Racine County Food Bank Helps Neighbors with Help from Neighbors

Despite the way the Great Recession has hit Racine County east of I-94, neighbors have answered the call and provided the donations needed.

Dan Taivalkoski, executive director of the Racine County Food Bank, said that he fully expects the tallies for both product and cash donations for 2011 to exceed what was given in 2010.

"The Greater Racine community always answers the call for help and this year was no different," he told Patch on Dec. 30. "But I really am not surprised. That's what we do here."

Still, times are tight and every item and dollar is both needed and appreciated. What put the cash donation total over the top was a recently received anonymous donation.

"That one surprised us and really made our day," Taivalkoski said.

The Racine County Food Bank is not a direct supplier to those in need of emergency food assistance, but is instead the primary distributor to pantries and shelters throughout the community. How much each location receives is determined by how many clients were served the month before.

According to the records Taivalkoski keeps, 818,194 meals were served during fiscal year 2010-2011, an increase of 22,103 from the 2009-2010 fiscal year. He told us that in the last 18 months, he has received more calls than ever before from people who have never had to rely on a food pantry before.

"You know, their unemployment has run out and they're either not working or not making enough and they've never had to navigate the emergency food system before," Taivalkoski stated. "This is the first time in the eight years I've been here that this has happened."

Residents do have to go through a screening process at the Salvation Army before they can be approved for pantry services. Once approved, clients are directed to the pantry nearest their home and will receive three to five days worth of food based as much as possible on the nutritional guidelines of the food pyramid from the USDA.

When we visited, there were donations still to be sorted into the right food groups. Taivalkoski said that's normal for this time of year when boxes of product are donated from all over the county. Slower times are during January, February, April, and the early fall because the holidays are over and/or there isn't a targeted food drive like that with the Boy Scouts or the Letter Carriers.

"We're pretty good at negotiating the peaks and valleys," he added. "We know when we have to purchase more to even it out."

And while product donations are always welcome, the truth of the cash matters is that Taivalkoski and his staff can buy twice as much with the dollars that come in the door.

"We don't want to discourage people shopping for a little extra and bringing it by, but for what it takes to fill one box, we can use money to fill two," he stated. "We never say 'no' to donations."

For example, the Food Bank was recently gifted with 30 pallets of paper cups, shaving cream from another vendor, and large containers of cleaning chemicals from Diversey. They've also recently struck up a deal with Pepperidge Farms: in exchange for letting delivery drivers use a loading dock to pick up and drop off bread products, those same drivers leave bread they collect from area stores for the Food Bank to add to meal boxes.

"And that is good bread," we agreed. But, Taivalkoski added, it's also helpful because that is one less food item clients need to purchase on their own.

To help area families stretch their food dollars even further, donations that cover all the products needed for cleaning and hygiene are great examples of what people can donate if they don't feel like another can of green beans or mixed vegetables is the way to go. By providing toothbrushes, toothpaste, dish soap, bath soap, shaving cream, toilet paper, paper towels, shampoo, etc., clients have more money to buy eggs, milk or fruit.

The Food Bank does have a cooler and a freezer, but with the exception of the holiday season when donated turkeys and hams are going out the door almost as fast as they come in, it isn't practical to keep those kinds of items in stock. Thus, the Food Bank asks for donations of food, of course, but also for dry goods, hygiene and cleaning products.

Donations to the Racine County Food Bank can be made online by clicking here, or you can mail a check to them and/or drop off food donations at 2000 DeKoven Ave., #2, Racine, WI, 53403. Contributions are tax deductible as allowed by law.