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The Vital Mission of Food Banks in Pennsylvania, Inside PA Boroughs

"The Vital Mission of Food Banks in Pennsylvania." [2025] Inside Pennsylvania Boroughs is produced by the PA State Association of Boroughs.

Caption Text Below:    

00:00 - This program has been paid

00:01 - for by the sponsor and does not reflect the views of PCN.

00:05 - Hello and welcome to Inside

00:08 - Pennsylvania Burrows.

00:12 - Food insecurity

00:14 - is a household level economic and social condition

00:17 - involving limited or uncertain access to adequate food for a healthy life.

00:23 - It can be caused by factors such as low income,

00:26 - high food prices, financial hardship,

00:29 - and disruptions to food supplies.

00:32 - The adverse impacts of food insecurity are significant

00:36 - and can impact physical, mental, and social health.

00:40 - Food insecurity is highly common

00:42 - in our communities, yet it is not always obvious.

00:46 - Feeding Pennsylvania has estimated that over 1.5

00:50 - million Pennsylvanians are confronting food insecurity.

00:55 - Even more concerning is the fact that 1 in 6 children

00:58 - across the Commonwealth is experiencing hunger.

01:02 - This significant issue is adversely impacting

01:04 - urban and rural communities across Pennsylvania.

01:08 - Numerous federal and state programs, such as Snap

01:11 - are intended to help address these policy challenges.

01:14 - However, more funding is needed to properly address food insecurity.

01:19 - Food banks across Pennsylvania have proven to be reliable

01:23 - and dedicated to the mission of assisting families, seniors, and children in need.

01:30 - Joining us today

01:31 - are Julie Bancroft, CEO of Feeding Pennsylvania.

01:34 - Shiela Orrick, CEO of the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank,

01:39 - Tony Mark, resource development director at the Salvation Army, Harrisburg

01:43 - Capital City Region, and David Council, executive director of Neighbor Helping

01:48 - Neighbor Food Bank in New Bloomfield, Perry County.

01:51 - Now, here is your host and executive director

01:54 - of the Pennsylvania State Association of Burros, Chris Katz.

01:58 - Good day everyone.

01:59 - Food security is a moral imperative.

02:02 - All people should have equal access and unrestricted access to food.

02:07 - Our food banks across this great commonwealth are helping

02:10 - those in need, and we appreciate their exceptional efforts.

02:13 - Julie, welcome to the set.

02:14 - Tell us about the mission of your organization. Sure. Thank you.

02:17 - So feeding Pennsylvania is the state association

02:20 - of nine Feeding America affiliated food banks.

02:23 - So we are really there to support them in driving their mission

02:27 - and serving the communities.

02:30 - We help with

02:31 - securing resources like funding to help them do more for the community.

02:36 - We're also a collective voice and advocacy, really trying to,

02:40 - have that statewide presence on, state

02:44 - advocacy issues and policy issues

02:46 - and working in tandem with Feeding America on federal policy issues.

02:51 - I would also say that we administer some statewide programs,

02:54 - including the PA Agricultural Surplus System,

02:57 - which is an incredible program that connects Pennsylvania

03:00 - agricultural products with the charitable Food network,

03:04 - and also the what we call the Healthy Pantry initiative,

03:07 - which is really designed to help, resources flow through the food banks

03:11 - and into pantries to help individuals make healthy decisions

03:14 - and use those, everyday pantry products in their own homes.

03:18 - And Shiloh Central PA food Bank is a tremendous organization.

03:22 - Thank you.

03:22 - Thank you so much.

03:23 - Central Pennsylvania Food Bank endeavors to strengthen, lives, fight hunger,

03:28 - and, strengthen our communities within this, 27 county area that we serve.

03:33 - So we have a big swath of Pennsylvania.

03:35 - We cover, from the New York border down to the Maryland border.

03:38 - And as far west as Clearfield County and as far east as Lancaster County.

03:42 - And so we have 1130 agency partners who, do kind of the boots on the ground work.

03:49 - So we bring in the resources, of, of food and dollars to be able

03:53 - to support the agencies and put that back into the system

03:56 - so that the agencies who are serving neighbors directly are able to do that

04:00 - in a more efficient and, and an easier way, hopefully.

04:03 - And, Tony, the Salvation Army, a long standing legacy of helping people.

04:06 - Tell us about the mission.

04:08 - Absolutely. Yeah.

04:08 - The salvation Army since, 1865, has been seeking

04:12 - to meet the basic needs of individuals that were struggling.

