Alicia and her husband moved to the West Coast in 2018. Recently married, they decided to set down roots in Los Angeles so that Alicia’s husband could invest in his family’s local business. The move was also designed to allow Alicia to continue to focus full-time on creating and selling her artwork. After a short time, they realized that the cost of living required Alicia to put aside her startup visual arts business and find stable employment. When securing a job took longer than expected, they decided to try out the local food pantry to help make ends meet.

“We were really surprised at the variety and quality of the food available for those in need,” Alicia said. “Plus, it was fun to try foods that I wouldn’t have thought to purchase in my usual shopping routine.”

After four months of searching, Alicia found a job that allows her to meaningfully serve her community and free her creativity from financial pressure. She is using her fine arts degree to create more effective visual communication in her new public service position.

Her husband added: “I think the best thing about the Food Bank is that it made us feel hopeful and lucky to have a local organization serving people in need and managing its resources effectively by providing quality food which could otherwise go to waste. This ‘hand-up’ made all the difference for us to live free of fear during a period of crucial growth. Being treated respectfully in our time of need not only grew our gratefulness to our new community, but also our empathy and respect for others in need. We work hard to bring value to our community, regardless of how much money it brings us, and now that we are back on our feet we can continue to do so thanks to the Valley Food Bank.”

What a busy year! The Valley Food Bank was able to provide food to a great number of people in need. This has been possible thanks to all the people and organizations who generously donated food, provided needed financial support, and who gave their time and skills in food preparation and other volunteering, as well as the partnering pantries that distributed the food directly to those who needed it.

We would like to take this opportunity to express our gratitude to all of you. In the previous 12 months, we processed 2,526,565 pounds of perishable food, 1,010,284 canned goods and 1,162,553 dry and packaged food items. This enabled us to provide food resources to 42,727 families representing 156,022 individuals. With social awareness of our activities growing little by little, and with the volume of food donations from corporations increasing, the time has come for us to expand our pantry network. We will be searching for appropriate partners as we complete some much-awaited renovations.

After having acquired a new 24-foot International refrigerated truck to augment our fleet, we are planning the replacement of our warehouse refrigerator and freezer units thereby doubling our capacity. This year, we also plan to enhance the pantry network, which began last year, and both increase the number of agencies we serve and improve our relations with the ones we serve already. Working to raise social interest in food banking is another important effort for us. The problem of hunger cannot be easily solved, but we believe that a great force for change will come from raising the consciousness of many people through our activities.

Food banking is an alternative to dumping food products that are still safe for human consumption. Stores, food manufacturers, and importers all face conflicts of having food that must be disposed of because it cannot be sold. Food banking helps these companies save money along with making a positive impact on the community.

Last year was filled with challenges and many victories. We are looking forward to embracing the New Year with renewed energy and focus as we continue “Fighting Hunger – Feeding Hope.”

Meet Hormos, Mahmood, Waly and Aileen. They have been coming to the food pantry for a year now. I believe it was Hormos who spotted us at the same place every month. He stopped by and from then on became a regular recipient of goods from Valley Food Bank. Next came Waly, just a few months after, then Mahmood, and then Aileen.

Now the group gets together monthly, making the trip to The House’s distribution of food and friendship. They are all very grateful for the generosity of the Valley Food Bank and their donors, who enable The House to meet some of the needs of the community here in Reseda. We cater to a variety of people and cultures and we are very thankful to God that events like these facilitate outreach and break down barriers in the community.

Submitted by Pastor Manny Iglesia, Associate Pastor – The House, A Church Family.

Irene first met us last year at New Hope Church’s annual neighborhood block party. At the time, Irene’s father—the family’s primary income earner—had just passed away. Because Irene’s mother and brother are both sick, neither is able to work to provide for their family. After her father passed away, Irene also had to quit her job in order to take care of her mother full time.

At the holiday party, Irene learned about New Hope Church’s monthly food pantry. In order to provide for her mother, brother, and children, Irene began visiting the food pantry at the beginning of the year in order to receive supplemental groceries. The food—especially the fresh vegetables—have been an enormous help to her, and each month she is able to ration out what she receives at the pantry to help cook her family nutritious meals.

Irene is thankful for the food she receives from the Valley Food Bank and its donors. The generosity of the food banks is helping to keep her family fed each month as they adjust to this new season of their lives.

Submitted by Jason Wong, Coordinator – New Hope Pantry Ministry.