Hed: North Carolina Food Banks: In The Spirit Of Giving

By Ralph Grizzle

Just west of the Eastern Continental Divide, in a small hamlet that bills itself as the "Front Porch of Western North Carolina," Edna Selzler stacks cans of Del Monte Peaches, Laura Lynn Green Beans, loaves of Merita bread and boxes of Post cereal. She is one of 60 volunteers who donates a few hours each week to perform a variety of chores at the Swannanoa Valley Christian Ministry, located in Black Mountain, North Carolina.

Outside, retired Francis Blankenship, who lives just a few doors down from the ministry, harnesses a blower to remove leaves from the parking lot. Like Selzler, he's been coming here to help for a decade or so, not for pay, nor for recognition, but for the feeling he gets from helping others.

"We have a lot of good people here," says Lois Nix, who has served as executive director of the ministry since 1976. "We're like one big family."

While she praises her volunteers, a flat-bed pick-up truck rolls into the parking lot, loaded with more loaves of Merita bread. Parked in a distant corner, a mother tends to two children, while a couple of ministry volunteers tote boxes of groceries to her old, battered Ford Escort.

"Being a Christian is not a requirement for obtaining food here," Nix says. "You just have to be in need." Each day, in cities and towns throughout North Carolina, food pantries, Christian ministries and other organizations distribute food to the needy.

Most are backed by area churches, corporate entities such as grocery chains, food manufacturers and a six-region organizational network known as the Food Banks of North Carolina.

Annually, the food banks distribute millions of pounds of food to feed the hungry and raise millions of dollars to run their facilities. But the story of Food Banks and their success in North Carolina is not about capital fund-raising campaigns or the logistics of redistributing food. It is the story of people, good people, who look beyond their own needs, beyond the needs of their businesses. It is the story of people like Lois Nix and her volunteers, who feed nearly 200 people each month, people like Margaret Urquhart, the forward-thinking president of Lowes Food, whose corporate philosophy extends beyond the bottom line, and a whole host of others who you'll meet in this story.

Working Hand In Hand
It was mid-summer when Father Stott got the news. Nineteen Mexican parishioners of the Holy Angels Catholic Church in Mt. Airy had suddenly lost their jobs because of a "defect in their social security numbers."

Stott and a parishioner by the name of John Brown knew that the Mexican families would be strapped for food and supplies. "Their income was low to begin with," Stott says. "And because they don't have proper social security numbers, they don't have access to social services."

So Stott and Brown headed down to the Food Bank of Northwest North Carolina in Winston-Salem. There, food is made available for a mere 14 cents a pound. The token payment helps cover the Food Banks' operating costs. Just think, 10 pounds of food for $1.40. "I've been breaking my arms ever since bringing food back here," Stott quips. "The Food Banks really came to our rescue."

Nan Griswold, executive director of the Winston-Salem facility, has watched similar scenarios play out over the 16 years she's been there. "You truly feel like it's a system that works," she says. "My first job was in juvenile court as a probation officer, then I worked in residential care, a runaway home and directed an inner-city ministry for children. So I had worked with individuals and agencies, and there is a frustration there. But here, I know I'm making a difference."

To many observers, food banks show America working at its best. Most of the food comes from grocery stores that donate items that are either in abundant supply or nearing their expiration dates. The stores and other corporate entities also donate funds and sponsor fundraising campaigns for the food banks. Griswold says she has been told that there is no better partnership between corporate America and the nonprofit community.

The Food Bank's relationship with Lowes Food is emblematic of the partnership. Company President Margaret Urquhart says that giving is an extension of Lowes Food's corporate philosophy. "Part of our vision is that we feed people body, mind and spirit," she says. "And that goes beyond just people who can afford to buy food." Food Bank of Western North Carolina picks up from 34 grocery stores in Forsyth County, including Food Lion, Harris Teeter and others. "The idea of being able to participate in an effort that helps people who can't afford to buy food or are in a situation where they're not getting the right kinds of foods, it's something that makes us feel good about being in business," Urquhart says.

The Need In North Carolina
In Forsyth County alone, 27,000 people live in poverty, 9,000 of those are children, according to a flyer distributed by the Food Bank. "When I first came on board, one of the things I didn't want was pictures of starving children," Griswold says. "I know that people give out of guilt, but I want them to understand that hunger is solvable. It's a community problem, and the community has to respond to it. It's something that individuals can do something about."

Individuals can, for example, volunteer at the local food bank distribution centers located in Asheville, Charlotte, Elizabeth City, Fayetteville, Raleigh and Winston-Salem. "They can work in the warehouse and know that the food they're getting ready for shipping is going out to help somebody," Griswold says.

