A Road Warrior For Food Banks
FBNN is lucky enough to have Chris Gleim, Commodities and Procurement Programs Supervisor. He is dedicated to ensuring the most remote food bank agencies in Nevada and California receive the food they need. My favorite part of my job is supporting our partner agencies. They are the heart of our organization and the ones doing the most challenging part of hunger relief. It really brings me joy to support the partners with funds for capacity needs or ideas for smoother distributions, says Gleim.
During a joint visit, we visited Big Valley 50 Plus in Bieber, CA population 510. This very remote food distribution location is about 200 miles away from Sparks, NV, and in the most beautiful lands of California, you have ever seen. Imagine old, pristine lands as far as the eye can see, a natural landscape perfect for wild horses to roam.
The drive is scenic but also rural, passing small towns like Fall River Mills, population 648, or Burney Falls, population 3,220. The nearest grocery store to Bieber is at least 40 minutes away, so food distribution is critical.
Chris has a great relationship with Debra and the volunteers, who fondly provide him with a name tag of the big cheese. Chris recently helped this location with much-needed additional storage to allow them to receive more food and store it if needed. This type of infrastructure support is exactly why food banks need more support. More people, more food, more space.
Pbs Reno Partners With Food Bank Of Northern Nevada
RENO, NV RENO, NV PBS Reno is teaming up with the Food Bank of Northern Nevada for the holiday season and encouraging people to spread out their generosity to the two local non-profits.
For every $60 donation to PBS Reno, the station will give $5 to the Food Bank of Northern Nevada. The Food Bank of Northern Nevada is able to stretch out monetary donations and provide three meals for every dollar it receives. This means 15 meals will result from each $60 donation to PBS Reno. This particular promotion will last through January 1, 2020.
PBS Reno is proud to partner with community organizations that really make an impact in peoples lives, and the Food Bank is certainly one of those, said Kurt Mische, PBS Reno President & CEO. PBS Reno feeds peoples minds, while the Food Bank feeds their bodies. We hope many in our area will help us make an impact during this important time of the year.
PBS Reno depends on donations from the community to fund the services it provides, from three channels with stellar and trusted content to in-classroom educational services. A partnership with the Food Bank of Northern Nevada allows people to forgo a traditional CD, DVD or tote bag often associated with its quarterly membership drives, and instead have more of their donation go toward a greater cause.
About PBS Reno
About the Food Bank of Northern Nevada
The Emergency Food Assistance Program
The Emergency Food Assistance Program is a federal program that provides food commodities at no cost to Americans in need of short-term hunger relief through food providers like emergency food pantries, food banks, soup kitchens and shelters.
The types of USDA foods expected to be available are juices, canned fruits and vegetables, canned and/or frozen meats, dry beans, and pastas. Food may be picked up once per month at a designated location. There will be no make-up benefits. If you do not participate during a month at your designated location, you will lose your benefits for that month.
For questions regarding eligibility or distribution, contact Chris Gleim, Commodities and Procurement Programs Supervisor, at 331-3663 ext 129.
To Qualify:
- ID and proof of Nevada residency is required for the receipt of USDA food
- Each household must read the Self Declaration Assurance and certify eligibility by signing the issuance sheet that their household income does not exceed 185% of the federal poverty guidelines. View the TEFAP income eligibility guidelines here.
- For each additional household member add $645.00 per month
- Participants must meet CSFP income requirements
- Participants must be at least 60 years of age
- Eligible clients are required to provide monthly gross income, proof of residency in the state of NV, and a photo ID
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Beautiful Building In A Natural Environment
This beautifully designed building, almost 69,000 square feet, fits right into the desert environment with terra cotta colors and drought-resistance landscaping on the outside. Once inside, its a beautiful reception area with many windows and natural light.
FBNN has been in the building since 2008, with the support of the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation. The Reynolds Foundation has supported food banks here, and in other states, in the U.S. This foundation was a significant donor to help them get into the space. And who helped with the design of the building, more of an open concept with high bright ceilings, windows with lots of natural light. Even the cubical areas have bright light, and openness and are a happy area to be in.
In the waiting area, beautiful pottery bowls are displayed on a wall. These are their donor bowls. The bowls represent the major donations that help them get into the building, the idea conceived by local artist Joe Winter. The bowls represent food and a meal. From the waiting area looking through floor-to-ceiling windows, you can see directly into the warehouse area where all the magic happens.
Out Of The Box Programs & Partnerships
FBNN offers unique programs and services and works with 43 school-based pantries that operates similarly to a community panty. They order through Agency Express and build out their pantry distributions in their school versus a community setting.