04:15 - And we know that, access to food and hunger is one of the very basic needs.

04:20 - And if that need is not met, it is so much more difficult to support,

04:25 - you know, the other issues that a person is experiencing.

04:28 - So we know that for the community members that are they're struggling right

04:31 - now, food is one of the very first things we need to overcome.

04:35 - And David neighbor helping neighbor, a major pillar in Perry County.

04:39 - Yes. Neighbor helping neighbor food bank, serving all of Perry County.

04:43 - And we're a great partner with the central PA food Bank.

04:46 - So we are very thankful and grateful for that partnership.

04:49 - And, we are really the boots on the ground organization

04:52 - helping, helping our neighbors in Perry County.

04:55 - These are tough economic times.

04:57 - There are people in need.

04:58 - What are the demographics of those people that that need assistance?

05:02 - So we talk all the time, and I'm sure the same is for

05:05 - all of our guests here today.

05:06 - Is that hunger has no bounds.

05:09 - It really impacts everyone.

05:11 - It impacts every legislative district,

05:13 - every every corner of every community of this Commonwealth.

05:17 - I think there is often a misconception about what that looks like.

05:20 - And I'm sure everyone else here can tell you more about what they see

05:24 - on the ground, but, we know that it disproportion impacts

05:28 - folks in rural communities seniors, veterans, and children,

05:32 - 1 in 6 children, unfortunately, in the Commonwealth experience hunger.

05:37 - Yeah.

05:37 - We see that, from our hunger mapping that we do within our communities.

05:41 - There's a pretty big, misnomer about who it is that seeking help.

05:46 - And in some communities, it's as high as 90% of individuals

05:50 - who use resources like food pantries are individuals who are either

05:55 - working disabled or elderly and and getting pension or social security.

06:00 - So it sort of flies in the face of what we typically think about,

06:03 - of the individuals who are trying to seek services.

06:06 - It's single parents who aren't making enough to be able to make ends meet.

06:10 - And we also know that children are disproportionately more likely

06:13 - to be food insecure in our communities, and that should be alarming for all of us.

06:17 - So, Tony, there are people living paycheck to paycheck as well

06:20 - that fit in this demographic. What are you seeing on the ground?

06:22 - Absolutely.

06:23 - I mean, just to kind of add on to what they're saying, there's

06:26 - a diverse group of people that are struggling right now.

06:30 - And because hunger is not an isolated issue.

06:33 - Everything that goes along with it, we see folks who are,

06:36 - struggling to meet their medical care, their rent, their utilities.

06:39 - And so they're making these really hard choices between food, medicine.

06:44 - And so when we talk about who are we

06:46 - serving, we're serving those with any kind of medical needs, those

06:50 - who are paying rent, those are paying, you know, utility, increased costs.

06:53 - So it's it's a struggle right now.

06:56 - And we've seen to,

06:58 - you know, of course, we've always served those who are living in poverty,

07:01 - but especially as everything has gotten more and more expensive,

07:04 - we've seen an increase in the working poor, those who are working,

07:07 - but just can't quite meet it all right now.

07:10 - And I would say in Perry County, you know, even though it is very rural,

07:15 - about 8% of the population lives in poverty.

07:18 - And with that, 13% are children.

07:22 - So really trying to bridge the gap between the food insecurity

07:26 - and making sure

07:26 - that they have enough resources that they're able to feed their family.

07:30 - How important is funding not just on the state and federal level,

07:33 - but also partnerships with other corporate nonprofits?

07:37 - And at the same time, whether legislation or regulatory movements

07:40 - are you monitoring or advocating for on the state federal level?

07:44 - So funding is, state and federal funding is really critical for,

07:47 - the charitable Food Network.

07:49 - At the state level, we have currently nearly

07:53 - $26 million invested in the state food line item, and that supports

07:58 - the state food purchase program and the PA agricultural surplus system.

08:02 - And then at the federal level, of course, Snap is the nation's,

08:05 - first line defense against hunger.

08:08 - And also fact, the emergency Food Assistance program.

08:11 - So all of those programs are critical

08:14 - and then that also needs to be supported by philanthropic dollars.

08:18 - Hey, I think most people would find it interesting that at the food bank level,

08:23 - we see about one sixth of our product inventory is through

08:27 - USDA product, through, the Tap program.

08:30 - So it's not as much as you would think, but when you're working in 75 million

08:34 - pounds of food, one sixth of of that gone away,

08:38 - we've seen tremendous decreases in some of that product.

