough food. As a child, imagine going
to bed early to try to ignore your hunger. For over 122,000
people in Pierce County, including children, that is not their imagination.
That is their reality.
Families use these various coping mechanisms but are still
left wondering how they are going to make it through the month. The fact is
that that food insecurity is 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and it is
persistent. It does not go away just because you have to go to work during the
day, and it does not make itself known only during the hours the local food
pantry is open. Most food resources only operate for a limited amount of hours
per week, which is just a fraction of time that people might be hungry.
One woman in Arkansas started working to find a way to
bridge that hunger gap through Little
Free Pantries. Little Free Pantries are unique in that they provide a 24/7
solution to a 24/7 problem. Additionally, by installing Little Free Pantries throughout
the community, families who have difficulty accessing food—whether it be
because of work hours restricting their access to pantries, no transportation
to food resources, or a number of other barriers—now have an accessible local resource.
The United Way of Pierce County is working with our community partners to bring
this innovative and creative idea to Pierce County.
One of our hunger partners, Harvest
House, implemented the first Little Free Pantry in Pierce County. Harvest
House also houses the food pantry closest to the heart of Graham on Saturdays, with
the next closest food resource located nearly 3 miles from Graham. Realizing
the impact that a Little Free Pantry could have on their community, Harvest
House received an overwhelmingly positive response from their board,
volunteers, and supporters to start their own. This positive response quickly
translated into support for constructing the pantry and Harvest House’s Little
Free Pantry was up and running successfully soon after.
Harvest House’s goal for their Little Free Pantry is to
“ensure that some food is available 24/7.” To do so, they aim to provide
non-perishable proteins, snacks, and beverages. Sometimes, fresh produce like
apples, bananas, and oranges are added. Harvest House has also engages their
community in supporting the Little Free Pantry as they posted the phrase, “If
you need some food, please take some. If you have some to share, please feel
free to leave some,” on their pantry. The community in turn is very supportive
of the Little Free Pantry, and as such, actively add new donations to the
shelves.
Since Little Free Pantries are available 24/7 it can be
challenging to assess who is using it, but Harvest House have made observations
that indicate that they are reaching those in need. For example, individuals
who use public transportation, which is fairly limited in Graham, often have to
go far distances to get to their station. Some pedestrians will grab a bottle
of water and a bite to eat on the journey, a healthy and nourishing snack that
they may not have had otherwise.
The United Way of Pierce County is excited to join Harvest
House in their vision of ensuring that no person goes hungry. Looking to the
future, we are eager to get the ball rolling on installing additional Little
Free Pantries. We believe that in working together to implement innovative solutions
like Little Free Pantries, we can end hunger for the thousands of food insecure
individuals in our community.
To find out how to get involved in a Little Free Pantry project, email me at lindsayf@uwpc.org.
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