They have a valuable next-door neighbor in Walmart who donates produce to them. Gleim said, We are blessed because we have a great partnership with Walmart who are providing most of the donated produce that we get every day. Historically one or two trucks a day. Without the Walmart donation, it would be a significant financial challenge because they cant make up dollar for dollar what they get through that donation stream.
They get creative with their food bank partnerships to source and get food delivered so they can distribute more. They built a network around increasing fresh produce, working with partners to get cold storage, and talking about produce benefits. Building programs such as the Mobile Harvest Program, Nutrition on Wheels , and various channels that need consistent produce going into them, they have to make sure they fill that produce need.
In addition to strong advocacy work, they also have an annual partnership conference where they invite all the partner agencies, and provide TEFAP compliance training to ensure that everyone is up to date with compliance.
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Having Others Pick Food Up On Your Behalf
- If you are unable to make it to a distribution for any reason, you may have a friend/family member pick up your food if you have completed an Authorization Form and designated the person on this form. You may designate up to three people to pick up food on your behalf. Your household may still only receive food once per week, regardless of who is attending the distribution.
- If you have not already completed the Authorization Form, you may download and complete it here and have the person bring it with them to the distribution: English | Spanish
- Please note, you must already have a form on file with us OR the person attending the distribution must bring the form completed and signed by you with them, or we will not be able to allow them to pick up food on your behalf.
- If you are a designated person picking up for another household: You may get food for YOUR household and ONE other household each week. You may be an authorized person for more than one household but will not be able to get food for multiple on any given week.
A Mission And Vision To Serve
FBNN has a core group of staff that have been there five years or more, in addition to their entire team that is motivated and ready to serve their community.
Jenny Yeager, Director of Programs & Community Engagement, has been at the food bank for over 15 years. She has seen a lot of change and growth. Its a great place to work and is filled with people on a mission to feed their growing community. People come here to work because of the mission, and they do a good job of connecting people to their mission, so they feel good about what they are doing in their community, said Yeager.
Their mission of feeding the hungry today and solving hunger for tomorrow through community partnership and their vision of healthy food, every person, every day drives their daily work.
Another dedicated FBNN team member is Chris Gleim, Commodities and Procurement Programs Supervisor. Chris has been there for four and a half years now. He is the road warrior who visits six to eight food bank agencies monthly. The furthest away is 379 miles and five and a half hours from the food bank. Gleim says, The remote agencies are the heart of our organization and the ones doing the most challenging part of hunger relief. It brings me joy to support the partners with funds for capacity needs or ideas for smoother distributions. His visits focus on compliance, assisting with food distribution, and building a better relationship with the FBNN partners and neighbors.
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Volunteers Are The Lifeblood
FBNN has loyal volunteers who are the lifeblood of who they are and what they do. They have volunteer sessions twice daily, five days a week. They will sort all the donations and repack them into categories so their partner agencies can order online through a system called Agency Express. Categories range from vegetables, fruits, entrées, and dry fruits, to cereals.
The agencies can see the live inventory and they get contacted monthly with menus of items to order. Its a very cool concept and efficient way to assist agencies quickly.
Be An Advocate For Your Community
When it comes to food banks, a little goes a long way. Even if you volunteer for a few hours, it helps take the stress off employees doing other critical work. And you get a sense of how needed food banks are in any community. Or make a small donation where literally $5 to $10 can feed a family a few meals! Food banks have the purchasing power we dont, so every dollar counts.
If you enjoyed this story, please visit their website, and make a small donation that goes directly to helping feed the Food Bank of Northern Nevada community members. And remember, when you pass by your local food bank, please think about how your volunteerism, donation, and kindness can go a long way to help another in need.
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Greater Nevada Field To Host Two Food Bank Of Northern Nevada Drive By Distribution Events In April
The Reno Aces, 1868 FC, and Greater Nevada Field are partnering with the Food Bank of Northern Nevada to provide drive-thru distributions of the Mobile Harvest program on April 7 & 17 from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. for community members in need of both shelf-stable and perishable food items.
The Reno Aces, 1868 FC, and Greater Nevada Field are partnering with the Food Bank of Northern Nevada to provide drive-thru distributions of the Mobile Harvest program on April 7 & 17 from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. for community members in need of both shelf-stable and perishable food items.
Community members will have the ability to participate in a grab-n-go food distribution line located in the parking lots adjacent to the rotunda at Greater Nevada Field. Volunteers will be in place to help the flow of traffic.
