Jerry Smith hates to see good stuff thrown into the trash.
That”s one reason the big man loves his volunteer jobs at the Fort Bragg Food Bank and State of the Ark, the thrift shop of the Mendocino Coast Humane Society. Both non-profits convert the leavings of society into life-giving help for humans and pets.
Smith”s smiling, stubbled face is familiar to any denizen of the Food Bank, where he works daily.
Even if you haven”t been to the town”s pantry on North Franklin Street, you probably recognize Jerry Smith. Riding his bicycle in his 49ers jacket, cap and sometimes team sweats, Smith is an ardent fan and a busy man, usually on the move between his jobs at opposite ends of town.
Along the way, he sees things thrown in the dumpster that shouldn”t be. He says Longs Drugs in particular tosses out stuff that many people in town can use.
“You wouldn”t believe what they throw away,” Smith said. “When the dispute over who would provide the garbage service was going on last year, I wanted (the county and city) to get Waste Management to put their foot down. They could say, you can”t throw stuff into the dumpster that should be recycled.”
When the political effort to reduce the waste stream came to naught, Smith did what he could on his own. He has become a consummate tinkerer, fixing up stereos and other items he finds thrown away or gets at the thrift store. There is no doubt that Smith, 38, makes a contribution to his community.
But Smith has a disability that in the past might have barred him from participation in society.
Thanks in some part to modern social agencies, Smith both benefits from and helps maintain “the safety net.” The safety net is a Depression-era concept that government should help those caught in the ups and downs of a capitalist system. With the world teetering on the edge of depression once again, the newspapers” Season of Sharing fund drive for the Food Bank seemed like a good time to test protections that help the unemployed, the disabled and those suffering foreclosure.
Local safety net
I found our local safety net to be a tight, chillingly thin and mostly invisible web of local businesses, community civic groups, mission-focused non-profits, churches, government agencies and generous individuals. Together these entities use barter, fund raising, matching grants and especially volunteers like Smith to create a communal force that benefits those needing help, from baby kittens to isolated human senior citizens.
Along the way I have found both brilliant efficiency and apathetic wastefulness among charities that our community relies upon. Perhaps the biggest problem is that few people, particularly givers, seem to know the inspired non-profits from those that have fallen asleep at the switch.
The Fort Bragg Food Bank is one that appears to be at the top of the efficiency scale. It gets a lot of help in its mission of providing the best food possible to lower-income people.
Smith”s job at the Food Bank is to collect vouchers and give the appropriate bag of staples to the client. The staples, such as canned salmon, beans, tomatoes and bags of brown rice, are varied to provide nutritious meals throughout the month.
In my weekly visits, I have gotten items from canned mandarins to very high end brown rice that I normally would want but not buy. Smith also gives out the bottled water and soda pop, which is generally limited to one. The staple products come mostly from the United States Department of Agriculture.
Government agencies are a big part of all the helping efforts in town, funding everything from caregiving to job training.
Agencies like Hospitality House and the Coast Community Center, which provide housing and information on where to get other services, exist thanks to the ability to put together an array of private, community and government funding sources.
The Food Bank has all kinds of people as volunteers, from financially secure retirees to severely developmentally disabled individuals. They all gather for a joyous lunch everyday, usually cooked by volunteer Yuki Holand.
Smith lives on his own and found the job at the Food Bank without any help at the suggestion of a Longs” employee. He works alongside other key volunteers who have severe developmental disabilities. These people get to do their work thanks to the non-profit ABC No Barriers, which created an arrangement that everyone says is mutually dependable.
Smith says he and the others get a lot back from their volunteer giving.
“I like being around people. I like helping. This Food Bank is a great place to be,” Smith said.
The Food Bank was as festive and busy as Santa”s workshop two days before Christmas. People sent by the courts put in extra work and time.
“This place gives to those who give and to those who take, to the staff and the volunteers,” Food Bank Executive Director Nancy Severy said.
The giving spirit is contagious and quickly spreads to those who come by for their first visit.
