Bigfork Food Bank sees uptick in use, while increasing its outreach

Bigfork Food Bank Executive Director Kathy Kaestner said she lies awake at night and thinks of the different ways they can reach all of the people in the community who need their services.

“We're actually looking at the hours right now, we might extend them a little bit just because we've been getting so many more people,” Kaestener said. “The last few months with the economy, people can't afford food or gas, and we're just seeing a lot more new clients coming in,”

The organization feeds 300 families a month, but Kaestner said she’s never afraid of running out of food. The generosity in the community knows no bounds, she says, and when they are short on something — like stuffing around Thanksgiving — she is not surprised to see that someone had thought of that too, leaving ample amounts of just what they need without ever asking.

“This community is so awesome. We will find a way to feed them all, if they need us. We want them here,” Kaestner said. “Even if the drop-off box has already been checked, I'll get here, not check it, and later find it full. People just go grocery shopping and they drop stuff by here.”

The food bank offers a large grocery store-like space with shelves full of canned goods, dry goods and lots of fresh fruits, vegetables and dairy. Patrons can browse and shop for themselves and their families like they would at a regular store, volunteers weigh the food as they leave and nothing is owed.

Kaestner said her job as executive director involves dealing with the public and coordinating the 50 volunteers. A volunteer herself, Kaestner said she learned a lot from long-time Bigfork Food Bank veteran Ann Tucker when she started in the position at the beginning of 2022.

She said their operation was “already running beautifully” but just needed a little more organization from a leadership standpoint.

“Once I got that set up, it's amazing what a good job everybody does, it really is. Especially considering they don't have to, they're all volunteers, including me, but it gets in your blood and you just want this thing to work … the community is amazing, just how much they support this because we don't take any government funding, Bigfork supports this food bank,” Kaestner said.

Community support also allowed them to recently purchase a walk-in cooler needed to store many of the refrigerated items that had previously been stored in several grocery store coolers, which are not meant to be used as storage and frequently break.

The next project they are eyeing is a refrigerated van, she said. On Fridays, the food bank participates in “grocery rescue” with local grocery stores that donate food past its sell-by date. This doesn’t mean the food is bad, but it would otherwise be thrown away.

Kaestner said the Bigfork Food Bank partners with the Lakeside Food Bank, which has a refrigerated van to pick up food from grocery stores.

“The big thing right now is the van. We want to be able to purchase a refrigerated van because it'll just allow us to go to any grocery store and get meat and things that they can give us. So financial donations right now are probably as important as the food donations,” Kaestner said.

The food bank created a brochure outlining its services to distribute at nearby schools. about services at the food bank to give out to students at nearby schools.

Kaestner said the brochure is aimed at reaching as many people as possible who could benefit from utilizing the food bank.

“When I talk to the teachers at the schools, they know which kids are food insecure. And they don't come here and it breaks my heart because I'm like, ‘Why? Why? Why are their parents not coming?’ Here, look at this, they can shop, and there's no judgment, we're just here for them,” Kaestner said.

Generally, the Bigfork Food Bank is open the first and third Tuesdays of the month from 4 to 6 p.m., and the second and fourth Tuesdays of the month from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The food bank is closed on the fifth Tuesday. For more information, visit bigforkfoodbank.org.