The photos relate to the period in my life last Saturday when in a financial state of dead broke I went to the Food Bank in order to help myself. The food bank helps me and others to get by when they can't scrap up enough money to go to the grocery store or it is a supplement to their food stamps. Cash is usually what it takes to get the bare accentual s like toilet paper, tooth paste other things of that nature while also getting some food with the access to the Food Bank. The food bank gives a variety of food to get by for the week. The food may not be exactly what one wants for the family, but it is enough to get by for when affording the grocery store is out of reach. If I ever have plenty of money again I can help out too as part of supporting the food chain. Frankly hunger should be a goal for this country to rid of and that goes for any body’s life or family when their dead broke. With a creative food mind and some cooking skills a family can often get by to create a nice meal. With the unemployment being more a problem it is very difficult to compete to get employed even for part time positions and the food bank comes in very handy to save the week. The lines weren't very big and most people are using the time probably to be in the sun, but the volunteers were their today and not celebrating the Seafair activities that may have been going on. It is so valuable to have volunteers to do the service of handling the food and making it available for the people who need it and usually their upbeat to cheer the down and out customers when they go through line to pick the food at this Lake city food bank. I was at the Lake City Food bank this time, but I have used the Kirkland food bank too, and when the Bothell food bank was open it was easier for me in Kenmore to use the Bothell food bank. With the cut backs even the food banks are getting hard to get to and use since they need to consolidate the food banks into fewer to meet the their financial need Often one may have to go through many buses and walk a good distance with food, but with me going to Lake City is only one bus. When people are not donating food during the stretch of the summer season, sometimes the grocery stores will donate more food, for example the birthday cakes that the families can take home. Single families can get some treats, and it use to be that single families were able to get birthday cakes too, but with food more scarce, they are limited to the families 2 or more. Food banks offer can goods and perishables, but rarely is there any meat. The people get what they can, but it wouldn't exactly meet the needs of a balanced diet unless they go to the grocery stores and buy meat or extra food. The food bank isn't the cure all but it does help a lot when trying to get by and with food stored away it may fulfill the whole week until the next week. So it’s hoped that it’s not forgotten to donate food and money to the establishments that make the food banks possible since the farthest thing from your mind in these summer months may be to donate food. Lake City Food Bank and other food banks may not be able to continue to serve if there isn’t enough donations. For Lake City it may be simply enough when a volunteer wanted me to pitch save Lake City by giving you the audience the address http://www.savelakecity.com as a plug in my article. So understand it makes a free society and everybody doesn't have unemployment payments or food stamps to do the job, but their honest working citizens. Also remember I took a bus to get to the food bank, so do what you can do to keep all the routs going for the bus, and then do so, because I'm afraid some of the bus routes coming out of Kenmore may be very well cut on the weekend. So the food banks are a big help. Thank you for the food banks coming from me, Gregory B. Helfrich, photographer and food bank user.7/31/11
