Families Fed At 2nd Food Pantry Event

By VERNON ROBISON

Moapa Valley Progress

Local volunteers helped provide food to more than 200 families over the weekend during a Mobile Food Pantry event held in the Grant Bowler Elementary parking lot on Saturday morning.
The cars of people seeking help with food began lining up a little before 8:00 am at the west end of the parking lot. Participants were able to drive slowly by the entrance to the school and receive bags of produce, gallon jugs of milk as well as canned and bagged food items.

Volunteers showed up much earlier. The truck bringing the food shipment arrived at around 6:00 am. Event coordinator Bren McClean showed up at that time, along with her father Assemblyman James Oscarson, to begin unloading the shipment. Shortly after that, the volunteer force began to assemble.
“I was a bit worried because by yesterday afternoon we only had five people confirmed, signed up to volunteer,” McClean said. “But as usual, this community stepped up. That is what I love about Moapa Valley: when there is a need, the people step forward and do what needs to be done. We live in a great community!”

By 7:30, more than 40 people had assembled to help distribute the food.
Much of the food products were provided by the Three Square organization, a non-profit organization whose goal it is to provide nutritious food to needy southern Nevada families. Available were a variety of produce items including fresh squash, green peppers, onions, apples and corn.
“It is our goal to have at least 40 percent of the food at these events be fruits and vegetables to promote a healthy diet,” said Jodi Tyson of Three Square.

Tyson said that the Three Square food is not funded through taxpayer dollars or government programs. Rather the food is purchased at a discount from farmers, usually as second harvest crops, with money from private grants and other organizations that wish to band together to fight hunger.
In addition to produce, Saturday’s event included distribution of more than 200 gallons of milk donated by Anderson Dairy in Las Vegas.

Tyson said that families in rural areas like Moapa Valley have long been identified as needing food assistance. But efforts had not commenced up to now because a volunteer base was not in place. With Moapa Valley resident Bren McClean getting involved and coordinating the local volunteer efforts, the initiative had been able to get off the ground, Tyson said.
“These events are always much more successful when they come from within the communities,” Tyson added. “When there is someone local who can act as the gatekeeper to the community it works much better than us coming in and saying telling the community ‘You need help and we are here to give it to you.’ ”

McClean had originally worked with Three Square to coordinate a Mobile Food Pantry in the Moapa community. That first event was held in early March. The Moapa drop has continued on the first Friday of the month since that time.

But McClean urged Three Square to establish another drop in the lower valley community. She was convinced that the need for the community was sufficient to justify that second date.
“We were thinking, since Moapa was our first rural drop in this area, that it would be maybe four or five months of getting things established before we tried to expand it,” Tyson said. “But there has been such a strong response thus far; and the volunteer base has been strong. So we went ahead and scheduled this one. And it is going very well!”
After the event McClean said that volunteers had distributed all of the food that had been provided; enough to feed 200 families.
The Logandale drop is planned to continue monthly on the third Saturday of each month at Bowler Elementary.

Clark County School District (CCSD) officials were pleased to be able to offer the location for the drop. CCSD Assistant Student Achievement Officer Jeff Hybarger said that such efforts were good for the community and good for education.
“If we can avoid the problem of a child’s hunger, then that kid is going to do better in school,” Hybarger said. “That is why we are so supportive of this. It is just a wonderful thing to have the community groups come together this way to provide food to families in the community.”

Included in the volunteer force were members of the Grant Bowler PTO, the local 4-H club, the Moapa Valley Revitalization Project and the LDS Young Singles branch.
Before food distribution began, volunteers gathered for a brief ribbon cutting ceremony. Assemblyman James Oscarson presented a Nevada State Proclamation to school officials honoring the efforts of the school and the community in making the event a success.

Also in attendance were representatives of Congressman Cresent Hardy’s office and representatives from County Commissioner Marilyn Kirkpatrick. The Commissioner had planned to be present but was unable to make it because of a major traffic accident on Interstate 15 which backed up traffic on her way out.
“I am so appreciative of the volunteers who gave their time to help in this effort,” said McClean after the event. “None of it would be possible without people coming together when it is needed.”