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FOOD BANKS — Hannah Bahney, far left, moderates a panel with Marijo Martinec, Ann Kriebel and Katy Travis during the Food Insecurity Q&A at the Community resource Summit.
Summit brings leaders together to address
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Hunger and homelessness were at the center of a Northern Indiana Community Foundation summit Thursday, Aug. 28, where nonprofit leaders and advocates stressed the importance of dignity, awareness and direct outreach while gathering at the Fulton County Fairgrounds. “We serve a lot of people who work full-time but simply don’t make enough money,” said Ann Kriebel of Food Finders Food Bank in Tippecanoe County. “We’re seeing more seniors and more of the working poor who are coming to pantries because their income just doesn’t stretch far enough.” The panel on food insecurity was moderated by Hannah Bahney, program director at the foundation. Panelists included Lafayette-based Kriebel, Starke County resident Marijo Martinec of the Food Bank of Northern Indiana, and Katy Travis of Food Finders in Fulton County. “Looking at someone’s car or the way they dress doesn’t tell you if they’re food insecure,” Mar-
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tinec said. “You can’t see hunger from the outside.” Transportation, lack of nearby grocery stores and rising utility bills were identified as persistent barriers for rural residents. “In rural areas, the biggest challenge is often distance,” Kriebel said. “Sometimes people have to decide between putting gas in the car to get to a doctor or using it to get to the food pantry.” Travis said stigma continues to prevent some families from seeking help. “It can be hard in small communities,” she said. “People worry that if they go to a pantry, they’ll run into someone they know. That isolation can make it even harder to reach people.” One panelist recalled a man who told her, “I’d rather have a job,” on his first visit to a pantry. “But the next time he came back, because he had been treated with dignity, he carried himself differently,” she said. “Respect matters.” The summit’s second half turned to housing insecurity, with guest speaker Jason Mitchell, executive director of Emmaus Mission in Logansport. Continued on page 2
HELLO — Brian Johnson, NICF director of philanthropy, offers opening remarks at the start of the Community resource summit.
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