APRIL 2025
HARVEST TIME
OZARKS FOOD HARVEST – THE FOOD BANK
NEWSLETTER FROM THE O’REILLY CENTER FOR HUNGER RELIEF
“If we don’t have safety, shelter and food, we can’t worry at all about the next thing." – Toni Smith, executive director of Carthage Crosslines Ministry
TONI FACED HUNGER; NOW SHE HELPS END IT Toni Smith is a hard worker with a master’s degree, two bachelor’s degrees, and a cosmetology license. She’s been the executive director at Carthage Crosslines Ministry for four years, organizing more client choice food options and an on-site shower for folks who don’t have those resources.
“It’s just like Maslow’s hierarchy,” explained Toni. “If we don’t have safety, shelter and food, we can’t worry at all about the next thing. When you’ve assisted that need, you’re not worrying as much about being hungry. Then you can concern yourself with secondary and tertiary things.”
But Toni’s life was very different 13 years ago.
Fast forward several years later, and the executive director position opened up at Carthage Crosslines Ministry, one of The Food Bank’s partner pantries. Judy Benson, director of operations at Carthage Crisis Center, encouraged Toni to apply, to which Toni recalled saying, “’Judy, they’re not going to hire me! Look at my past!’” Judy kept encouraging her anyway.
In 2012, Toni went through a difficult divorce that resulted in her experiencing homelessness. While not from the area, Toni ended up in the Ozarks after her car broke down in Springfield. She didn’t have the means to fix it, and by that time, she had developed a serious drug addiction to cope. She was stuck – in both location and circumstance. “I was absolutely by myself,” Toni shared, “and because of my shame and guilt, I wouldn’t reach out to family or anything.” Toni spent several months in Springfield not knowing where she would sleep or where her next meal was coming from, at one point finding shelter in an abandoned warehouse. Then, out of desperation on a bitterly cold winter day, she stole a car for shelter and transportation. She was eventually arrested in a nearby town. While in jail, a recovery program connected Toni to Carthage Crisis Center, a long-term transitional housing center. The Crisis Center’s food and shelter, plus the kind people who believed in her, helped Toni get back to self-sufficiency.
ozarksfoodharvest.org
It turns out Toni’s past is exactly what Crosslines’ Board was looking for. Toni has now been the executive director at Carthage Crosslines Ministry for four years, and her life experiences give her a personal perspective when it comes to serving neighbors. “When you’ve walked a mile in someone’s shoes,” she shared, “and I have – or literally no shoes at all – we welcome them when they come in [to the pantry]. They can access those resources with dignity.” Like Toni said, people have to meet the basic need of food before they can thrive. Ozarks Food Harvest rescues, processes and distributes food to both Crosslines and Carthage Crisis Center to help people facing hunger in Jasper County access the meals they need.
“It’s such an amazing partnership,” said Toni. “When our cooler went down, Ozarks Food Harvest gave us a grant right away to keep us able to take care of our neighbors. We get a few things from other places, but Ozarks Food Harvest is our primary source of food. In 2023, we received and gave away 400,000 pounds of food. That’s a huge number – and that’s through your network, your partnerships, your boots on the ground also to make sure retail partners are continuing their partnerships.” This is what Transforming Hunger into Hope is all about – ensuring food is one less worry standing in people’s way. The Food Bank is committed to helping our network meet the need, but we need your support as the demand for food assistance has reached record-high levels. Your donation could be the helping hand someone needs today so they can pass on the kindness tomorrow, just like Toni has.
Make your donation today at ozarksfoodharvest.org/donate.