08:41 - Just on the product side alone.

08:43 - We've also seen it decreases in some of the other funding.

08:47 - Like program that was cut earlier this year

08:50 - called, the local food purchase act.

08:53 - And that allowed us to be able to purchase farm fresh foods from,

08:57 - small and mid-sized farmers.

08:59 - It was $170,000 per month that we just are not seeing anymore.

09:03 - So while our budget isn't huge on the the state and federal side, it's

09:07 - still enough to be, a giant, challenge for us to try to make that up.

09:13 - And quite frankly, it's just not something that we can do easily.

09:16 - But we do also work in economy of scale

09:19 - so we can turn $1 into four meals, which is really remarkable.

09:24 - We're able to utilize, all of those contacts that we have in the farm world.

09:28 - And then to end food manufacturers, you know, we we live in a really,

09:32 - a dense place for that.

09:33 - We're, we're lucky to live in a place where we have sort of,

09:36 - you know, the highways and byways of being able to make those connections.

09:40 - And so those are really important things for us so that we can turn those dollars

09:44 - into real good food items that people want.

09:47 - So in our inventory,

09:49 - about 50% of the inventory that we have is either fresh or frozen.

09:53 - Which is also kind of a misnomer when people think about food pantries

09:56 - and food, resources, they think about canned items, that sort of thing.

10:00 - But we really work hard to make sure we're getting center of the plate items

10:04 - milk, eggs, rice and protein producers are are like

10:08 - most, desired items within our service territory.

10:12 - Yeah.

10:13 - I mean, to talk to a nonprofit about funding.

10:15 - I mean, when prices all increase,

10:19 - obviously there's an increased struggle for the community members.

10:22 - More are coming to ask for help.

10:24 - And of course, then our prices, our costs go up, our budget goes up.

10:29 - And then those that support the mission, they might be a little bit

10:32 - more restricted about what they can give because they're restricted as well.

10:36 - So, sometimes we'll see.

10:38 - Need goes up, costs go up.

10:40 - And, support goes down.

10:42 - And so that's why we really rely on partnerships.

10:46 - Like what the Central Pennsylvania Food bank, because they can,

10:49 - you know, do the work that they're doing, you know, get all these millions

10:53 - of pounds of food and then offer that down to us at an affordable price.

10:56 - So this is really a food insecurity ecosystem

11:00 - that is so fragile and so dependent upon each other.

11:03 - So it's so important that we talk like this.

11:06 - And I would say, you know, with, with Sheila and the food bank, you know,

11:09 - being able to leverage their ability to purchase food, and,

11:13 - and us be able to get that through them is very critical for us.

11:17 - Being a smaller food bank, oftentimes we're relying on individuals

11:22 - in the community, to support us, financially

11:26 - and with, in-kind donations with food.

11:29 - We have a very good, partnership with a lot of the churches in the Perry

11:33 - County area, who are very generous in supporting us, through the food bank.

11:38 - So really looking for those individual donors on the community level

11:43 - to help support us and help our neighbors walk us through.

11:46 - For the viewers at home,

11:47 - what were some of the key

11:48 - considerations involved when we had the congressional impasse, the shutdown?

11:53 - The threat, the snap?

11:54 - It's almost it's a doomsday scenario.

11:57 - What are some of the key considerations logistically?

12:00 - How do you engage and mobilize your volunteers

12:03 - to prepare for that type of a scenario?

12:06 - Because it's significant.

12:08 - Yeah, I

12:09 - would say all of our food banks, including central PA,

12:12 - just started bracing for what was to come because like I said before,

12:17 - snap is the largest Anti-hunger program provides

12:20 - nine meals for every one meal that a food bank can can provide.

12:23 - So we knew that

12:25 - there was no way that the terrible Food Network could bridge that gap.

12:29 - So I think it was really lots of education, you know, for the public.

12:33 - And then just bracing for what we could, do to serve the communities

12:38 - and then also advocating for, state resources that were held up

12:42 - in the, in the budget impasse because, you know, we rely on those to,

12:46 - to move resources through the community, especially at a time like this.

12:51 - We've taken a few actions, the Central Pennsylvania food bank,

12:54 - level one, we were able to leverage a few, pretty sizable donations

12:59 - to the food bank, which we put right back into our agency partners.

13:03 - So we took funds that we raised and put them on account

13:06 - for our agency partners to be able to utilize

13:09 - so that they would have money to spend at the food bank.

13:12 - We also invested in, just preparing for more inventory.

