The commitment? ‘A community free of hunger!’

May 30, 2024

Legislative Day is a pretty big deal for us here at the Food Bank of Delaware.  It’s an opportunity to speak face to face with our elected officials on behalf of neighbors statewide who live with food insecurity.

We appreciate that legislators made time on Thursday, May 23 to talk with us about their concerns; likewise, we update them about our progress and challenges. This year was extra special as we asked our partner food pantries from up and down the state to join us. Meeting the food needs of food insecure Delawareans is not possible without them, and we cannot fully share the needs of our community without including them in our conversations with our officials.

To highlight the skills and talents of our culinary training team, we provided box lunches made by the team for legislators and their staff. As the day progressed, we were joined by community partners representing food pantries, as well as agencies and community organizations who support our mission to end hunger in Delaware.

Cathy Kanefsky, our President and CEO, addressed members of the General Assembly, presenting a most recent landscape of food insecurity in Delaware.

• “One in 8 Delawareans is food insecure. They are working every day and doing their best for their families. Despite their best efforts, sometimes that is not even enough to get by,” she said, adding “we are seeing more people now than at the height of the pandemic.”
• Kanefsky told legislators that the skyrocketing cost of living impacts workers who provide essential services, so these neighbors turn to the Food Bank for direct assistance.

How does this impact our service delivery? “ . . . Donations are no longer keeping up with demands.” The demand is high,“ Kanefsky explained. Since the start of the pandemic in 2020, we have provided our 200-plus partner agencies with no-cost food so they can meet the nutritional needs of our community.” The price tag? It cost $2.356 million last year to stock food pantries.

Kanefsky told legislators that the Food Bank is seeking funding sources at the private, federal, county state and local levels. In addition, she asked lawmakers and their constituents to connect and work with the Food Bank through partnerships and continuing collaboration, thanking them for their commitment to a community free of hunger.