Dear Hunger Relief Partners,
Reading has been one of my hobbies since childhood. As a child, I would stay up late on Saturday nights to read just one more chapter, and I often found myself finishing the entire book. This year, my summer reading list included Reinventing Food Banks and Pantries by Katie S. Martin.
I was impressed by her evaluation and thorough discussion of the charitable food system and her suggestions for better serving our neighbors. Many of our partners already excel in creating a positive experience for pantry guests by establishing a welcoming atmosphere, providing client choice, and offering nutritious food and wrap-around services.
If your organization exemplifies any of these mentioned best practices, we would love to highlight you in an upcoming newsletter or Town Hall session. Please let us know by contacting partnersupport@foodbankrockies.org.
For partners who would like a copy of Reinventing Food Banks and Pantries, Food Bank of the Rockies is extending an offer to reimburse up to $25 towards the cost of the book to the first 100 partners who submit their receipt to partnersupport@foodbankrockies.org. We will offset the amount by posting the equivalent food credits to your account on your next invoice. We look forward to hearing your feedback; please post your thoughts on the book, highlighting best practices and opening up lively discussions, on the Partner Facebook Group Page.
Thank you for your continuing efforts to support our communities.
Sincerely,
Cindy Mitchell, Vice President of Programs
Important Dates
- Thursday, September 23: Link2Feed Training (Virtual and in-person options)
12:00 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.
For important dates that will affect orders and warehouse access, please refer to our annual calendar.
If you have any questions, please contact our Partner Support Team: partnersupport@foodbankrockies.org
Advocacy and Public Policy from Feeding Colorado
Food Bank of the Rockies coordinates all public policy and advocacy work through Feeding Colorado, the state association of the five Feeding America food banks serving all of Colorado and Wyoming. Visit the Feeding Colorado website to view our 2021 policy agenda and learn who represents you in the Colorado General Assembly and in Congress.
Your organization can be part of the recently launched national effort to make sure all families who need it get connected to WIC. Please see new free materials including video, streaming audio, social content, digital banners, and more.
For more information about advocacy and public policy, please contact Effie Rorke, Senior Director of Public Policy and Communications for Feeding Colorado, at erorke@feedingcolorado.org
Now Accepting Applications for the Afterschool Meal Program (CACFP)
Does your organization provide activities to kids after school is out for the day? As a sponsor with the State of Colorado, Food Bank of the Rockies provides fresh meals to partnering sites who have afterschool programs for children 18 and younger. There is no cost for this program and delivery options are expanding in our service area. Applications are being accepted now for the 2021-2022 Afterschool Meal Program (CACFP) which offers an assortment of nourishing food items for qualified neighborhoods and programs. Partners can choose between fresh grab-n-go and shelf-stable meals, and they can distribute multiple meals at once. Interested partners must complete an application. Training will be provided by Food Bank of the Rockies.
For questions, contact Eva Knezic: 303-375-5862 or eknezic@foodbankrockies.org
Download the CACFP Application here: 2021-2022-CACFP-Application-with-agreement.pdf
This institution is an equal opportunity provider.
Partner Spotlight – Mountain Resource Center
Collaboration is key to providing wrap-around services to communities in need. Our Hunger Relief Partner, Mountain Resource Center (MRC), is leading the way in the mountain town of Conifer. On August 3, STRIDE Community Health Clinic officially opened their newest location on the campus of Mountain Resource Center. The STRIDE clinic will fill a critical gap in access to affordable health care for many rural families. In addition to providing medical services, the STRIDE clinic will screen for food insecurity and provide direct referrals to MRC’s services.
This last August, MRC hosted a back-to-school festival where STRIDE’s mobile unit offered sports and school physicals as well as COVID-19 vaccines. “We came for supplies and a physical; so grateful for this service,” one parent commented.
The event was a huge success and provided more than 170 children with much-needed backpacks and school supplies. The collaboration between MRC and STRIDE is a strong example of a food pantry creating connections to community services, a key theme that Katie S. Martin emphasizes in her book, Reinventing Food Banks and Pantries. As another parent observed, “How amazing and convenient to have this local option for my family.”
Updating the Find Food Page
The Find Food page on the Food Bank of the Rockies website is designed to be the most comprehensive list of pantries and meal programs for clients to identify available resources in their area. Thousands of clients rely on https://www.foodbankrockies.org/find-food/ to direct them to the right location, determine pick-up times, and review eligibility requirements. Yet, this information is only as accurate as the information we receive from partners.
Please look up your program using the above tool to verify that the information listed is correct. If you would like to change your listing, or do not see your program listed, please fill out this form and email it to partnersupport@foodbankrockies.org. We will ensure that your page is updated.
