Hunger is a challenge we face together

Editor:

Earlier this month, when SNAP food benefits were suddenly frozen during the federal shutdown, hundreds of Gunnison Valley families faced nearly two weeks of fear and uncertainty. Even after benefits were restored on November 13, it took several more days for many residents to receive their benefits, and the ripple effects have continued. As grocery and housing costs rise, more of our neighbors are struggling.

During those difficult days, our community stepped up. Mountain Roots Food Project expanded our Backyard Harvest bi-weekly food box program from 130 to 160 families, supported extended hours and Saturday distribution at the Food Pantry, and—together with 35 volunteers—packed and delivered 218 Thanksgiving meal boxes to households across the valley.

Last week, during deliveries, a grandmother who is raising her grandkids on her own told us quietly, “Times are tough and our budget is tight. I didn’t know how I’d cook a Thanksgiving meal for my grandkids this year. This box gave us a holiday.”

Volunteers like Jon Morrisey, who delivers Backyard Harvest boxes each Tuesday, saw the need firsthand. “Some places just broke my heart,” he shared. “You can see how hard it is to live in this community. But people are always thankful.”

We also knew our AmeriCorps service members—who are doing much of the hands-on work packing boxes and delivering food—were feeling the strain personally. To support them, Mountain Roots made the decision to provide an additional $50 per week in food stipends to all 14 of our active AmeriCorps members—$5,600 in total—so that the people doing the hands-on work of feeding this community were supported as well.

This response was only possible because of collective effort. Many people made donations to the Food Pantry and Mountain Roots worked closely with Gunnison Country Food Pantry, providing AmeriCorps service members for 18 hours to help staff the extended weekday and Saturday distribution hours. To support food relief efforts, we supplied 823 pounds of fresh produce for the Pantry’s new Saturday distributions, and Mountain Roots provided fresh salad for 600 people at the Community Thanksgiving.

This rapid response was strengthened by our AmeriCorps members, dozens of volunteers and—most of all—by our local farms, who supplied 92% of the food we distributed, along with the generous support of individual donors, businesses and foundations.

And we’re not done.

In December, Mountain Roots will distribute more than 240 Holiday Meal Boxes in the first three weeks alone, with another ~250 double-sized Christmas boxes to follow. With our expanded Backyard Harvest list, we are committed to sustaining bi-weekly food support for all 160 families through the winter. Mountain Roots will continue to support and collaborate with the Food Pantry as well—our AmeriCorps members do weekly food rescue pickups, collect vegetable waste and drop off at local farms and when our own gardens and farms are active, we provide hundreds of pounds of fresh produce to stock the Pantry’s shelves.

As we continue this work, we want our community to know two things: help is available and support from neighbors truly makes a difference.

If you or someone you know needs assistance, please visit www.mountainrootsfoodproject.org. We are accepting requests for weekly fresh food boxes (regular support) and Christmas / Holiday Food Boxes (one-time support). Sign ups are available in English and Spanish.

If you’re able to support this work—through volunteering, donating, or simply spreading the word— know that just $50 provides a food box for one household, and can make a huge difference to a family in need. Your help truly matters.

Together, we can ensure no one in our valley goes hungry.

Holly Conn

Executive director, Mountain Roots Food Project