THE NEED
United Way St. Croix Valley works to identify and
address the most pressing human needs for the people of Western
Wisconsin. Food is arguably the most basic need for families and
individuals in our community.
The ten food pantries serving Pierce and St. Croix
Counties have limited space to store necessary food and often the
shelves empty out before the need is served. Most often there is no
place to store perishable food such as milk and cheese and the fresh
produce that is abundant in the summer months.
Families and seniors in our communities often face the
tough choice between buying food, paying rent or buying prescription
medicines. And the number of families struggling to meet their basic
needs is increasing every week. Second Harvest Heartland, the largest
distributor of food in the Midwest, reports that individuals served at
food shelves in this area grew to 169,600 between 2001 and 2005: an
alarming 45% increase.
And who are these individuals? They are our
neighbors:
OUR RESPONSE
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United Way Food Resource Center
Badland Road & Hwy 12,
Hudson WI |
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Front Elevation |
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United Way St. Croix Valley envisions a Food Resource
Center, centrally located and able to store food and commodities for
redistribution to food pantries, our homeless shelter, the domestic
abuse shelter and community meals. The Food Resource Center’s
industrial-sized freezer and cooler will mean that pantries will have a
steady supply of milk, cheese, eggs, fruits and fresh vegetables –
bringing more food into the Valley. Pantry volunteers would pick up
perishables at designated times for redistribution to residents of
Pierce and St. Croix Counties.
The Food Resource Center will provide freezer storage
for donated venison. Hunters in the St. Croix Valley generously provide
venison for hungry families and seniors. Last year, over 23,000 pounds
of meat was processed into burger – triple the amount donated in the
previous year.
The building will also have a significant amount of
open area that will be used for Trinity Lutheran Church’s “We Do Feet”
ministry. The focus of this program is to help the needy by collecting,
repairing and donating used furniture, beds and other household items.
The space could also be used a distribution site for emergency supplies
in case of a community crisis. WHY UNITED WAY?
SUPERVALU, Inc. has been making quarterly donations of
surplus food and products to United Way St. Croix Valley for
redistribution to food pantries, shelters and community meals. These
programs lack space to accept these donations directly.
Currently, the
regularly scheduled semi-trailer deliveries of food from SUPERVALU are
delivered to whatever business is willing to provide us a corner of
their warehouse. It makes for a very busy day because the food can’t be
stored there. Beginning at 9:00 a.m., United Way staff and volunteers
gather to unload and sort food and household items. In the afternoon,
the procession of vans, horse trailers, pick-up trucks and cars arrive
and volunteers load items for the pantries, shelters and meal sites. The
last distribution vehicle is on its way by 4:00 p.m.
SUPERVALU has offered to increase the frequency of the
donations when the Food Resource Center is complete. Bulk commodities,
available through county and state programs, will also become a resource
for the food pantries. The Center will be a drop site for large
deliveries of food from Second Harvest Heartland. It can be safely
stored until redistribution to the pantries.
United Way has a special opportunity to build the
Center because of a unique partnership with Trinity Lutheran Church.
Trinity is leasing United Way the land for the building for $1 per year
– making this important distribution center possible at a greatly
reduced cost.
United Way St. Croix Valley already has a strong
partnership with nonprofit agencies working to address basic human needs
– shelters, meal programs emergency assistance and food pantries.
Trinity’s furniture ministry is part of that safety net. The Food
Resource Center will take these critical community programs to a whole
new level of service.
WHAT SUCCESS WILL MEAN
