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Dayton Community Food Bank volunteers sort through boxes of food donations

Community Service, Vital Volunteers, & Generous People

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Dayton Community Food Bank volunteers sort through boxes of food donations

Dayton Community Food Bank volunteers sort through boxes of food donations

It takes a special kind of person to volunteer at the Dayton Community Food Bank.

But not so uncommonly unreal that everyday humans need not apply. Indeed, regular, compassionate, intelligent human beings are what keep the food bank, which has been in operation for more than 30 years, successfully reaching out to some 550 Columbia county residents — 160 households — every Tuesday.

Unobtrusive from the outside, the Dayton Community Food Bank houses an array of products within

Unobtrusive from the outside, the Dayton Community Food Bank houses an array of products within

“What are the requirements to be a volunteer?” muses food bank coordinator Laura Thorn. “Being professional and having commonsense are very important, as well as being physically able to meet the demands of a variety of situations — there is no heat inside the building where we work, so it can be quite cold. There is also a need for strong backs — we’re looking for people who can lift between 20 and 50 pounds or more.”

One of those heavy-lifting people is Dayton resident Clarence Bartlett, who read about the organization in the paper seven years ago and decided to give it a try. Every week, he drives to Walla Walla and loads up 1000 pounds-plus of fresh and frozen perishables — provided through cooperation with Blue Mountain Action Council — drives it back, and unloads it in time for the two-hour Tuesday distribution window.

“Clarence is extremely dependable, and we love working with him,” Thorn says. “He shows up, every week, right on time, just like clockwork.”

Bags of food at the Dayton Community Food Bank await weekly distribution

Bags of food at the Dayton Community Food Bank await weekly distribution

Dependable. There for the long haul. Steadfast and constant.

Also fulfilling these requirements is Aleta Shockley, president of the food bank board of directors, and volunteer of such long-standing that she can’t remember when she first began.

“I started out when the food bank was in the basement of the Dayton Hospital,” Shockley remembers. “They were independent and very small, but they grew as they built connections with other community service, ministerial, and city organizations.” From the hospital the food bank moved onto Main Street where the Washington State University Extension Office presently resides, then off to the fair grounds where they spent a memorable number of years contending with the climate.

Wenaha Gallery celebrates a canned food drive, for the Dayton Community Food Bank, every January

Wenaha Gallery celebrates a month-long canned food drive, for the Dayton Community Food Bank, every January

“It . . . was COLD!” volunteer Ruth Janes recalls. She was remembering the winter of 2008: despite five space heaters, the ink in the pens froze, as did some of the food.

The next move, to the old fire station space on First Street, adjacent to City Hall, is still a bit cool in the winter, warm in the summer, but this does not daunt volunteers who unload boxes, organize food items, transport food to cars using a couple rundown grocery carts that see regular and innovative repairs, and serve community clients. Janes, whose first experience at the food bank was that brutal winter, considers her present job to be one of the most satisfying of all:

“I give out the fun items to clients, things that they may not expect, like the chips, cookies, candy and such. These are the extra things that come in that aren’t necessarily necessities, but they make a difference.”

Making a difference is what it is all about, observes Shockley, who in addition to being there on Tuesday distribution days and serving as the president of the board, writes grants and works tirelessly with other organizations in the community to secure funds and contributions. Relatively new to the mix is the Grocery Rescue Program, spearheaded by Second Harvest Hunger Relief Network, which serves Eastern Washington and Northern Idaho. The non-profit organization arranges pick-up of unmarketable but usable food — fresh produce, dairy products, and deli meats — from participating grocers, that it then delivers to a network of food banks.

Wenaha Gallery's annual canned food drive for the community food bank

Wenaha Gallery’s annual canned food drive

It takes a lot of people, a lot of organization, and a lot of human kindness to run a successful food bank, and all of the volunteers agree on one thing:

Dayton is filled with generous, warm-hearted, giving people.

“People of the county are so good to donate to the food bank,” Janes says. “So many businesses, banks, churches, schools, scouts, and others sponsor food drives, not to mention all the individuals that donate EACH MONTH in consistent financial support.”

Shockley agrees, citing the efforts of local churches, school, civic groups, health care professionals, businesses, and the senior center in meeting needs. Several organizations, she adds, focus on working with the children of the area.

“Vacation Bible School kids during the summer have giving and service as part of their curriculum. Adults pile the kids into a wagon and they all come down to the food bank with their canned goods and financial gifts. They get a tour and they can ask questions and learn more.

“They are the future down the road who will be volunteering and giving.”

 

Wenaha GalleryWenaha Gallery conducts its annual Canned Food Drive, supporting the Dayton Community Food Bank, from now through January 31, 2017. For every canned or non-perishable food or personal care item donated, the gallery offers $2 off custom framing, up to 20% off the total order.

Contact the gallery, located at 219 East Main Street, Dayton, WA, by phone at 509.382.2124 or e-mail art@wenaha.com. Gallery hours are 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. from Monday through Saturday, and by appointment. Visit the Wenaha Gallery website online at www.wenaha.com.

To learn more about the Dayton Community Food Bank, or to provide financial support, contact Laura Thorn at 509.382.2322 or Aleta Shockley at 509.382.2137.

Wenaha Gallery is your destination location for Greenwich Workshop Fine Art Prints, professional customized framing, and original fine art paintings and sculpture by notable Pacific Northwest artists.   Books, gifts, note cards, jigsaw puzzles, and more are also available. Visit the gallery today!

This article was written by Carolyn Henderson and Lael Loyd.

