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More than a food pantry: SEMO Food Bank serves 70,000 individuals each month
SIKESTON — Each month the Southeast Missouri Food Bank in Sikeston provides food assistance to 70,000 individuals in the 16-county area it serves, distributing about 1 million pounds of food per month.
That’s a fact Sarah M. Garner of Sikeston said she didn’t know until she joined SEMO Food Bank in March as its chief advancement officer.
“I did not realize that in my area where I live there is such a need that 70,000 people a month need food assistance,” Garner said. “That was something that really spoke to me.”
Thinking that she wasn’t the only Southeast Missouri resident unaware of the need and all that the Food Bank offers, Garner said she wanted to increase community awareness.
“There are so many components to the Food Bank, and that’s what most people don’t realize, and we need them to know,” Garner said.
Heather Collier, donor relations manager for the Food Bank, agreed. She said the variety of services offered by the Food Bank is eye-opening to most people.
“A lot of people think the Food Bank is one big pantry, but it’s so much more than that,” Collier said.
The SEMO Food Bank is the Feeding America network food bank for southeast Missouri, serving more than 140 hunger-relief organizations. It’s also part of Feeding Missouri, a coalition of six food banks serving the state.
“This Food Bank was also founded by Joel Montgomery, and he started it back in 1985 so we really are vested in this community,” Garner said.
Many don’t realize the size of area the Food Bank serves, Collier said.
“It’s a lot of rural counties and a lot of places where people are spread out and hard to reach,” Collier said. “We have a lot of places that there’s not a lot of jobs or opportunities, and people are working minimum wage jobs. People are working and trying to do their best and provide for their families, and they just need help.
She continued: “It may be they don’t kneed help every month. Maybe they have an unexpected medical cost or their car breaks down, and so they have to get it fixed. It’s a resource for people who need it when they need it.”
SEMO Food Bank’s service area includes Bollinger, Butler, Cape Girardeau, Carter, Dunklin, Madison, Mississippi, New Madrid, Pemiscot, Perry, Reynolds, Ripley, Scott, Ste. Genevieve, Stoddard and Wayne counties.
“The Food Bank is so much more than the support we give to the pantries,” Garner said. “We’ve got the Backpacks for Friday program where we are partnered with 31 school districts. We bring food-filled backpacks and they are sent home with over 1,200 students so they are fed through the weekend during the school year.”
The Food Bank’s programs also provide food directly to senior citizens and veterans who don’t have enough to eat. It provides monthly boxes of food to eligible senior citizens.
“The boxes for the seniors is huge because good nutrition for the elderly is key,” Garner said. “The fact we can have these boxes that can supplement what they do on their own — and so many are on a fixed income — it’s a wonderful program to have.”
The Food Bank also has a patient pantry at Southeast Hospital, Garner noted.
“Patients who are identified with food insecurity at home are sent home with food, and the hospital connects them with the Food Bank and then can get them dialed into pantries in their area, or if they qualify for the SNAP program, they can help get them signed up to receive food stamps,” Garner said.
As much as it helps the community, the Food Bank itself has also been impacted by the pandemic and economy.
“We have a critical need, and it’s affecting us in two ways,” Collier said. “We have people who are living paycheck to paycheck and senior citizens who are on fixed incomes so we’re seeing more people needing help with food, and it’s costing us more to acquire food and get food here. We buy a lot of the food we distribute so we’re competing with grocery stores. The supply chain issues are also hitting us.”
Another major element is the effect of increased fuel prices, Garner said.
“Our fleet travels 10,000 miles every month so our costs have raised so much,” she said.
Collier noted the Food Bank does receive donated product from manufacturers, but the Food Bank still has to pay the freight costs to get the product here.
“We’re not paying for the product, but we’re still paying for the freight so gas prices hit us there, too.
I think people sometimes think we get all of this food donated, and we do and appreciate it; there’s still associated costs,” Collier said.
Because of these extra costs, donations are always needed and help tremendously, Collier and Garner said.
