Filling our ‘meal gap’

Sometimes we feel embarrassed by all our daily blessings, the many comforts, natural riches and compassionate community we share here in our part of Sonoma County. All our troubles are small, where real help usually comes before we ask for it. We know we are blessed and we know better than to take it for granted. At our best, we are like farmers who pray not so much for rain or good weather, but for the strength to put in another full day’s honest work.
As we count our daily blessings we are also reminded that not all of us share equally in the abundance and comfort of our world-class farming region and much-desired marketplace. Of all the places on Earth that should never know one hungry person, it is here in Sonoma County. Yet, thousands of local people go hungry here each day, missing a full meal or waiting in a line for a handout or government meal ticket.
We can do better and it is not that big of a challenge to set or to conquer. We already do so much to support our local food pantries, churches and regional food bank. We donate canned goods, we write checks, we sometimes volunteer. We can do more.
Last week, a countywide forum on Sonoma County’s first Hunger Index was held with dozens of local social service and non-profits in attendance. Participants were told that our county suffers an annual “35 million meal gap.” That’s how many meals the poor, elderly, displaced or isolated did not receive even after all the federal food stamp, Meals on Wheels and other donated food was passed around.
We can do more. Besides extra volunteering and filling food drive barrels, we can organize more community gardens, farmers market donation tables, restaurant and grocery store surplus pickups and neighborhood gleaning programs.
We can feed all of us. Our Redwood Empire Food Bank distributes food to 82,000 people every month through 180 local food pantries and other organizations. An equal number of people also receive federal or state food vouchers, equalling about $40 per week for individuals or $140 for a family of four.
Officially, by federal income statements, as many as 200,000 county residents qualify for some type of assistance to secure three good meals a day. The same federal guidelines price a meal at $2.27. At last week’s forum, participants were fed a meal equal to $2.27 that included squash soup, quinoa, broccoli and beet salad and a roll.
Sonoma County’s “meal gap” is not just about putting food on the table. The problems of hunger also include homelessness, unemployment, broken families, mental illness and cultural divides. The faces of local hunger are very diverse and can be surprising to some of us. These include single mothers who skip their own meals to feed their children. Successfully retired professionals, like former teachers, can meet most of their comforts and bills with their retirement checks — if they don’t get sick or need a new appliance. Buying a replacement stove might mean skipping a few meals next year or longer. Pride still keeps some people from standing in line at the local food pantry.
We can do better. We can take the shame away from needing help and not wanting to go hungry. We have too much food in our gardens, on our kitchen shelves and stocked outside the back door of our stores. We live in a place that worships food. Maybe a little less worshipping and a little more outreach is what we need.
Locate your local food pantry and write down their days of collection. Empty your pantry each season and feed some of your neighbors. Answer the next local food drive and put your name on the volunteer list. Besides your church, make sure local schools are involved and your workplace, too.
— Rollie Atkinson