The Vashon Food Bank prepares for the holidays

By Emily Harrington, Reporter

The Vashon-Maury Community Food Bank plays an important role in the island community by providing groceries and household items to people in need. In addition to providing groceries for pick-up, the food bank also makes home deliveries and maintains a garden to grow fresh produce.

With the cost of groceries increasing, the food bank has been working hard to serve Vashon households—approximately one third of which have youth under 18.

“We currently serve 220-240 households per week, which amounts to 1700-1800 individuals per year. It’s hard to predict how much our customer count will increase, but with high inflation, especially in grocery stores, I’d say it’s fair to expect a 10-15 percent increase in demand,” Executive Director Emily Scott said.

According to the Consumer Price Index, the cost of groceries has increased by over 12 percent locally over the past year from October 2021 to October 2022. Some of the items that have increased the most in price are cereals and dairy products. In the same way that food has become more expensive for individuals, it has also become more expensive for food banks to purchase staples.

“The Vashon Food Bank is a lifeline for folks on Vashon who are experiencing food insecurity. Especially during challenging economic times like we are now experiencing, with rising inflation impacting buying power at the grocery store, the VFB’s work is more vital than ever. I urge all islanders to support their important work in any way that they can,” VHS Assistant Principal John Erickson said.

The food bank has been busy fundraising and preparing for the holidays as 2022 comes to an end. Food drives at Thriftway and IGA are planned for mid-December, and the Care Card program is available all of December at Thriftway. Care Cards are donation cards that shoppers can add to their grocery bill. This month, Thriftway will match all Care Card donations up to $5,000 to support the Food Bank.

“The end of the year is our biggest fundraising season, so we try every way we can to get the word out about the importance of financial contributions and how they help us provide a reliable source of healthy food for our island neighbors,” Scott said. “We try to provide a reliable source of healthy food all year long, but we do purchase extra proteins and produce around the holidays. For Thanksgiving, we gave out turkeys and tons of produce, and we’ll likely make another protein purchase for Christmas.”

Those interested in donating to the food bank are encouraged to donate non-perishable items like canned tuna, peanut butter, and pasta. People can also donate household items like kitchen-sized trash bags and laundry detergent.

“Aside from shelf-stable food items and household items, financial contributions are greatly appreciated because we can use those dollars to purchase staple items like fresh produce, proteins, and sliced bread when we don’t get them through the donation stream,” Scott said.