Season of Sharing funds the future

FORT BRAGG, CA >> The responsibility of the entire operation of the Fort Bragg Food Bank falls on the capable shoulders of Director Amanda Friscia. The outreach of the Food Bank extends as far north as Leggett, as far south as Gualala, and as far east as Covelo. It provides for ten food distribution centers and five soup kitchens. Within Mendocino County, 2,317 families were fed with 154,396 pounds of nutritious food in 2021.

Serving as Director for almost three years, Friscia has expanded current programs and added new ones. The results speak for themselves. Seniors receive home deliveries. Volunteers bring fruits, vegetables, sandwiches, and occasionally outerwear to the homeless twice a week. School children enjoy healthy snacks while outreach helps the needy complete medical and other state assistance paperwork. The Farm Stand is open daily to all, regardless of income.

Along with a staff of twelve, Friscia has streamlined the distribution system for food orders and developed social distance curbside food pickup for weekly clients. An army of volunteers carries out every phase, such as unloading deliveries, taking curbside orders, packing weekly food bags, restocking the warehouse, making sandwiches and filling snack bags, monitoring the Farm Stand, sifting through donated vegetables, and most importantly, treating all clients with respect.

Friscia holds to the central purpose of helping others. “Most of my life, even as a kid, I wanted to help people,” she said. “I learned that from my parents. I wanted to be a fixer.” Her belief about the Food Bank is that “the most powerful thing we have is that people are truly in it who want to connect with and help others.” Genuine connection with those in need requires the collaboration of her dedicated team.

Since the age of five, Friscia has lived in Fort Bragg, married here, and raised her two children. “My heart is in this town and this community,” she said. Life choices at first took her into the hospitality industry, but she said, “I wanted my heart to feel a little more full.” Diving into Human Services courses at the local college came next, and in 2009, an ad for a Volunteer/client Coordinator at the Fort Bragg Food Bank led to her first position serving others. “It felt natural to me, and it felt really exciting that I was helping people,” she recalled.

Since February of 2019, Friscia has held the reins of the Food Bank. She answers to a seven-member Board of Directors who oversees the non-profit and makes decisions about financial reserves. Financial investment for growth is essential to remain solvent and stable in the future. There is far more involved than simply taking in food donations and giving them to those in need. Building site maintenance, lease contracts, stock moving equipment, delivery truck maintenance, and gasoline costs are only some of the budgetary constraints.

These days, Friscia is working on a Rural Enhancement Program to provide the smaller food pantries sites with more support, including more storage, additional refrigeration, and technology needs. These small sites are independently leased and managed by a local church, grange, or guild that saw the need for temporary family food assistance in more remote communities. They contract with the Fort Bragg Food Bank for food supply.

Somehow, with only one refrigerated delivery truck, Friscia uses Ukiah as the hub of a delivery route system for picking up their food orders from the Santa Rosa Redwood Food Bank and off-loading contracted deliveries for the satellite pantries. This year almost two million pounds of food flowed through the Fort Bragg Food Bank. Friscia confirmed that in the past year, every household served received between twenty and thirty pounds of food per week.

The COVID pandemic tested the reliability of the Food Bank to care for its clients adequately. Friscia noted that from March to May of 2020, the Food Bank experienced an increase of 25% new clients on its rolls. The Food Bank never faltered during its highest demand. Open five days a week and adding on the Farm Stand allowed food to move more quickly to clients. Fortunately, the recent addition of federal aid led California to spend $8 million statewide on pre-packaged food boxes. With a mix of federal and state aid, local donations, and food purchasing, the Fort Bragg Food Bank met the need.

Friscia finds great satisfaction in working with other people to problem solve. More than that, she is proud of the Food Bank being “a warm and inviting place.” She grew tearyeyed, describing clients’ Christmas cards that thank her “for all the food and all the things she’s done for them in their lives.” However, she knows none of this would happen without an amazing staff at her side. “I’m working with a group of people who are extremely valuable and capable and have the biggest hearts. And, we’re going to do this together,” she said.

Here is a list of generous donors to recognize from the previous week’s total gift of $21,108.84: Pamela Dunlap-patterson; Valla Family Foundation Trust; Shawn Eberhardt; Liz Helenchild; Donald Hess; Patrick and Cristine Simmons; Susan Maeder; in honor of Lisa and Leon Remstedt; Diane F. Cerutti; Marilyn Anderson; James Murphey; David Price; Kira Wojack; Maria Knutson-newhouse; Benjamin Lund; Jonathan Pritchard; Ruth Schroeder; David Bartis; Jesse Myers; Harvey Chess; Heidi Giordano; Elizabeth Perry; Joan Sutherland; Hannah Nelson; in memory of Betty Stechmeyer; Debra Lennox; Lorna Dennis; Rella Gadulka; David and Laura Welter; and in honor of Larry and Peggy Cotemerry Christmas!

This Saturday, January 8, marks the conclusion of the annual Season of Sharing donation drive. A final week list of donors will be published in next week’s paper. However, the Fort Bragg Food Bank welcomes food donations or dollars all year round. If you wish a donation now to be part of the drive, please note that on your check or when you use a credit card. These donations can also be made in memory of or in honor of someone in your life. The Fort Bragg Food Bank is located at 910 North Franklin Street, Fort Bragg, CA 95437, and their mailing address is PO Box 70, Fort Bragg, CA 95437, or by phone at 707-9649404. For more information, visit www.fortbraggfoodbank.org.