Toby Ives, executive director of Asheville's Manna Food Bank, says volunteers logged 2,400 hours in August. Who are the recipients of this goodwill? "Most of our clients are good, hard-working people in difficult straits temporarily," Ives says. "Many of them have disabilities or are too old or too young to work." For every dollar donated, food banks can distribute $7 worth of food. For $10,000 donations from corporations, Metrolina Food Bank in Charlotte says that it can feed as many as 75 children three times a week.

"Part of the reason that there are hungry people in this country is the distribution, distribution of wealth for one thing," Griswold says, "but the food is there. It's getting the food out to the people who need it that is the challenge."

Back in Black Mountain, Lois Nix and her crew continue to load food into boxes that will be picked up during the week by those in need. Her "clients" as she refers to them run the gamut, from young to old, families and single mothers.

Over the two decades that she's served, she has given a lot. But she says she's gotten a lot back in return. "It makes me feel good to know that we're really making a difference in people's lives, to know that when I go to bed at night, there are little children who are warm because we're here, to know that their tummies are full because we were able to provide them with food," she says. "Most of us associate economically, denominationally and racially with our own kind. You don't see the need until you get involved in something like this." <END>

Sidebar: Safe Havens
When an HIV-related illness claimed her only daughter at the tender age of 23, Maxcine Mann found herself tossed into a sea of despair. So, like many others facing desperation, she turned to the church. But Maxcine Mann didn't ask for a helping hand to calm her troubled mind. Instead, she found healing by lending one of her own.

The journey from her daughter's death six years ago to Mann's present station in life has been a long and rewarding one. Here, at Chapel of Christ the King, an Episcopal mission located several blocks away from downtown Charlotte's towering buildings, Mann oversees a program designed to feed and nurture impoverished children ages 5 to 12. "My daughter was a loving person who really cared for children," says this gentle black woman. "This is my way of living through her, my way of giving back to a few kids who are having hard times."

Mondays through Thursdays, Mann and a group of volunteers welcome any and all neighborhood children to an after-school program called Kids Cafe. It is here that kids receive a warm, nutritious meal, mentoring and tutoring, and perhaps more importantly, an open embrace.

For some children, showing up at Kids Cafe means not showing up at a home where the child is abused or neglected. "I know this neighborhood and what the children are going through," Mann says. "Some of the parents have gotten themselves into situations that they don't think they can get out of. I can't go in and fix every kid's household, but I can make it good for them while they're here with us. I know they need food. I know they need a smile, and I know that sometimes, they just need a shoulder to cry on. Then they can go home and shut their bedroom door and wait until it's time to go to school the next morning. If I can just make their life better for one hour, then I've succeeded."

Kids Cafe is hosted jointly by the church and Metrolina Food Bank, which solicits corporations for funds and food to feed hungry kids. Metrolina's Becky Van Wie says the organization is constantly looking for agencies willing to host a Kids Cafe and businesses and corporations willing to fund it.

"For about $10,000, we can feed 75 children two to four nights a week for a year," she says. The children of Charlotte aren't unique in their need for these safe havens where they'll be fed and nurtured. The need extends across the state, and six North Carolina-based food banks are working to address those needs. Metrolina Food Bank operates two Kids Cafes in Charlotte and one in Gaston County. Winston-Salem also has a Kids Cafe.

For the kids in this neighborhood in downtown Charlotte, the program is making a difference, not only in nutritional substance but also in self esteem. "It is possible to change," Mann says. "There are some great children in this neighborhood because of this building and this program. If they can get a little kindness every day, it really makes them a better person. It raises their self-esteem. A well-fed child is a happy child."

You Can Help
For $25, you can sponsor a child's enrollment to Chapel of Christ the King's Kids Cafe for one month. Director Maxcine Mann says she values the program so much that she would pay for all kids if she could. "But I can't do that and take care of them too," she says. If you'd like to help, contact Mann at (704) 334-3096 between 1 p.m. and 6 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays. North Carolina Food Banks also operate other programs for children and adults. Individuals, corporations and partner agencies (such as churches or nonprofit organizations) can get involved on a local level. For more information, contact the Food Bank nearest you.

Food Banks of North Carolina
Asheville
Manna Food Bank
(704) 299-3663 Charlotte
Metrolina Food Bank
(704) 376-1785 Elizabeth City
Albemarle Food Bank
(919) 335-4035 Fayetteville
Cape Fear Community Food Bank
(910) 485-8809 Raleigh
Food Bank of North Carolina
(919) 875-0707 Winston-Salem
Food Bank of Northwest North Carolina
(910) 784-5770