The New Hope Food Bank shares food with the local community through the efforts of volunteers and community members.
Located at 1760 E. Villa Drive in Cottonwood, the food bank is a project of the New Hope Christian Fellowship. Pastor Bill Voss helped to organize it in the early 1980s after observing a need for it in the Old Town area.
The effort started with church members and volunteers asking residents if they would come eat if they provided food. The group then began feeding a meal to those in need out of a van once a week, leading to the start of the Old Town Mission. Later, they were given a building to enable them to carry on their operations through the winter, where they held weekly dinners and asked local churches to participate by donating food.
While the food bank is no longer under the Old Town Mission, as it is supported by New Hope, the food banks all work together and share food.
“The amount of food we get is astronomical,” Voss said. “There shouldn’t be one hungry person in this valley.”
He added that the U.S. throws away about 40% of its food supply, the majority of which is still consumable. The food bank receives donations from various grocery stores in town as well as from St. Mary’s via the Old Town Mission. They also work with Manzanita Outreach.
Voss estimated that they give out between 3,000 and 4,000 pounds of food every week to residents, supporting about 1,400 families a month. He emphasized that their practices support the autonomy of residents, with participants being able to take as much as they need and being encouraged to feed their neighbors as well.
David Ramos, a volunteer at the food bank, explained that volunteering consists mainly of going and getting the food and inventory management. Ramos also organizes the freezer, noting that it holds the most important food items such as meat.
“My favorite part of volunteering is carrying the groceries for the elderly and the people that are disabled,” Ramos said. “It is the most humbling thing in the world.”
He reflected on the importance of personalizing the experience, such as by getting to know that someone loves radishes. “It’s a very intimate thing,” Ramos said, adding that it gives him a chance to make a difference in real time in his community, rather than donating money and not knowing what happened to it.
Ramos stressed that residents shouldn’t feel nervous or guilty about taking food from a food bank, or be concerned that they might be depriving someone who needs it more than they do. The more people who show up, the more food and funding the food bank will get.
“It starts creating friendships,” Ramos said. “It restores your faith in your community. It gives you a different idea of who your neighbors are, who your community is and when you can help somebody. You never know who you can impact.”
