SUMMER 2022
FOOD BANK WELCOMES NEW FINANCE DIRECTOR The Food Bank of North Alabama has hired a new Finance Director, Liz Rice. Rice graduated from the University of North Alabama with a bachelor’s degree in professional management and accounting and has 10 years experience in accounting and human resources, including working for Huntsville Hospital and most recently for the local Popeyes franchise, where she managed their accounting and human resources for multiple locations. Rice moved to North Alabama with her family when she was 14 years old, moving to Mooresville from California and now is married with four kids. She is also a notary public. “I look forward to learning more about nonprofits and all the ways we help the community,” Rice said. “I’m happy to be working here and I love the mission. I didn’t understand everything the Food Bank did until I started working here. I didn’t realize we were a hub for all the organizations in our area that need food as part of their mission.”
TEAM UP WITH THE FOOD BANK TO FIGHT HUNGER IN YOUR COMMUNITY Do you run a soup kitchen, food pantry, women’s shelter, transitional housing or other human services nonprofit organization? Or are you thinking of starting one to serve your neighborhood or community? The Food Bank is looking for more organizations to team up with to help fight hunger! Specifically we are looking for non-profits and faith-based programs that are focused on providing human services. Benefits of becoming part of our network of feeding partners include the ability to source food from our Huntsville Warehouse or Shoals Branch, as well as networking and training events like our annual Hunger Summit and other capacity-building initiatives to help grow your organization. Our agency partners are critical to the Food Bank’s mission and operations, so please contact Michele Pepper at communityrelations@fbofna.org or 256-383-0296 today.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS President Daniel Kaufmann Vice President David Newberry Treasurer Joe Clark Jr. Secretary Will Scott
Directors
Aaron Caradonna Andrea Gallagher Wade Hunt Alissa Mackiewicz
NEW PARTNERS GIVE BOOST TO STORE DONATION PROGRAM
Bananas. It was driving them absolutely bananas. Mike Monis Michelle Omenski NIck Stavely Vanessa Tucker
STAFF
Chief Executive Office Shirley Schofield Chief Operating Officer Joshua Matthews Development Director Bobby Bozeman Finance Director Liz Rice Agency/Community Relations Manager Michele Pepper Warehouse Manager – Huntsville John-Edward Thomas Warehouse Manager – Shoals Jeff Johnson Farm Food Collaborative Co-Managers Carey Martin-Lane Natalie Bishnoi Special Programs Manager Chyna Smith Store Donation Coordinator Austin Kusiak Inventory/Food Sourcing Coordinator Chris Birdwell Grant Coordinator Martha Grace Mize Healthcare Partnership Coordinator Domaneneicka Smith-James Equitable Food Coordinator Marisa Hawkins Agency Services Representative Susan Szczepanski Special Programs Assistant Brittany Meade Donor Services Assistant Sharyn Meade Operations Assistant Edward Ikard Farm Food Collaborative Assistant Brandy Talley Finance Assistant Sara Moak Administrative Assistant Rhenitha Prestis Warehouse Technicians – Huntsville Vincent Wilson Jr. Jonathan Henderson Le’Keith Hogan Lead Warehouse Technician – Shoals Jenn Tittle Food Sorting Captain Carla Johnston Drivers Mark McCrary Frank Mitchell Jimbo Beck Ty Johnson Andrew Baites
PO Box 18607 Huntsville, AL 35804 (256) 539-2256 • www.foodbanknorthal.org Counties served: Colbert, Cullman, DeKalb, Franklin, Jackson, Lauderdale, Lawrence, Limestone, Madison, Marshall, Morgan. The Food Bank of North Alabama is an equal opportunity provider & employer.
The leadership at the Star Market in Huntsville’s Five Points neighborhood was going bananas seeing all of the produce— especially that long, yellow fruit—that was being thrown out every day. All of that food going to landfills while so many in our community may not know where their next meal is coming from. They decided to start working with the Food Bank of North Alabama and prepare food donations twice a week for Food Bank drivers to pick up at both their locations: Five Points and Meridianville. “Our relationship with Star Market was unique in the fact that they reached out to us,” said Austin Kusiak, store donation coordinator for the Food Bank. “Star Market’s president Darden Heritage, he saw how much produce, bananas specifically, was being thrown out.”
Nearly 1.3 million pounds came in through our store donation program from January to March, with meat being the highest donated category (by weight) at 334,000 lbs. Knowing that the Food Bank regularly picks up donations from grocery stores, Star Market contacted the Food Bank to help them find a way to ensure the perfectly edible food found its way to people struggling with food insecurity.
Kusiak said that the partnership so far has been a success, and Star Market provides the Food Bank with access to produce, bakery and deli. “It’s still been really great to work with them,” he said. “It’s mutually beneficial that it’s desired stuff and it helps to eliminate their food waste.” Star Market is not alone in new stores that have been added to the Food Bank’s regular store donation pickups. When Trader Joe’s and Gordon’s Food Services opened stores in the Huntsville market, both began regularly donating. The new Publix in South Huntsville also began to donate once it opened. Publix opening a new store is always good news to the surrounding community, and for the Food Bank as well. “Publix has always been really good to us,” Kusiak said. “Just from the new store on South Parkway, we get a lot of bakery four days a week and a few hundred pounds of meat once or twice a week. They don’t hold baked goods longer than a day, so everything we get on a Tuesday, they made that Monday.” The Food Bank picks up once a week from Trader Joe’s, located on University Boulevard and arranges for three agency partner groups to pick up the other six days. Part of the reason grocery stores need to make donations so frequently is when they get trucks in, they have to make room for the new product, and they just need to get the older product out of the way. It’s a huge benefit for us that we then pass on to the people who really need it. One special thing that Trader Joe’s has brought to the table is greenery. “They give us flowers, fresh cut and potted plants,” Kusiak said. “I know the different agency groups that pick up from Trader Joe’s, and they rave about how the people they serve love getting those flowers and how happy people have been to get a few flowers with their food pickups. It’s a random thing you don’t expect that can make some people’s day.”
The Food Bank works with the following stores at their locations in our 11-county coverage area: Aldi, Big Lots, Costco, Gordon’s Food Services, Kroger, Publix, Sam’s Club,
Spouts, Star Market, Target, Trader Joe’s, Walmart and Whole Foods.
The Food Bank of North Alabama recently passed its annual food safety audit from AIB and scored a 960/1000. For the first quarter of FY22 (Oct-Dec 2021) 25% of the food distributed by the Food Bank of North Alabama was fresh produce.
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