Adria Hembree

Starting this Week, Nourish Mobile Food Bank in Parkland

Posted on by Adria Hembree

Our newest mobile food bank site begins June 12 at the Church for All Nations in Parkland (111 112th St E, Parkland). Every Wednesday, our mobile food bank will be outside the church from 4:30 to 6:30pm. If you know people in need of food in the Parkland and southern Tacoma area, please make sure they know about this new location.

The Nourish Pierce County mobile food banks are full-service food banks on wheels. They provide clients with the same amount of food as if they visited one of our fixed location food banks and they use the same self-select service model. With this newest site, we now have eighteen mobile food bank sites around Pierce County.

New Report Released about Food Insecurity on College Campuses

Posted on by Adria Hembree

College students continue to face food insecurity and hunger.

According to the annual update of the largest survey in the nation studying the basic needs of college students, 48% of students who attend two year schools such as community and technical colleges faced food insecurity in the last 30 days. 38% of these students reported that they ate less than they should because they didn’t have enough money to buy more food. 12% of students at two-year institutions did not eat for a full day because they did not have enough money for food. Food insecurity is even higher among marginalized students including African Americans, LGBTQ students, students who are financially independent from their parents, those who used to be in foster care and students with disabilities and chronic medical conditions. Two-thirds of the students who were food insecure are employed and working in addition to being enrolled in school.

For the report, “College and University Basic Needs Insecurity” researchers from the Hope Center for College, Community, and Justice at Temple University analyzed survey results from more than 80,000 students nationwide, including some in Washington.

The results follow on a 2018 study of University of Washington students, also released in May. That study, which included UW Seattle, Bothell and Tacoma campuses, found that 25% of students worried about not having enough to eat.

To help address food insecurity for college students in Pierce County, Nourish has partnered with local community & technical colleges to provide food bank services directly on their campuses. Our mobile food bank visits Bates Technical College, Clover Park Technical College, Pierce College Puyallup, Pierce College Fort Steilacoom and Tacoma Community College for two hours shifts once each week. From our food banks, clients receive nutritious food for themselves and their families so they can make it through the week. While our food banks are on campuses, they are open to anyone in the community who is in need of food, not just students.

To learn more about the expansion of our mobile food banks, read Nourish Launches Mobile Food Banks at Local Colleges.
To find the schedule for our food banks, visit our Food Bank Locations page.
To support our ability to provide this service, Donate to Nourish.

Nourishing our Neighbors: Linda

Posted on by Adria Hembree

Linda and her family have been clients at the Northwest Tacoma Nourish Food Bank for about six months.

“It’s absolutely wonderful,” Linda says. “The people are awesome and so nice.”

She explains that she moved in with her youngest daughter a few months ago in order to save money on expenses and so she can help out more with her grandchildren. “There are eight of us here at the house. It’s been a good thing to move in together.”

Both she and her daughter work, but it is not enough to pay her household expenses. “We make too much to get food stamps, but don’t make enough to pay our bills and buy food.” She explains that, before she found the food bank that, “there were times when the kids did not have food in the cabinets. The grandkids are excited when I go because they know they can get something they like.”

The number of families like Linda’s are growing. According to a 2016 Pew Research study, there are 29 million people in the U.S. where three generations – a grandparent, an adult child, and a grandchild – all live in the same home.

Linda’s family is an example of an ALICE household. ALICE stands for “Asset-Limited, Income Constrained Employed.” It refers to households that have working family members who make enough that they are above the poverty line, disqualifying them from many types of state assistance. But, their incomes are still so low that they don’t make enough to pay all of their household expenses like rent, transportation, prescriptions, medical expenses, childcare, and food. According to the local United Way, 24% of households in Pierce County are ALICE households because of low wages and a high cost of living.

Linda appreciates that the food bank is open at a convenient time for her – she visits on Saturdays – and says the amount of food she receives is large. “We don’t go every weekend because we get enough that it gets us through a few weeks.”

Linda says she really relies on the food bank staff and volunteers. “It’s had a huge impact. I don’t know what I’d do without them.” It’s been huge relief for her family. “When the kids can eat, then everything is better.”