Clearlake >> At IGA Food last Tuesday, everyone was too humble to take credit for a successful food distribution. “We wouldn’t be able to do it without these volunteers,” said Tammy Alakszay, the program coordinator of North Coast Opportunities, who put on the event.
“These volunteers make it happen,” said NCO pantry assistant Lou Denny, echoing the sentiment.
However, a volunteer was quick to brush off the remarks. “None of this would be possible without the main people,” said Brian Philipanko. “We just show up and help them.”
If anything is clear, it’s that the entire effort was a group one, with volunteers and coordinators playing a large role in making the event happen. The food distribution ensures that everyone in the community will have something for dinner over the holidays.
“These people wouldn’t be able to have Christmas without the program,” said Alakszay.
Over Thanksgiving, some 800 people signed up to receive food baskets and another 50 had their names added to a waiting list. With an average family size of three, when it came time to distribute the boxes 2,500 to 3,000 people were able to get items for the holidays. Boxes included a pie, potatoes, carrots, oranges, apples, turkey stock and some brown sugar to make a Christmas ham. People also received bags with items like corn flakes and canned vegetables, everything that makes a well-balanced diet. Larger families also received a ham or turkey.
So many people received boxes that there weren’t enough hams and turkeys for those with their names on the waiting list. But not to leave anyone without healthy and nutritious meals, those bags contained canned tuna or chicken.
“Everyone needs a helping hand at some point,” Philipanko added.
With the rising cost of food, as well as other pricey living expenses such as health insurance and housing, people need a little extra, especially around the holidays. It is NCO, Foot Etc., volunteers, and countless others who work hard to give the people of Lake County a merry Christmas.
Generous businesses lent a hand in offsetting the costs of acquiring so much food. “We couldn’t do this without NCO and Foods Etc.,” said Denny. North Coast Opportunities subsidized the cost of the food, while Foods Etc. kindly offered up their warehouse to store and distribute all of the items, along with shopping carts for everyone to transport food to their cars.
Andrew Pierson, assistant manager of Foods Etc., was happy to speak for the store as he helped put bag after bag into shopping carts. “We try to give back to the community, who has given us so much.”
Denny estimated that they had $25,000 worth of food to distribute and a lot of that food was bought on discount. “We got a good break from Redwood Empire Food Bank,” he said.
While Alakszay was certainly in the giving spirit, she didn’t see her actions as anything out of the ordinary. “I don’t look at it as giving back because we do this four times a month,” she said. “What truly is giving back is [the volunteers] coming out.”
Volunteers gave up the last couple of days to tirelessly pack boxes and distribute them. They put everything together all day Monday and began working at 8 a.m. yesterday to distribute them. Alakszay predicted they wouldn’t be finished until 6 p.m.
Yesterday, NCO saw some 20 volunteers helping with the process, who were all more than happy to be there. “It’s what God asks you to do. Give a part of your time back to others It’s always a blessing to serve,” said Robert Raienes, who has been helping out with the food pantry for more than five years. “We have a lot of senior citizens and they aren’t able to get out. And it makes me feel good when I do this.”
“The better off your neighbor is, the better off you are,” Fred Markgraf added.
Part of the reward for lending a hand was seeing how much people of the community enjoyed receiving their boxes. “This day is just fun because you see the excitement on people’s faces when they get their food,” said Alakszay. “The way it helps them, it’s exciting.”
“Everyone smiles back and everyone’s appreciative,” Markgraf agreed. “You get to meet a lot of nice people.”
The event’s volunteers make it a habit to go above and beyond for the members of the community. Many of the volunteers at the distribution are also regular volunteers at the food pantry. They usually give their time once a week, handing out bags to people and helping them shop. The pantry serves over 150 households per week. “We couldn’t do it without volunteers,” Denny stressed.
Jennifer Gruenke can be reached at 900-2019.
