News and Notes on Solving Hunger in South Dakota

Winter 2020

Showing Seniors They Haven’t Been Forgotten

Deborah and her husband would often go without food if it weren’t for your kindness and compassion!

Deborah and her husband are struggling in their senior years. In addition to health challenges, they rely solely on her husband’s disability income and it’s difficult to stretch their meager income to cover all their expenses.

“My husband’s on disability and cannot drive, so I’m the only driver in the house. He’s on oxygen because he has COPD and cancer. We have an older trailer because we can’t afford to live anywhere else. Usually by the middle of the month we don’t have any money at all because we pay our rent and then we pay lot rent. Gas is so high we hardly drive anywhere unless we really have to, so we’re mostly homebound,” Deborah said.

Deborah used to visit Feeding South Dakota’s Food Pantry in Rapid City until she heard that we hosted a local mobile food distribution in her neighborhood. She was overjoyed because it’s closer to her home and much easier for her to get the food they need.

She said, “This kind of gets us out of the house. We meet different people because everybody is so nice here — even people you don’t know.”

Deborah really appreciates how the volunteers ensure she gets food that she can actually use. “I mostly make soups and stews for my husband because he can’t chew and I don’t have that many teeth left,” she said. “They give us vegetables and canned stuff, or apples that I can chop up and bake. I don’t usually buy that kind of stuff when we do go to the store because it’s very expensive. One meal has to last us a couple weeks.”

Deborah and her husband have been visiting their local pantry for about four years now, and she doesn’t know what

she would do without the help. She sees such tremendous need in the community as she talks to other people in line, and she is grateful for generous friends like you who support the Food Bank and programs like this.

“I appreciate everybody that donates. Me and my husband wouldn’t be able to eat sometimes without your help,” she said through tears. “I can’t put it into words . . . really, I just appreciate it.”

Deborah and her husband are just one couple among the many seniors here in South Dakota who are struggling to get by on a limited income. That’s why your support is so important to ensure food gets to elderly men and women, as well as the children and families we serve. Thank you for caring about our hungry neighbors, and giving generously to help feed people of all ages!

Usually by the middle of the month we don’t have any money at all. Me and my husband wouldn’t be able to eat sometimes without your help.

This past holiday season was incredible, thanks to your heartfelt support! You helped us hand out more turkeys than ever before, 3,400 to be exact, as well as all the side dishes to create a holiday feast. (To read more about the difference you made, see the back page.)

I’m so thankful for how you gave children, families and seniors here in South Dakota a reason to celebrate, but our work is far from over. This time of year, the weather really challenges families as the cost of utilities continues to go up. In South Dakota, in the dead of winter, if you’re going to keep your family safe and warm you have to have heat and the money to pay for it.

Many people that we work with also have transportation that isn’t very reliable even in the best of days. When you add in the factor of sub-zero weather and anything that’s wrong with the car, it’s going to manifest itself in the coldest of weather. There are just bigger challenges for our families during this time of year.

That’s why I’m so thankful for the incredible generosity of friends like you. You help people like Deborah and her husband (cover story) who are living in an old trailer and dealing with health issues. Without your support, we wouldn’t be able to provide that food to individuals and families in need.

I hope you will continue to foster a spirit of good will and generosity even though the holidays are over. Now, more than ever, we need to reach out and lend a helping hand to those in need. Thank you.

Matt Gassen

2 | AROUND THE TABLE

Surviving the Winter Chill

When you add in the factor of sub-zero weather … there are just bigger challenges for our families during this time of year.

AROUND THE TABLE

WITH MATT GASSEN, CEO

8th ANNUAL EMPTY BOWLS

The 8th annual Empty Bowls event will be held on Thursday, April 23rd at 11:00am, 12:30pm and 5:30pm at the Surbeck Center in Rapid City. This event benefits Feeding South Dakota’s Child Hunger Programs, including the BackPack Program, providing a weekend package of food to nearly 1,900 at-risk children during the school year and another 700 children in the summer. Nearly one in every six children in South Dakota lives in poverty. Children are suffering from a lack of food and shelter. Many families suffer from not only a lack of resources but also hope.

For more information and to purchase tickets online, visit feedingsouthdakota.org/emptybowls or call Shawn Burke at 605.348.2689, ext. 203.

