Food banks ramp up for holidays

Families and food banks alike are preparing for the Thanksgiving holiday. Fortunately for many families, the food organizations have been hard at work preparing to help them.

The Flathead Food Bank is planning to provide 2,000 holiday baskets full of food for Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners.

By Nov. 14, the Flathead Food Bank had accumulated 5,451 pounds of food and $840 to help purchase more, collected through a number of food drives held by the food bank and local businesses.

Bob Helder, director of development at Flathead Food Bank, said the organization expects 800 to 1,200 families to pick up Thanksgiving dinner packages on Monday.

Those in need have to sign up by today at noon to receive the holiday baskets.

The Flathead Building Association and Kalispell Downtown Association delivered 120 turkey dinners to the Flathead Food Bank on Thursday, bringing the food bank’s turkey total to about 180.

There has been a significant reduction in the number of turkeys this year and an increase in price, Helder said, so some families might receive a Thanksgiving ham instead of a turkey this year.

“If you think the recession is over, it’s not. At least not here,” Helder said on Wednesday. “We gave 1,645,000 pounds of food last year and we expect that number to rise this year.”

Helder said poverty isn’t dropping in the Flathead Valley simply because there are more jobs available. Most are entry-level positions, he said, and a single mom can usually only pay for the average cost of rent and day care on minimum wage.

“I’m just glad we’re being used,” Helder said.

The Flathead Food Bank is still looking for donations of turkeys, sweet potatoes, clear Jell-O, olives, gravy, pumpkin, hot chocolate, chicken broth and evaporated milk, but all food products are accepted.

Food can be brought to the food bank at 1203 U.S. 2 in Kalispell.

Down the road in Evergreen at the Northwest Montana Veterans Food Pantry, the quantity of food has nearly reached what the pantry needs.

Following substantial donations of turkeys by the community, the only needed item on the Veterans Food Pantry list is pumpkin pie.

At one point recently, the food bank had only three turkeys available before local benefactors stepped up.

“We’re so thankful to the community for all the turkeys,” said Linda Erickson, director of programs.

Erickson said the food pantry hasn’t weighed the total food donated so far, but it should be enough for the 116 families registered to pick up Thanksgiving dinners.

The Veterans Food Pantry only offers one holiday dinner, Thanksgiving or Christmas, but the amount of food is meant to feed additional family members who might be joining the veterans for the holiday.

“We give them enough for a big family dinner so they can have all the fixings,” Erickson said.

In Whitefish, SueAnn Grogan is preparing for the 160 families she expects when the North Valley Food Bank offers holiday meals on Tuesday from noon to 3 p.m.

In addition to these families, Grogan said food bank volunteers will deliver holiday meals to about 40 seniors and disabled residents.

“The holiday seasons are just hard on folks who live day to day,” Grogan said.

The grocery bags going to folks in need will contain potatoes, vegetables, cranberries and Cornish hens or turkeys. Grogan said the North Valley Food Bank still needs nuts and fresh or canned fruit. While fresh fruit usually isn’t the best item to donate, Thanksgiving is an exception, she said.

Grogan still was counting cash donations and weighing food on Thursday, but said people have donated thousands of dollars to Thanksgiving efforts.

“People are really good to us,” Grogan said. “And it’s just the giving season, right?”

Reporter Seaborn Larson may be reached at 758-4441 or by email at slarson@dailyinterlake.com.