We've been feeding to our hungry neighbors for more than 20 years. As one of Seattle's busiest food banks, we help nourish about 11,000 people most months. We are the only food bank in the heart of Rainier Valley, home to the nation's most ethnically diverse ZIP code and some of the city's lowest-income areas. We offer a rich variety of healthy, fresh and locally-sourced foods. Community donations account for more than half of our funding. Find out more at rvfb.org.

Friday, March 29, 2013

My Hunger Action Year

By Jeanée Natov

My childhood was filled with trips to churches, community centers, and other drop-off points for surplus food. I spent hours wandering and playing with toys at the Women, Infants, and Children center while my mother took nutrition and parenting classes. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, more than 20 percent of families in my hometown with children under 5 years of age lived below the poverty line. My family was one of them.


My father supported a family of four, with two on the way, on an income of $24,000 a year. My mother learned how to use coupons, plan for sales, and shop to provide cheap, healthy meals for her family. I ate a diet of canned, pre-packaged, and frozen foods, and my father worked a garden in our small backyard to provide fresh vegetables. I never realized the magnitude of our economic troubles; however, I know my childhood influenced me to always appreciate what I have.

My family still eats much like we did more than a decade ago. Everything my parents learned about nutrition, smart shopping, and available resources to low-income families, they learned from nonprofits and government programs. Therefore, everything I know about living a happy, healthy and independent life comes from these teachings. Little did I know, these events would mold my choices throughout life and encourage me to always help others.

Before joining the AmeriCorps VISTA program, I was making over $30,000 a year, paying less rent than I do now, and gaining weight by going out to lunch too often. I frolicked in the sunshine with my friends and never worried about my bank account. But at work, I was miserable. I worked as a sales assistant for a corporate organic produce company that provided the most ideal, consistent hours, free lunch 3 times a week, and great coworkers. But I wasn’t doing good things for the world and it left me empty.


RVFB AmeriCorps VISTA volunteer Jeanée Natov
I was learning about how to make money for a large company and it wasn’t fulfilling. I didn’t appreciate what I had, take pride in my work and I didn’t feel like I deserved my pay. That’s why I’m taking the food stamp challenge — the same one thousands of people in the Seattle area, including Mayor Mike McGinn, are taking this week as part of United Way of King County's Hunger Action Week. I'm taking my food stamp challenge for an entire year, limiting my food budget to $7 a day.

The AmeriCorps stipend I receive is purposely set under the poverty line, so those serving can experience first-hand how difficult it is to live in poverty. While working at Rainier Valley Food Bank, I not only want to help others gain access to healthy and plentiful food, I want them to take pride in their struggles. It is quite difficult to live such a frugal life, and if you can continue to laugh and love while working hard, you’ve done it right.

As Hunger Action week winds down, I wish all you other food stamp challengers the best of luck. Keep in mind that those who receive food stamps every month, only get the $7 per day (per individual) if it’s a month as long as February, and not on a leap year, and that’s if you’re lucky enough to receive the maximum benefit amount allowed each month. Many people who struggle to feed their families don't receive the maximum amount. We see them every week at the food bank. I'm glad we're here for them.

Thursday, March 14, 2013

And the Every Penny Counts winner is ...


We are pleased as punch to announce that young Rose Martin is the winner of our Every Penny Counts coin drive contest. She raised $36.76 for Rainier Valley Food Bank. All those pennies and nickels and dimes and quarters will help us stock our shelves with fresh produce — lots of it organic and locally grown good stuff like spinach and pears, carrots and kale.


Rose Martin is a second grader at The Valley School. "I felt good collecting coins for the food bank. It was fun and I want to do it again.



As our top fundraiser, Rose won:
·  A group cooking class through Seattle Tilth's Rainier Valley Eats program.
·  A kid's gardening kit donated by Sweet Pea's
·  Kids' Kitchen: 40 Fun and Healthy Recipes to Make and Share by Fiona Bird

Our other Every Penny Counts prizes go to the library at Hawthorne Elementary School, where a classroom of kindergarteners teamed up to raise more than $357.50 for us! (Check out our Facebook photo galleries of Room 2's coin-counting party and our Valentine's Day visit.) We hope the students at Hawthorne enjoy these awesome books about food and gardening:


·  Your Farm in the City: An Urban Dweller’s Guide to Growing Food and Raising Animals by Lisa Taylor and the gardeners of Seattle Tilth
·  The Maritime Northwest Garden Guide by Carl Elliott and Rob Peterson
·  How Did That Get In My Lunch Box? The Story of Food by Chris Butterworth

Our grand total? $419! Great job everyone! 

If you didn't get a chance to turn in your Every Penny Counts coins, no worries. You're welcome to drop them by the food bank anytime. Or you can make an Every Penny Counts donation online here.