Food bank serves record number

As a middle-aged woman sits down in the lobby of the Missoula Food Bank with her son and neighbor, she picks up a clipboard and fills out the familiar questionnaire.

On the line provided for her reasons for using the food bank, she writes, "Unemployed."

"I got laid off two times," she said. "So for the past four months, I've been looking for another job but can't find one."

She's not the only one to walk through the doors of the nonprofit recently. In fact, one in seven Missoulians went to the pantry in 2011 to get a three-day supply of food. Last year, the food bank served a record 16,182 people, up 2.7 percent from the year before.

That increase reverses a decline in demand over the previous two years. From 2009 to 2010, the number of people using the food bank decreased 2.4 percent.

People also made more trips to the food bank last year, up 2,500 to 49,404 since 2010. By contrast, Missoulians made 3,500 fewer trips to the pantry in 2010 than they did in 2008.

Jessica Allred, community relations director for the food bank, theorizes that more people are using the food bank now that the federal stimulus money has worked its way through the system.

"We are certainly not economists or anything along those lines, but (2009 and 2010) were the two years the stimulus was in effect," Allred said. "The stimulus was working its way through different programs, not only in nutrition but also unemployment and extended unemployment benefits and things along those lines."

So far, the uptick in demand continues in 2012. The food bank served 42 more households last month than in January 2011.

"From what we're seeing, it keeps getting really busy in the store, and it doesn't look like it's getting any better," said Dorey Rowland, the food bank's programs operations director.

One group that keeps using the pantry's services is seniors. The food bank has served an increasing number every year since 2008. The organization reaches out to this age group with home deliveries, which helps to spread the word about the food bank, Allred said.

But the population as a whole is aging, and the economic downturn has taken a toll on many seniors, said Susan Kohler, chief executive officer of Missoula Aging Services.

Some have lost investments and savings — money they counted on having after retirement, she said. Others live on a fixed income, which isn't keeping pace with the increased cost of living.

This discrepancy makes it especially difficult for those living off Social Security, Kohler said.

"Can you imagine trying to run your life on only $12,000 a year?" she asked. "That's pretty tough."

A retired engineer stopping by the food bank last week said he's faced with that exact situation. Like other food bank clients, he declined to identify himself for publication. He said, however, that he uses the food bank and other local pantries to supplement his groceries because he cannot afford them after paying the bills with his $860 monthly Social Security check. He qualifies for $18 a month in food stamps, and says that amount isn't enough either.

The food bank helps him make ends meet.

"Missoula is really unique as far as the food bank," he said. "You get really good food here routinely."

Despite a struggling economy, Allred, the communications director for the food bank, said the food bank has received a steady amount in donations.

Food bank shelves may be full, but lately they have been stocked with a lesser variety of items due to a lack of support from the federal government. In 2010, the food bank was allotted 160,000 pounds of food through The Emergency Food Assistance Program, a federal program which provides food for low-income families. Last year, that number was cut nearly in half, as was the case at food pantries around the nation said Jeff Gutierrez, agency relations manager at the Montana Food Bank Network.

The cut has forced the Missoula Food Bank to buy more nonperishable items in bulk, such as beans, rice and soup, in order to maximize purchasing power and keep up with demand.

With a greater supply, Allred said the pantry is able to meet demand. To her, food is a right.

"Every kid deserves to go to sleep with food in their bellies," she said. "When you're heading off to work, moms shouldn't skip breakfast because they want their kids to eat."

amy.sisk@umontana.edu