When the back door of the big Food Bank truck broke, Jack Luoma of Jack”s Muffler donated the repair. Accountant Wendy Boise donated $1,100 toward the required audit she performed for the Food Bank.
Fort Bragg Feed & Pet every year puts out a collection jar for the Food Bank on their counter, which Severy says brings a significant contribution.
Cheshire Books provided books for children purchased at a discount by their customers and wrapped by AVID, a high school group.
The variety of helping hands is amazing.
Local businesswoman Nancy Kahn donated dozens of pairs of new children”s dress shoes given to clients.
Edgewater Gallery in Fort Bragg donated all profits on certain artists” works. Roy Falk, one of those artists, sold a $500 painting as part of a large gift, with the final amount not yet in.
The Do-Gooders, a group of women civic leaders, holds an annual fund-raiser at the Little River Inn.
Carpet cleaner Dwain Ray and roofer Richard McDonald now team up annually to conduct a matching-funds “Turkey Challenge”. Their $4,500 pledge was met this year and then some, with more than $10,000 arriving.
“Our community members generously responded to the challenge this year, generating enough funds to purchase all the turkeys and much of the fixings for our holiday food bags,” Severy said.
And just in time.
At Thanksgiving 637 clients were served — up 37 percent from last year. There were 571 clients served at Christmas, up 27 percent from last year.
Harvest Market, Safeway and Roundman”s Smokehouse helped make the holiday happen this year.
Although the big increase in holiday dinner numbers hasn”t been reflected in weekly food distribution so far, Severy fears they may be a bad harbinger.
“I am still wondering what will happen with the Obama administration — it may be good news,” she said.
“Some other sources scare me more. County funding seems like it might dry up quicker than, say, federal funds,” she said.
With government, churches and private donors all having lost huge amounts of money in 2008, Severy says others have stepped up their giving.
“There are some people who simply can”t give what they have in the past because of their financial situation. My sense is there are others who have realized that and given more,” she said.
The Food Bank recently had an audit, which it passed. Ideas are being explored on ways to cut, but many of those cuts would hurt more than help, Severy said.
For example, the Food Bank could save money by not picking up fresh, free food at Harvest and Safeway six days a week.
“We could do it on fewer days,” she said.
But the supermarkets are both often brimming with donations that might be lost. And that loss would include some food that clients depend on.
For now the Food Bank is glad to have Smith and his three-dozen volunteer colleagues with their hands on that safety net.
“He knows exactly what he”s doing, he”s a sweetheart, one of our unsung heroes in lots of ways,” Severy said.
Although the picture presented by universally declining revenue isn”t bright, Severy is willing to trust the community spirit on the coast.
“Miracles seem to happen all the time around here. New donors appear, new programs show up just in time,” said Severy.
Season of Sharing
The goal of the Advocate-News and Mendocino Beacon”s annual Season of Sharing fund drive is to raise money to help the Food Bank operate year-round, not just during the holidays. Last year the community donated $37,214.15; this year”s target is $40,000.
The Community Foundation of Mendocino County administers Season of Sharing contributions free of charge as a courtesy to the newspapers, so every cent donated goes to the Food Bank. Donations are tax deductible.
Checks should be made out to the Community Foundation of Mendocino County (CFMC), and mailed to Advocate-News, P.O. Box 1188, Fort Bragg, 95437, or you”re welcome to bring them to the newspaper office, located at 450 N. Franklin St.
If you have any questions about our fund drive, call the newspapers at 964-5642. The fund-raiser runs through Jan. 9.
Donors” names are printed each week, unless they ask to remain anonymous.
Contributions this week brought the total to $22,104. Donations were received from Sean Wills, Spring and Henry, Susanne and Richard Norgard, Ann Krase, Bruce and Regine Plows, Jeanette Hansen, the staff at Dr. Wilensky, D.D.S., Joan Kennedy White, A Tile Shoppe, Computaccount, Frank and Margaret Iacuaniello, Lark Camp, Ronald and Susan Munson, William Anderson, Helen Van Gelder, and two anonymous donors.