 

Dayton Community Food Bank near city hall in Dayton, WA

It Takes a Village — or a Friendly Small Town — to Keep a Community Food Bank Full

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Dayton Community Food Bank near city hall in Dayton, WA

Organization doesn’t just happen. A dedicated group of volunteers is an important component to the success of the Dayton, WA Community Food Bank.

 

Community.

Before it became a television sitcom, the word was used, and overused, by businesses and organizations trying to infuse a sense of humanity into the corporate framework. Before all that, however, the word had a viable meaning describing a group of dedicated people who — in a small, friendly town sort of way — pull together to do good things.

In Dayton, WA, the Community Food Bank lives up to that cozy, friendly definition.

Dayton's Community Food Bank is located in the former fire station next to City Hall in Dayton, WA

Dayton’s Community Food Bank is located in the former fire station next to City Hall in Dayton, WA

“We are a volunteer organization with our own time and often money going into the system to keep it running,” Laura Thorn, director of the food bank, says. “We distribute food to clients whose income falls below 185% of the federal poverty level. We do this on Tuesdays, from 2 – 4 p.m., but besides all that, we need people to manage the accounts, order the food, schedule the volunteers, arrange the call lists, make the decisions, and keep the unit together.”

Volunteers do everything from sort and pack food to lift heavy boxes –(“We’re always looking for people who can lift weight to unload a monthly delivery truck on the third Wednesday of the month,” Thorn slips in) — and one dedicated couple cleans and guts fresh fish that the bank receives in the fall and spring through the Department of Fish and Wildlife.

“Many of us organize our life around Tuesday distribution day, taking vacations from Wednesday to Monday,” Thorn adds.

The thing about a community food bank is, not only are a lot of volunteers needed, but so is, quite naturally, a quantity of food. Serving between 140-160 households, representing up to 550 people, per month, the non-profit organization works in conjunction with federal, state, and local agencies, including the Blue Mountain Action Council of Walla Walla, which once a month sends the aforementioned truck with federal and state food supplies. Those supplies include 4,000 to 6,000 pounds of food — hence, the request for people who, literally, lift weight.

Winter squash provided by local gardeners to the Dayton, WA community food bank

Local gardeners, generous with their bounty, are an important part of the Dayton Community Food Bank.

But while agencies and organizations and boards are all part of the team, the “community” factor of the food bank is supplied by just that — the local people and civic groups who live in the area and care about their fellow residents who struggle to get food on the table.

“Many family gardeners share their food with us as a project,” Thorn says. “Last year we received strawberries and vegetables from local growers.

“Another family volunteers regularly with their two young daughters.”

Throughout the year, the Country Cupboard bakery donates surplus products; McQuary’s Grocery provides freezer space beyond what the food bank enjoys at its location in the former fire station next to City Hall; and many businesses and school organizations make a yearly tradition of gathering food.

“Food drives are particularly useful for us because they promote awareness and publicity in addition to gathering food,” Thorn says.

Laura Thorn, director of the Dayton Community Food Bank, keeps food and paperwork smoothly moving.

Laura Thorn, director of the Dayton Community Food Bank, keeps food and paperwork smoothly moving.

“We enjoy visits from Vacation Bible Schools every summer. Community events — like Dayton Mule Mania, the Wellness Coalition, Relay for Life, and Turkey Bingo — include us.

“In the fall, the Future Business Leaders of America did their major food drive, going door to door at Halloween, gathering 300 pounds of food.”

And coming up in January, Wenaha Gallery downtown embarks upon its 6th annual month-long food drive, which last year collected 550 pounds of food. While the gallery offers an incentive of $2 off framing for each can donated, (up to 20 percent off), gallery manager Lael Loyd says that many people are equally enthusiastic about adding to the growing display of food that the gallery features near the front window.

“They see the display in the window one afternoon, and the next day they’ve parked their car in the front and are bringing in cans,” Loyd says. “They’re really excited to see us as a convenient drop off point.”

Extra excited this year is gallery associate CJ Horlacher, who creates art displays throughout the year, and considers the aesthetic arrangement of disparate cans and boxes and bags a satisfying challenge. Thanks to another local grocery, Dayton Mercantile, Horlacher will have a shopping cart as part of this year’s display, and she is already running through ideas, none of which she will share early.

“It’s a surprise,” she says with a smile. “Even to me.”

Food is, obviously, one of the essential elements of life, and giving it to those who don’t have enough is an act about which one can feel good.

“Our goal is to provide a few days of balanced meals to enable our regular clients to afford some of their other basic necessities,” Thorn says.

“We are privileged to be part of a strong local base for funding and support.

“It takes a community working together to fight hunger.”

Wenaha GalleryWenaha Gallery’s 6th Annual Food Drive for the Dayton Community Food Bank runs from January 2 through January 31, 2015, and people may drop off non-perishable canned and boxed food, as well as personal care items such as deodorant or toothpaste, at the gallery, 219 East Main Street, Dayton, WA, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Saturday.

Contact the gallery by phone at 800.755.2124 or e-mail art@wenaha.com. Visit the Wenaha Gallery website online at www.wenaha.com.

Wenaha Gallery is your destination location for Greenwich Workshop Fine Art Prints, professional framing, and original fine art paintings and sculpture by notable Pacific Northwest artists.   Books, gifts, note cards, jigsaw puzzles, and more are also available. Visit at 219 East Main, Dayton; phone 509.382.2124; e-mail art@wenaha.com.

This article was written by Carolyn Henderson.