Whitney Food Bank
"Our Daily Bread" is the official name of the Whitney Food Bank. Our mission is to prevent hunger and malnutrition by providing
food to families in need who would otherwise be without nutritious food by
serving them in a kind, welcoming and caring atmosphere.
We provide three programs to serve our clients - a monthly program, a backpack weekend students program, and a summer snack bags program.
Monthly Program
The Whitney Food Bank provides food for almost 700 household members each month. Our doors are open to clients in Whitney, Blum and Aquilla. Clients do not have to receive food stamps to be eligible.
The Food Bank Director determines an adequate amount of food items to distribute to each household based on family size and needs. Most clients receive food items every 30 days to provide for one week's worth of meals for the month.
Whitney Food Bank is open three days a week to distribute food. On a typical day, 30 families with 75 family members will receive 1,400 pounds of food from the Food Bank. At the end of the month, over 40 volunteers will have worked almost 500 hours, serving 300 families with almost 700 family members and providing over 14,000 pounds of food.
Backpack Weekend Students Program
During the school year, qualifying students are part of our "Backpack" program. Each Friday those designated students receive a backpack from the school counselor that is filled with food for breakfast and lunch for that weekend. Backpacks are returned to the school counselor the following Monday to be filled again before the next weekend.
Summer Snack Bags Program
When school is out, parents or guardians of qualifying students may come by the Food Bank twice a month on Thursdays to receive "Summer Snack Bags". These bags have food for breakfast, lunch and a snack that should last for ten days.