13:17 - So, as you might imagine, you know, ordering,

13:19 - truckload of something may take a little bit of a lead time to be able to get in.

13:23 - So we wanted to make sure that we had, ample quantities of food

13:27 - and good foods that agencies needed and wanted in response to that,

13:32 - we also were really appreciative of Governor Shapiro's efforts

13:36 - to get emergency pass funds,

13:38 - distributed in quickly to the food banks across Pennsylvania.

13:42 - And so we took that, and again, distributed that to our agency partners.

13:46 - And, now they have the ability to, to buy things like milk, eggs,

13:50 - butter, produce, that sort of thing within our food bank system.

13:54 - So, I think it really was just looking at what our, what we were hearing

13:59 - from the agency partners and the community and what we were able to

14:04 - then just take and and level up a little bit

14:06 - more than we would typically have done at this time,

14:09 - just knowing that we would have an increase.

14:11 - So we looked at data from the first week of November in 2024

14:15 - and the first week of November in this year,

14:17 - and we had a 40% increase of visits to our charitable food network.

14:21 - So when we talk about unprecedented times, I think I'm almost like over

14:26 - that expression. Right.

14:27 - But this truly was because

14:28 - we've never seen a disruption to snap before in the history of the program.

14:32 - And so now we know what that might look like.

14:35 - And, you know, looking at what this might look like in, you know,

14:39 - July of 2027, when the state's going to be responsible

14:42 - for a much larger take of Snap than they've ever been responsible for.

14:47 - So while this was a moment, this is this is a marathon, not a sprint,

14:52 - and I think we're in it for the long haul and food insecurity topics.

14:56 - Yeah.

14:56 - I mean, boots on the ground, we say, okay, well, our phones are getting more,

15:00 - our emails are coming in, people are walking in more.

15:03 - So how are we going to work through this?

15:05 - Our food pantry was at capacity, prior to anything going on.

15:11 - So what we've tried to do here is first take an approach of

15:14 - we can do what we can do, and we're going to serve every person

15:17 - with a dignified, compassionate experience.

15:20 - And then on top of that, how can we up our emergency boxes?

15:23 - We've, doubled the amount of emergency boxes going out every week.

15:27 - We're trying to make it as clear as possible, for a we have a lot of new

15:31 - community members who are looking for support that haven't in the past.

15:35 - So we're making sure that,

15:36 - the instructions on how to get an appointment is very clear.

15:39 - We're providing the assistance,

15:41 - you know, that they might need to be able to make an appointment.

15:43 - And then, you know, each day we're just trying to show up

15:47 - with compassion, grace, understanding and just,

15:50 - you know, do what we can do as we all get through it together.

15:54 - And for us, a neighbor helping neighbor, we really try to bulk up

15:57 - on our inventory leading into, November.

16:01 - So then that way, we had enough inventory on hand for folks

16:04 - that we're going to be coming to the food bank,

16:05 - because we knew that we're going to see an increase in that.

16:08 - And actually, we were pretty fortunate with our volunteers.

16:12 - We have a good group of volunteers who make sure that they're keeping

16:15 - our shelves stocked.

16:17 - And our, our produce out, and just making sure

16:20 - that there's a nice variety for the folks coming through.

16:24 - And actually, the new birth of freedom boy Scout

16:26 - Council recently had their annual food drive, their scouting for food drive.

16:31 - That was a tremendous impact for us.

16:33 - That brought in approximately 8,400 pounds of food,

16:36 - to the food bank, which is going to be phenomenal to help

16:39 - get us through, this time now, I think it's amazing.

16:43 - Our food banks

16:43 - have really been resilient through you look at the 2008, 2009 banking crisis.

16:47 - You look at the pandemic, and they've been so resilient.

16:51 - Tell us about some of the innovations, some of the programs that you're

16:55 - especially proud of.

16:56 - I know Feeding Pennsylvania, anyone that visits that website will see,

17:00 - just tremendous programs far reaching across the Commonwealth.

17:03 - But what are you most proud of?

17:05 - Well, I just want to reiterate, your comment

17:07 - about the resilience of the network.

17:09 - I mean, it's it's so inspiring to see what

17:12 - the food bank network is able to do in a moment like this.

17:15 - And under an incredible pressure and, you know, trying

17:20 - to meet every meet the need with dignity, something that I'm really proud of.

17:24 - And Sheila mentioned in is the past program

17:26 - and the fact that the emergency funds

17:28 - are running through the past program because it's helping to get one.