“Literally for every $1 that is donated, that helps buys four meals. So even a $5 donation can make the difference to 20 people,” Garner said.
Collier pointed out 97 percent of the Food Bank’s donations go back into its programs.
Garner noted a capital campaign by the Food Bank is also underway for an expansion of services by acquiring a second facility in Jackson, Missouri.
“Prior to COVID, we fed 60,000 people a month,” Garner said. “Then COVID hit, and that number when to over 90,000 per month because so many people lost their jobs and so many situational issues so we had to bring in additional food.
She continued: “What it did was highlight the fact that we’re not big enough if ever that was our normal capacity. This building and facility is not big enough to accommodate it. So we started looking at different opportunities and areas and it made sense to go north because Cape and Jackson is such a big area for us.”
The service numbers have gone down from 90,000 per month to 70,000 per month, Garner said. However, the Food Bank no longer receives COVID funds from the government to assist with the demand, and it’s also dealing with the inflation situation, she said.
Collier noted food banks having a hub or secondary location is very common for those that cover large areas.
Garner said one of the other elements of the Food Bank is to provide disaster relief, which is another benefit to having two sites.
“If there’s a tornado, like in Mayfield, Kentucky, we took lots and lots of water over there,” Garner said. “So, we always have to have enough product on hand to deal with disasters. By having two facilities, if one facility is affected, all of our eggs aren’t in one basket. We still would have the ability to function and distribute by having two operations.”
Having two locations also provides more room for volunteers, which are always needed, Garner and Collier said.
“We have over 5,000 senior boxes every month and all get packed by volunteers. A second location will that more efficient,” Garner said.
Both Garner and Collier said the Food Bank welcomes church groups, businesses, high school groups, sports teams or any organization to volunteer by packing boxes.
The Food Bank also offers open-volunteer days twice a month: 1 to 4 p.m. on the third Thursday of the month and from 9 a.m. to noon on the fourth Wednesday of the month.
Collier said the Food Bank’s website provides many different ways to get involved.
“People like to give,” Garner said. “People want to help other people, and supporting the food bank directly affects people’s lives.”
Those interested in helping can do so by making a tax-deductible contribution, donating food or volunteering. Visit SemoFoodBank.org for more information.
Food Bank Facts
In 2021, the Southeast Missouri Food Bank in Sikeston distributed 15.08 million pounds of food in 2021 while serving an average of 70,000 individuals each month.
Although serving fewer people than in 2020 during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the food bank spent $1.47 million dollars purchasing food, a 60 percent increase over 2020.
The food bank serves 16 counties in southeast Missouri, distributing food through a network of 140 partner agencies, mobile distributions and other programs such as Backpacks for Fridays and senior commodity boxes.
Other highlights from 2021 include:
• Providing monthly boxes of food to 5,350 senior citizens
• Partnering with 31 school districts to provide weekend backpacks of food to 1,200 students during the 36-week school year.
• Distributing 2.89 million pounds of fresh produce donated in part by local farmers and growers.
• Holding 372 mobile food distributions, each providing 200 families with nutritious food
• Completing 984 SNAP applications to link people to an important resource to obtain food on a regular basis. Every $1 of benefits provided in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program generates $1.70 in economic impact.
— Through May 15, Southeast Missouri Food Bank is partnering with Walmart and Sam’s Club the ninth annual Fight Hunger. Spark Change. Campaign. There are three easy ways to support neighbors in need: for every participating product purchased in store or online at Walmart.com or SamsClub.com, the supplier will donate the monetary equivalent of at least one meal (10 cents) on behalf of a Feeding America member food bank at Walmart and five meals (50 cents) at Sam’s Club, up to applicable limits; donate at checkout in stores or clubs or round up at Walmart.com; or donate at Feeding America’s Fight Hunger. Spark Change. campaign donation site at either www.FeedingAmerica.org/Walmart or www.FeedingAmerica.org/SamsClub.
Source: Southeast Missouri Food Bank