We need BOWLS! Pottery2Paint has been a gracious supporter of this event since the very beginning in 2013. From January 10 - April 10, community members are invited to paint a bowl and donate it to the event for just $15 (plus tax) which includes the studio fee plus a $5 donation to Feeding South Dakota! A HUGE "Thank you!" to Pottery2Paint for donating all the bowls. Tickets to the event will also be available for purchase at Pottery2Paint at a discount. Please call 605.716.3331 to make reservations for larger groups.

Helping Students Succeed in School

AROUND THE TABLE | 3

Anita and her team work hard to ensure no child in their school district goes hungry — and you are working alongside them!

Anita Deranleau helped establish the monthly food distributions at General Beadle Elementary School about 7 years ago. As the McKinney-Vento coordinator with Rapid City Area Schools, she saw the tremendous need to help students and families in the area, and reached out to Feeding South Dakota for help.

“I ended up at Feeding South Dakota saying, ‘I can’t purchase food. How can I get food to my families?’ We developed a relationship and now I have a great, great ability to help families,” she said.

One of the biggest challenges she faces is that it’s hard to know exactly who needs help and how to reach them. She said, “Families move quite often, so we’re constantly searching and looking. We identify hungry kids every single school day … our job is never done. Some families are hesitant, and we have difficult conversations. But once they find out we’re here to help, they’re quite willing to participate.”

In addition to the mobile food distribution, Anita and her team also hand out packages of nutritious food through the BackPack Program to help sustain children over weekends and long holidays, and provide emergency food assistance when needed.

“Sometimes parents will say, ‘We don’t have any food tonight and the kids are going to start school tomorrow.’ We can hand them some emergency food and know that those kids had supper that night. I have a family that came in last week who was living in their car. When we give out emergency food we’ve seen little toddlers reach in the bag and grab a frozen hot dog and start chewing because they’re hungry. So it’s a huge thing for families to have that ability to get food immediately. If you’ve been all night without food, empty tummies need to be filled.”

Anita is thankful for the compassionate support of friends like you, who give generously to ensure students and families in her school district aren’t hungry and forgotten.

“It’s sad to think that anyone in the U.S. has to do without food. It’s key that we share so others who are struggling have the ability to feed their families, especially children. When students are able to access regular food, we know from experience that they’re better able to focus in school and do the tasks that are needed because they haven’t been hungry all weekend or overnight. So it’s huge for our families. Out of the bottom of my heart, I thank the volunteers who help and the people that donate to Feeding South Dakota.”

UPDATE: Since we spoke with Anita, the food distribution at General Beadle has been replaced with a NEW mobile food distribution route to better serve people in surrounding areas utilizing our new mobile food pantry truck. This fully stocked food distribution truck currently visits 14 different neighborhoods in Rapid City that have been identified as food deserts — meaning residents have little to no access to affordable, nutritious foods — to bring food directly to them. This monthly mobile food pantry gives each family fresh and frozen produce, dairy, meat, breads and other non-perishable food items.

We are so thankful to Anita for all her help with the General Beadle food distribution these past 7 years, and are excited to see how the generosity of friends like you will help us continue to expand the locations served by the mobile food pantry to reach even more of our neighbors in need!

15-SXFSD-0220-N4 | AROUND THE TABLE

A Thanksgiving to Remember!

more than

3,400families

3,400turkeys

11,200pounds of

canned goods

21,000pounds of

fresh produce

2,100pies

you MADE THIS YEAR’S TURKEY GIVEAWAY & DRIVE OUR BIGGEST AND BEST ONE EVER!

This year, you helped serve …

For our neighbors who are unable to regularly put food on the table, Thanksgiving could be just another day of hunger. But thanks to your outstanding generosity, men, women and children across our great state had a reason to celebrate!

Feeding South Dakota hosted our 2019 Turkey Giveaway & Drive on November 19, 2019. This year we offered three

locations to reach hungry people in Pierre, Sioux Falls and Rapid City. Every family who visited was able to drive up and receive all the food for a holiday feast, including a frozen 10-12 lb. turkey, stuffing and gravy, a can of green beans, a can of cranberries, fresh apples, potatoes, and a pie.

CONTACT USTo protect the identity of those that Feeding South Dakota serves, some photos in this newsletter are for representation only.

Feeding South Dakota4701 N Westport Ave

Sioux Falls, SD 57107-0123605.335.0364

FeedingSouthDakota.org