Food Bank of the Rockies: Join Our Team
Want to do good with good people? Working at Food Bank of the Rockies is more than just a job. We work daily to ignite the power of community to nourish people facing hunger. If working to alleviate hunger sounds like the way you would like to spend your day, apply for one of our open opportunities.
Food Bank of the Rockies is an equal opportunity employer and offers paid time off, health, dental, and 401(k) benefits.
Open Position Spotlight: Government Programs Representative
The Government Programs Representative is responsible for enrolling eligible older adults to receive monthly food assistance under the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP), also known as our EverGreen Box™ program. The representative works directly with older adults at Food Bank of the Rockies distributions and manages the home delivery program. This role maintains applicable and necessary documentation to ensure our client files are in compliance with federal and state guidelines for the CSFP program.
For the full job description, please visit this link.
Expansion of SNAP Application Assistance at Food Bank of the Rockies
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), otherwise known as food stamps, is a federal benefit program that helps people experiencing financial difficulties access nourishing food. Eligible clients receive money monthly on an EBT (Electronic Benefit Transfer) card which functions like a debit card and allows clients to select the food they eat. According to the FDA, 450,000 Colorado residents — 8% of the state’s population — benefitted from SNAP in 2019. Yet, this number only represents 80% of eligible individuals utilizing this program. Please help us close this gap by referring people to our SNAP Outreach Representatives who can answer questions and help clients submit an application over the phone.
Please invite our SNAP Outreach Representatives to attend community-based events and in-person opportunities to share about SNAP and the application process.
For more information, call (303) 375-5851 or email fbrsnap@foodbankrockies.org.
Meet Our SNAP Outreach Team
Silvia Garcia’s favorite Mexican dish is chiles rellenos and she loves practicing yoga. Ever since she read the book The Alchemist by Paulo CoeIho, she believes in universal omens to pursue her dreams. Her SNAP focus is to expand resources within the Denver metro area counties.
Russell Nylen brings an empathetic and fun personality to his work that helps clients feel comfortable sharing their stories with him. He is passionate about food justice, and his SNAP focus is on rural counties within Eastern Colorado and the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains.
Link2Feed for Meal Programs and Bulk Pantry
While we often focus on Link2Feed’s client intake feature and its ability to collect and organize client data, Link2Feed also has the ability to capture bulk data entry for meal programs, shelters, and backpack programs. Enter in data based on distribution time, end of day, or end of week, and users will have the ability to run reports that detect data trends and measure impact within the community. Recording a bulk program is quick and simple. To preview the bulk entry process, check out this video.
Interested in learning more about Link2Feed? Email L2F@foodbankrockies.org or sign up for a training at http://bit.ly/L2FRSVP
Incorporating Client Voices
Food Bank of the Rockies and its Hunger Relief Partners recognize the importance of incorporating client feedback into the food ordering process.
Integrating community feedback into purchasing decisions not only makes clients happier, but it reduces food waste and provides clients with practical, culturally relevant foods, as Kate Budd, Mobile Pantry Representative at Food Bank of the Rockies, explains.
For Thai Nguyen, founder of Hunger Relief Partner Kaizen Food Rescue, incorporating client input into food orders is crucial to her organization’s model and values. They use a participatory budget model in which “community members, volunteers, and people facing food insecurity are the drivers as to what we do and determine the setup of each individual site.”
At Kaizen, part of the client check-in process includes asking clients what items they would like to see at next week’s distribution. Nguyen then compares these requests with the available budget and inventory to streamline purchasing efficiency.
To better cater your next order to meet the needs of people facing hunger in your community, we encourage you to open up a conversation with your clients, review the demographic information collected from Link2Feed, or review the Food Preferences list from the Culturally Responsive Food Initiative.
Client Resources
Rental Assistance
After the initial moratorium on evictions from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention ended in July, a new and narrower moratorium was enacted through October 3, 2021. This has created uncertainty and instability for many people renting dwellings. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has compiled a resource toolkit for agencies. The toolkit contains flyers, social media templates, and resource links to easily share information with clients.
Download: Rental_Assistance_Flyer.pdf | Rental_Assistance_Flyer__Spanish_.pdf
Cooking Matters
All members of the Food Bank of the Rockies community are invited to participate in and share resources from Cooking Matters Colorado. Cooking Matters offers online lessons, resources, and recipes for families in English and Spanish. The program topics include “Making Recipes Work for Your Family,” “Bean Basics,” and “Getting Kids Involved in Mealtime.” Each family that participates in the online program will receive a $10 gift card.
Click this link for more information: https://spark.adobe.com/page/bBKPSMdXcR7x1/