17:32 - It's investing in Pennsylvania agriculture, one of our top industries,

17:36 - and and then helping to get those really nutritious foods into,

17:41 - you know, homes across the, across the Commonwealth, those who need it most.

17:45 - And so, again, you know, Sheila already mentioned this, but,

17:49 - this misconception that, you folks are getting,

17:53 - you know, processed foods and snack foods from pantries and food banks.

17:57 - And there really is this deep partnership between agriculture

18:01 - and the terrible food system to make sure those healthy,

18:03 - nutritious foods are getting to families.

18:06 - I think one of the things that we do at Central Pennsylvania Food Bank

18:09 - that sets us apart from some other food banks within the Feeding America

18:13 - system, is we've invested heavily into our policy research.

18:16 - And so we've done, community hunger mapping for big swaths of our territory

18:21 - and will continue to invest in that work, because that work really tells us

18:24 - at a census track level where need is, how individuals need to be served.

18:29 - And we've done more than 4000 surveys throughout that service territory,

18:32 - which is really remarkable.

18:34 - But also, really has worked to inform our decision making,

18:38 - but also helps us to inform our lawmakers about what is the need out there.

18:42 - And so we're really proud of the work that we're able to do with Zach

18:45 - and his team are incredible.

18:47 - And have just really put a new focus on what we do at the

18:51 - food bank and how we do it.

18:54 - This I love this question

18:56 - because we've, done a quite a bit of work over the last ten years or so.

19:00 - One is, at least at the Harrisburg Salvation Army Corps, we have a choice

19:04 - shopping food pantry, which means that the folks who come in

19:08 - actually get to shop what they'd like according to their family size

19:11 - and their family just needs and preferences.

19:13 - This is important because if you give a family a box of food

19:18 - and you said this is what you get and they don't like it,

19:20 - or they can't eat it or something like that, it's just waste.

19:24 - And so we're able to bring them in.

19:26 - It's almost like a shopping grocery store experience.

19:29 - And they pick out,

19:30 - according to their family, what it is that they actually, would like.

19:34 - And then we also, over the last few years, put in 34

19:38 - raised garden beds so that we can grow our own food,

19:41 - which is, of course, helpful for our inventory.

19:45 - But the, the individuals we've been serving in

19:48 - this area have diversified a lot.

19:51 - We're serving a lot of different cultures.

19:53 - And in our raised garden beds, we are able to grow some produce

19:58 - that might be really palatable and preference to the different cultures

20:02 - that we're serving.

20:02 - That might be a little more difficult

20:04 - to get from the food bank or, you know, in other places.

20:07 - So we really are passionate about providing a dignified approach,

20:12 - because when you do that, you're able to create trust, create a relationship,

20:17 - and have bigger conversations about life change.

20:20 - That maybe lend to a different experience

20:25 - than needing to come to the food bank all the time.

20:29 - And I think for us, one thing that I'm really proud

20:31 - of is over the past couple of years, we've moved away from the

20:34 - the prepackaged box of food, to more of a grocery style.

20:39 - Families come in, select what that what is best for their family.

20:43 - So I'm really proud of of that movement for us.

20:45 - We make it more of, more of

20:48 - a, almost a regular shopping experience at the local grocery store.

20:53 - And I'm really proud of our volunteers, our volunteers.

20:56 - We have a great group of volunteers who, week in, week out are there.

21:02 - And we had a good group of them come in and say, hey,

21:05 - going forward,

21:06 - we know that there's going to be an increased demand

21:08 - if you need us to help out a little bit more, we're here for you.

21:12 - So we're really proud of that.

21:14 - How important is it for food banks to communicate their wins, their success,

21:17 - to demonstrate to the general public the good that they're doing?

21:21 - Feeding Pennsylvania, I think they estimated 1.5 to 1.7 million

21:25 - Pennsylvanians are experiencing food insecurity.

21:29 - But how do you communicate your wins to create a new generation

21:32 - of volunteers that can add to further advance your missions?

21:36 - So I think for feeding PA, because we are that state association,

21:40 - our role is really to elevate the incredible work of our nine food banks

21:44 - and to make sure that the community knows all of the wonderful work they do

21:48 - and how they utilize these statewide programs

21:50 - to make a difference in their communities.

21:52 - And, you know, I think it's also just, again,

21:55 - that public awareness piece about education.

21:57 - And I think that can really help people to understand the mission of food banks

22:01 - and the terrible food system

22:03 - and really motivate them to get involved with with the mission.

22:07 - Something we learned through our research is that we

22:09 - impact hunger by up to 50% in communities.

