Food shelf needs a home - Vermont Foodbank

July 31, 2008

Food shelf needs a home

By Lynn Monty, Free Press Staff Writer

WILLISTON — Cans of tuna and boxes of macaroni have been multiplying in the living room of Williston resident Jill Lang. Recently elected as the new Williston Community Food Shelf president, Lang is looking for a permanent home for her collection.

Megaphones in hand, Lang and her family marched in the July 4 parade as an official food shelf campaign kick off .

“We yelled, ‘Let’s fill some vans with cans!’” Lang’s son Mark Lang said.

The hope is to appear in the parade every year, Jill Lang said, so people will know to bring food for the food shelf. This new food shelf will also serve St. George.

While working with her sons on a food drive for scouts, she realized Williston didn’t have a drop off location, she said. After probing the community, Lang found there was a high level of interest in creating one. An initial meeting was held June 18 where Joe Dauscher of the Vermont Food Bank announced, “If you build it, they will come.” That’s exactly what Lang intended to do.

“I got the ball rolling,” Lang said, “and everyone really got behind me. I wouldn’t have gone knocking on so many doors if I didn’t have this community support.”
A board of seven and a committee of 21 has formed. This team is visiting other food shelves to see how they operate.

“I know 10 percent of students at the Williston schools are on the free and reduced lunch program,” Lang said. “This figure is close to the Hinesburg figure and the Hinesburg food shelf serves 75 families a month.” The Hinesburg Food Shelf capital budget is about $18,000 per year, she said.

Lang has scheduled a visit to the Manchester Food Shelf to learn how they have created such a successful capital campaign with their local businesses. “Their budget is about $30,000 and they feed 150 families a week,” she said.

She plans to raise a capital budget of $10,000 by October. “We want to build a relationship with our businesses in Williston for yearly donations of any amount.”

The main concern is that members of the community could possibly have to choose between purchasing fuel or food this winter, she said. “We want people to use us. It’s hard to get rid of the stigma a food shelf carries, but this is a basic human need and we are here.”

Anyone in need is welcome, she said. Names and addresses are taken but no financial records are required. “We want to make our community stronger through community supporting community during these tough economic times,” she said.

Food comes to a food shelf through community donations, by buying it from the Vermont Food Bank at an average of 11 cents per pound or having a professional shopper find and buy what is needed.

“The food bank doesn’t always have what the community needs,” Lang said.

Through this process Lang learned the items she donated in the past were not as helpful as other items would have been. Cleaning out pantries and donating random items is not always best. “I could have been a smart shopper for the food shelf. They need protein items like peanut butter and tuna.”

Adam’s Farm Market has offered to let the Williston Food Shelf glean their fields. “We will go to the fields before they plow this fall and take as much as we can,” Lang said. “We need to build up a gleaning force.”

The most pressing need is finding a home. “We knew finding a space would be the hardest part, Lang said. “There is no room at all in Williston.”

The Williston Community Food Shelf is looking for a space of about 2,000 square feet, rent free. “We have no money right now,” Lang said. “The landlord will be able to write this off.”

Other needs include a chest freezer, refrigerator and shelving.

For monetary donations to The Williston Community Food Shelf, send to P.O. Box 1605, Williston, VT, 05495 or call 735-6303. To drop off food donations call 735-6303.

July 31, 2008

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