15 selections, $5,005 in donations
Since April 2024, the Community Food Bank of Grand Junction has been selected to benefit from the City Market Fight Hunger bag program 15 times at four different City Market locations. In total, the organization has received $5,005 in donations to continue improving access to nutritious food and community resources.
Tell us about the Community Food Bank of Grand Junction.
Located in Mesa County, the Community Food Bank of Grand Junction focuses on advancing our community’s health and economic stability by boosting nutritious food access and addressing the root causes of food insecurity.
Food insecurity is only one element of what our community is struggling with. The root causes of food insecurity come from a multitude of other areas. If we can help relieve the food insecurity part, then our struggling community members will be able to focus on the other areas and accomplish more growth as a whole. Through relationship building and resource navigation, we provide enhanced stability beyond the services of a typical food pantry.
Through relationship building and resource navigation, we provide enhanced stability beyond the services of a typical food pantry.
What services do you provide to the community?
We’re more than a food pantry. We offer client service appointments on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays. When people come to the Community Food Bank of Grand Junction, we can bring them in for health and economic stability support. We make connections, build sustained relationships, and connect them with one of our resource navigation staff members. Our staff talks with each client to ensure they can get information about any other services they might need.
Then, they walk through our pantry, which is set up like a grocery store. We work with local farms and companies like City Market and Kroger to rescue food. Instead of handing clients a prepacked box of food, we give them the ability to choose what they would like for their family. This is particularly important because everyone has different needs depending on their health, allergies, and the environments in which they make food. Not everybody has access to a full kitchen, so we ensure they can access foods that fit their needs. We also have a large produce section to encourage healthy habits.
Additionally, we offer options for clients to learn about nutrition. Culinary apprentices from Colorado Mesa University Culinary Tech come to our pantry and host food tastings with the items we have in the pantry. This way, people can easily learn new recipes that they can easily replicate. This program boosts nutrition access by teaching necessary skills and encouraging healthy food options.
This program boosts nutrition access by teaching necessary skills and encouraging healthy food options.
We are also opening our Community Café, a café and restaurant that enhances nutrition access for our community members who may not need to visit the food pantry. We educate them about healthy foods that can be fun and delicious. We also teach them why nutritious foods are essential to a healthy diet. In addition, this café is a social working enterprise that allows people to come in, get jobs, and receive training. These opportunities are crucial to combating the root causes of food insecurity.
As an organization, we are really dynamic. Our organization serves over 150 clients each day that we are open. We love the work that we do and enjoy being creative with it.
How has the Community Food Bank of Grand Junction used the donations it has received from the City Market Fight Hunger bag program?
We have already received $5,000 from this program so far! We can take each dollar and create four meals, so with our $5,000, we have been able to serve 20,000 meals. This program allows us to reach many more neighbors in need and nourish them. The support from this program really goes a long way.
What is amazing about the Fight Hunger bag program and collaborating with City Market is that we are not only receiving donations but also getting the visibility that comes with being a part of this program in our local community. We have lots of City Market stores in this area, meaning we have the opportunity to increase our visibility all over the county. The program helps us become visible to community members who may not know who we are. The program automatically leads shoppers to look into our organization and find information about us.
What is amazing about the Fight Hunger bag program and collaborating with City Market is that we are not only receiving donations but also getting the visibility that comes with being a part of this program in our local community.
Tell us a story about a program, service, or initiative that the City Market Fight Hunger bag program has supported.
Our clientele often shops at both our food pantry and City Market, depending on their needs. Image is often a big deal for our clients. When your family can’t make ends meet and has to rely on food pantries and other services, there is often a lot of shame involved in seeking help. This is particularly true for young people who come with their families. Today, teenagers are on social media and live their lives more in the public view than we have ever seen before.
Recently, we had a teenager come to our service line with her family. As part of the pantry, we build relationships and talk with clients, much like the actual grocery store. When they came in, this teenage girl said, “Mom, this place is just like the grocery store!”
It was heartwarming because this girl and her family didn’t have to feel shame or be embarrassed. Instead, they could come in and shop in a stigma-free environment. We are a place where people feel seen but not seen out. It is so significant that people can feel comfortable, especially for our younger people.
This money allows us to remove the embarrassment and shame. Because of the support we receive from City Market, we can essentially provide a grocery store to our community members with a similar look and feel. It is extremely impactful for everyone, from our young people to the elderly.
We work with the elderly population quite a bit. Many are on a fixed income and have to learn to budget for rising prices. Here, they get to shop for the groceries they want instead of living off crackers, ramen noodles, or whatever else they can afford. We give them access to full whole foods that they may not usually have.
We also do a lot of enrichment programs. Schools and different learning hubs come in and learn about us through hands-on experience. Inviting these groups to see who we are and what we do helps to break the stigma. During one of these school trips, a child came in and was proud to tell his classmates, “My family shops here! Let me show you where to go, what the line looks like, and how this works.”
He took ownership and was comfortable enough at the pantry to show his peers. This pride is built into our organization because of the programs we offer. Since we have created an environment that breaks stigma, people feel comfortable, seen, and safe. We could not do any of this without programs like this.
Have you noticed any changes in community awareness or support since becoming involved in the City Market Fight Hunger bag program?
The visibility of our organization has increased quite a bit. The program prompts shoppers to ask themselves, “What is this organization that I am supporting by purchasing this bag? How do they partner with City Market?”
People are invested in not only buying a bag but also learning more about how we partner with City Market. It allows us to have educational conversations about our multilayered partnership and how we align with City Market’s Zero Hunger | Zero Waste goals. We partner with City Market in both the bag program and our food rescue efforts.
The bag program is a really organic way for people to learn that both City Market and Community Food Bank of Grand Junction are doing amazing things to eliminate food waste and ensure people are fed. It allows people to invest in both sides of the partnership.
What advice would you give other nonprofits participating in the City Market Fight Hunger bag program?
It is all about communication. People don’t know what they don’t know. To us, this program is a loud testament to who our partners are and how they support us. We tell people through newsletters, social media, posters, and word of mouth. We tell everyone we can, “You are buying bags anyway, so why not buy a bag with a dual purpose!”
My biggest advice is to make sure you are communicating consistently all the time. Marketing is a crucial part of nonprofit work. We have to be able to reach people. The best way to do that is to have three to seven different touchpoints where people can find out about the program. There is no such thing as oversharing! In fact, people need to see it many, many times before they take action and buy a bag.
Make sure your supporters know how City Market works with your organization and why it is important to the work you do. Buying a bag matters, so break it down so everyone can understand the difference it makes. By giving your support network the educational part, you teach them how to talk to others about it and maximize your communications.
Interview with Jessica Mays, Development Manager