By ANNELI FOGT

Editor

More than 16 percent of Vashon’s population use the island’s food bank, a statistic that is prompting multiple island nonprofits to join together on Tuesday to address the issue and discuss possible solutions to hunger on Vashon.

The community forum, “Who’s Hungry on Vashon,” will take place at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Penny Farcy building on Bank Road and is a new approach to Vashon Community Care’s (VCC) Telling Stories series. The event is a partnership among multiple nonprofits and is sponsored by VCC, Voice of Vashon (VoV) and the Vashon-Maury Island Community Food Bank, and will be moderated by food bank director Robbie Rohr. Included in the forum will be stories of hunger among Vashon residents, as well as an open forum with panelists Kathleen Johnson, Vashon Youth & Family Services (VYFS) executive director; Emily Scott, the food bank’s volunteer coordinator, and Merrilee Runyan of the Vashon Island Growers Association (VIGA).

VIGA has its Food Access Partnership program, which aims to increase the availability of fresh fruits and vegetables to individuals and families on food stamps, but VIGA Co-Chair Scott said that she believes the community needs to work together to respond to the hunger problem. The nonprofit is working on creating a food hub, a centralized aggregating and packaging facility so local farmers can sell their food wholesale.

Rohr said that she hopes the forum will humanize the social issue of hunger and create a space for the community to think creatively about solutions.

“The issue of hunger is just one manifestation of a usually larger problem,” Rohr said. “For example, if people have issues with housing or the expense of housing, that could cause hunger. Those on fixed incomes with not enough money to stretch for the basics or those who have unexpected crises like medical bills or the loss of a job could also be hungry.”

She said that Vashon has many unique issues, including high home prices, that can contribute to residents being hungry. The fact that Vashon is an unincorporated county area also contributes to the issue, Rohr said.

“We don’t have any government entity that can take this on,” Rohr said. “It bears thinking about.”

At VCC, Executive Director Verna Everett said last week that bringing many nonprofits together will allow the problem to be addressed from multiple angles. She said she has always been interested in island nonprofits coming together and said the forum  will work with the hunger issue because the problem is so widespread.

“We here at (VCC) deal with seniors; we have a lot of seniors here on the island and a lot who are struggling with food insecurity,” Everett said. “But we also have Vashon Youth & Family Services, local churches and the list goes on; in each entity, they deal with hunger. This is an incredible opportunity to fulfill the need of Telling Stories while also involving many, many nonprofits.”

VoV Station Manager Susan McCabe said in a statement that food insecurity “has many facets (and) many faces,” but essentially means living in an economic situation that requires choosing between buying food and paying for other essentials.

Ava Apple, executive director of Vashon’s senior center said that the issue can be seen at the center. She said lunches served by senior center staff four days a week are the only meals some seniors may see.

“They’re planning on having some stories from seniors we serve told at (this event),” Apple said last week. “For some of them it really is the only meal they get that day.”

Meanwhile, VYFS’ Johnson said that she deals with many clients who are struggling to put food on the table, and she calls the situation a trauma that takes away from a healthy family dynamic.

“We have many people coming to VYFS who are making those trade-offs,” Johnson said. “Food insecurity is a trauma to live with that has long-term, negative impacts. If you’re struggling to put food on the table, it’s hard to find energy to make sure … the child is getting everything they need to be the best they can be.”

The community is urged to attend or listen to the forum live on KVSH, 101.9FM, on the KVSH phone app or on voiceofvashon.org. It will also be videotaped for later broadcast on VoV TV Comcast Channel 21.

All are welcome, and there is a suggested donation of $10 for VCC or non-perishable food for the food bank.