Welcome back to the show.
You know it's estimated that one in
eight households struggle with severe
food insecurity and one in three
need food assistance to be able to
consistently keep meals on the table.
One in three so food pantries and
your food donations helped so much.
But Safeway and their partners has
discovered that giving out grocery
cards is a key way to offer food
assistance for so many reasons.
The
first thing really to understand is
that there are a lot of people who
are struggling with food insecurity
who might never go to a food bank.
So the cards are really designed for
us to partner with other organizations,
assisting those people who don't
need to have a food pantry or
have to distribute the food.
I'm sort of allows us to reach more people
struggling with food insecurity in the state.
You know, we have more than 200
locations throughout the state,
so we're in almost every community,
and so we have new partners like clinics
that are screening for food insecurity
as that is closely related to some chronic.
Illnesses so when they screen these
families and realizing they're having a
tough time getting meals on the table,
they can simply provide
them some grocery cards.
I'm staying with schools,
they're very familiar with families who might
be struggling to get food to their kids,
and so they can send home the cards
with the kids instead of having
to have a pantry at the school
or do it backpack program.
So it's just much easier for all involved,
and we're reaching so many people who
might not be able to access the food bank
well, and that's it.
You get an important point because parents,
we all work so hard,
and sometimes it's just.
Not enough to make ends meet,
and there's gonna be a lot of anxiety.
Shame in having to come to that place,
so sending those cards home
or having that card must
make a world of difference.
Yeah, I mean, it really is we we heard
a lot about tears of relief last year.
People struggle a lot in silence with food
insecurity and they feel shameful about
it so they don't tell people about it.
They don't want to go to a
food bank with their kids.
But we're seeing is like people are working
harder and they're working in taking care of.
Others, and so they can't navigate
those food making system and they still
want to have the dignity of choice to
go to a store like everybody else,
be able to choose how they buy
food for their families.
Be able to choose what they
cook for their families,
and so just getting a little
bit of relief like that.
It has been hugely beneficial for them.
I
know that I came from a mom who
was single mom and struggled a lot
and I know that something like
this would have really helped.
So my heart, I'm ready.
I'm on board. How can I?
Another Safeway shoppers help?
How can we get involved in this?
Yeah, it's very very easy,
so we'll see at this store there's
an option to donate five dollars,
$10 or $12.00, and that actually goes
into an account for a local organization
or food bank in grocery cards,
so they get to choose how to distribute them.
They go out in $50 increments,
so just go to the store and
choose to donate 510 or $12.00.
I love that you know, I I have to
say when you mentioned this before,
but it really struck me when
people can choose their own food.
That is a huge significance to that just.
In your own self choice,
but a cultural significance as well,
especially as we head into so many holidays.
You know, we know how important
food is to tradition to culture
and just really comfort,
especially around the holidays.
And we hope for food to be that
source of comfort for all families,
but for what it really is,
you know, anxiety inducing.
But these cards allow them to go pick out
food that maybe their mothers or fathers
made from them in their home countries.
Perhaps you know,
different countries,
different cultures.
We all have different food that we've eaten.
As we just saw during Thanksgiving,
so many different traditions and
this allows them to pass that on
to their kids for them to taste
the same foods that they tasted.
They go to the store,
they get the choice and it's
really an experience and
enjoyable for them and their kids
and Sarah. What you do and all the
things that are part of this go
beyond the grocery cards, right?
Yeah, they certainly do.
And the key really is our community partners.
So we're going beyond helping
people with food to empowering
them to improve their lives.
So with partners like solid ground,
they're really helping people.
Find the skills to escape poverty.
The cycle of poverty and so they have
a lot of trainings and educations.
And these cards are given out and
actually their nutrition classes
and their classes to teach people
how to shop and cook on a budget.
So they're not just getting food.
They're getting skills to move out of that
and getting skills to move out of poverty.
Same with Latino education
and training institute.
That's our partner in Lynnwood.
You know,
recent immigrants who come here?
They're getting them connected
with vocational training and
with education so they can start
their lives here on a good foot.
Bravo to Safeway and all
their partners on this.
So as Sarah mentioned,
you can go to your local Safeway
and Albertsons and donate 510 or
$12 and make a real difference
through these grocery cards.
And of course, King Five is
partnering with Safeway as home
team Harvest works towards our
goal of gathering 21 million meals.
Come on, you can help us make our goal.
You can see there are lots of ways
you can donate from texting to online
to checking out your gross when you
check out at the grocery store,
you can just you know when you see
it right there, it's pilot or bag.
Super easy.
We make it so easy for you all right.
Coming up next we are flying
into the hot zone
with our friend Terry Holloman for a
play by play of last Night's game.
Against Washington this
portion of New Day Northwest is
sponsored by Safeway, Albertsons.