Because the safety of the clients, volunteers, and staff of the Food Bank are of utmost importance, it is asked that anyone attending a distribution take the following precautions:
- Please keep safe social distances from others
- Whenever possible, please limit the number of household members who attend distributions
- We recommend 1 person per household
- If you are ill, please do not attend a distribution
- Practice frequent and thorough handwashing with soap
- Remember to sneeze or cough away from others and into your elbow when possible
- Volunteers and employees are wearing gloves and sanitizing surfaces for the protection of all served through Food Bank program
Food Bank Of Northern Nevada Asking For Support During Hunger Action Month
The Food Bank of Northern Nevada is asking supporters to join the fight against hunger all through the month of September, which is Hunger Action Month.
Hunger Action Month is a national campaign with Feeding America and more than 200 network food banks like the Food Bank of Northern Nevada.
The campaign is designed to increase awareness about the issue of hunger and inspire people to get involved with small efforts that create big impact.
Supporters are encouraged to donate, volunteer and advocate for their neighbors who are facing hunger. Activities are many during the month and up-to-date information can be found at fbnn.org/ham.
Community members are helping to celebrate the color of hunger awareness, Orange, by turning local landmarks orange or wearing orange on Hunger Action Day, Friday, September 23.
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Need To Cancel A Session
We understand that you may sign up to volunteer with the Food Bank and later need to change your plans. During this time, it is critical that we have an accurate count of the number of volunteers to expect at any of our sessions. If you need to cancel for any reason, please take the time to let us know either by canceling your registration in CERVIS or contacting our volunteer coordinator Vickie Fisher at or 775-785-1431.
Changing The Mind Set About Food Banks
There is still some stigma around food banks and assumptions about the people who go there. Breaking the barriers around food bank stigma is essential and needs to happen nationally, not just locally. In every community, your neighbor could be somebody that is experiencing food insecurity. We are no longer talking about just the homeless with food insecurity that is a very small part.
Most people in this country are a paycheck away from experiencing a situation that requires them to ask for assistance. Whether its housing, childcare, or food assistance, explained Yeager. Most people dont have a robust savings we need to frame the conversation that it literally could be anybody. You lose a job, a resource, and you can find yourself in this situation where you need additional support.
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Free Meals For Kids Kids Cafe Provides Free Nutritious Meals To Kids When They Are Out Of School Kids Cafe Consists Of A Dinner Program Serving After
Kids Cafe DINNER PROGRAM
Throughout the school year, the Kids Cafe Dinner Program serves after school meals at several schools and community centers throughout the Reno/Sparks area. Meals are typically also served during school breaks.
View the calendar or map above for distribution details, or visit the Kids Cafe page for more information about this important program.
The 2022-2023 Kids Cafe schedule will be posted as soon as it is available. It may take a few weeks after the new school year begins for sites to be up and running. In the meantime, families can access additional food resources through their School Food Pantry, Mobile Harvest and partner food pantries.
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Survey Saysfood Banks Are A Part Of Food Plans
The Food Bank of Northern Nevada did a survey in partnership with the University of Nevada to help understand what was driving food insecurity in their area. What they found is that costs are a big part of that insecurity. Their community neighbors do not look at food banks for an emergency need they have shifted and rely on the food banks as a part of their food plan. Going to food distributions or pantries is now a part of their routine its their daily routine. The idea of a food bank being an emergency program is no longer the case its a must-have resource.
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Help Feed Thousands With Just A Couple Hours Of Your Time
The dedication of caring, compassionate community members is an integral part of our work, and we welcome and appreciate your time, talent, and interest in joining us in the fight against hunger. Volunteering is a truly rewarding experience, and we look forward to showing you just how much fun it can be, too. Together, we can solve hunger!
Whether you are a self-motivated individual volunteer, represent a community or employee group, or are looking for school or work-related, or court-ordered community service opportunities, theres something for you to do to help at the Food Bank of Northern Nevada.
Food Bank Of Northern Nevada 20 Million Meals And Growing
On the road again to visit another hard-working food bank distributor assisting both Nevada and remote parts of California, the Food Bank of Northern Nevada. They provide food for families in need through more than 150 partner agencies across northern Nevada and the eastern slope of the Sierra in California. Their partner agencies are emergency food pantries, shelters, family resource centers, and more that get food to the hungry over a 90,000 square mile service area.
This food bank grew from a small pantry to a regional distribution center. They incorporated in 1983 and have operated as a 5013 nonprofit organization for more than 35 years. This past fiscal year, they provided more than 20 million meals for neighbors who faced hunger! Let me repeat, 20 million meals. Food insecurity is not a myth or a minor issue, its a major challenge for food banks and the recipients that receive the food.
The 4-hour drive from the Bay Area shows you all the beauty that California offers, and were thankful for partners like them. In Sparks, Nevada, off Highway 395, you drive up an expanding industrial complex and see the largest Walmart distribution center that ever existed. Right next door is their neighbor, the Food Bank of Northern Nevada .
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