22:13 - So individuals who access the charitable food network

22:16 - more than one time per month reduce their hunger by up to 50%.

22:20 - So somewhere in the 40 to 50% range.

22:22 - And I think that's so important to highlight because it's part

22:26 - of an intricate web of how people have to sort of weave,

22:29 - their life together to be able to get the food that they need.

22:32 - With Snap benefits

22:33 - and the charitable Food Network and, you know, I think celebrating those wins.

22:37 - But I think the biggest win of all would to not have to do this work.

22:40 - And so, you know, at the end of the day, working ourselves

22:43 - out of a job would be the biggest win of all.

22:46 - Yeah.

22:46 - Just to add to that, it's hard

22:48 - to take a moment to celebrate because when you close the door

22:51 - and you know another person standing behind it, it's hard

22:54 - to even take that moment to say, let's celebrate.

22:58 - So, I mean, we're proud of the work we do.

23:01 - We're proud of those that we can serve, but our hearts are with

23:05 - those that we can't.

23:06 - And, and and really, you know, for us, a great win

23:09 - would be not having the food bank anymore because there's nobody out in our

23:14 - in our community struggling with food insecurity anymore.

23:18 - So really that would be that would be our huge win.

23:21 - That would be the biggest win that we could have,

23:23 - would be to not have to utilize the food bank anymore.

23:27 - And I think that's really what we, what we want to strive for.

23:31 - And final question today,

23:32 - just to capture the imagination of some of our younger viewers at home,

23:35 - how did you first get engaged in this work?

23:37 - And it's so rewarding.

23:39 - What set the stage for that?

23:41 - So I, spent more than a decade working in both agriculture and human services.

23:47 - So this was really, for me, a perfect marriage.

23:49 - And, to bring both of those, things together.

23:53 - And it is just really incredible to of course, we wish

23:56 - that we didn't have to do this, that hunger wasn't an issue.

23:59 - But it's just incredible to be able to support

24:02 - a network that is here for people in our community

24:05 - and to really let them know that there's, you know, we don't need that.

24:10 - There's a stigma around this that we don't want people to experience.

24:13 - We want folks to know there is a place to turn, and we're here to support them.

24:18 - I always wanted to be a helper.

24:19 - While I was working on my grad degree, I saw that there was a pantry open

24:23 - in Palmyra, where I live, and, decided to go and volunteer.

24:26 - My husband and I began volunteering back when it first opened in 2006.

24:31 - And, the rest is kind of history.

24:33 - I loved being able to be, use my voice in ways that, impacted

24:37 - people in my community and really love that I could come to the food bank

24:41 - having that agency experience, and know, you know, what were the things

24:46 - that kept me up at night and being able to to change that for other people.

24:50 - Very similar. Yeah.

24:51 - I, I from a young girl knew that I wanted to help people

24:55 - and I was told, no, you have to go on business.

24:57 - You have to do this. You can't.

24:58 - You can help people after you retire. And I did.

25:00 - I went into the corporate world and after about a ten years

25:03 - or so, I said, no, I it's stays the same.

25:06 - And so I pivoted into nonprofit work.

25:09 - Sometime ago and have never looked back.

25:12 - I've been

25:13 - doing nonprofit work, my whole professional career.

25:16 - Not necessarily in the in the food bank or food insecurity, realm.

25:20 - Relatively new to my position at the Neighbor Helping Neighbor Food Bank.

25:23 - But for me, I grew up poor.

25:26 - Oftentimes my mom, single mom,

25:29 - we would utilize the food bank in our area.

25:33 - So as I got older, I tried to participate in food drives in my community.

25:37 - And really just wanted to help people, give them, give them a hand up for.

25:42 - So that's all the time we have for this very important subject.

25:45 - Julie, how can we get more information on feeding Pennsylvania?

25:48 - Sure.

25:48 - So, folks can visit Feeding PA Dawg, and we're also feeding pa

25:51 - on all of our socials and central PA food bank, central food bank, dawg

25:57 - Toney, salvation Army, harrisburg.org.

26:00 - Thanks for your work in Perry County. How can we get more information? Sure.

26:02 - And and for us, neighbor helping neighbor go to NH and food bank.com.

26:09 - I'd like to thank our guests for joining us today.

26:11 - Their efforts are making a difference in our communities.

26:14 - Thanks for joining us today.

26:15 - Have a great day.

26:42 - This program has been paid

26:44 - for by the sponsor and does not reflect the views of PCN.


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