The Des Moines Area Food Bank has been offered a real challenge by Carter Burnet, one of the owners of Dessert and Things, a new business in Des Moines.
"This community has been good to us and welcomed us. Now it's time to start paying the community back," Burnet said.
Burnet's plan for payback is to encourage his fellow retailers in the Des Moines-SeaTac area to match him as he collects money for the Food Bank.
"I am going to put a jar on my counter and ask my customers to donate their change. It will go to support those who need food during the coming holidays," the deli owner said.
"I am going to match 10 percent of what the customers put in with my own money. "I'd like to see my fellow retailers do the same thing. We could feed a lot of people."
"A whole lot if it works" was the response of Kris Van Gasken, executive director of the food bank. "We also have an anonymous donor who will match what the merchants contribute up to $10,000."
That could mean as much as $24,000 if the public drops $20,000 into those jar, Van Gasken noted.
"That will buy a lot of turkeys at Thanksgiving and Christmas. And other things."
In addition to serving over 850 families a month, the food bank has a school backpack program that sends meals home with children at risk of hunger over weekends. It also has a pantry at Highline Community College to help out older students.
The Des Moines Food Bank serves an area of about 50,000 residents-all of Des Moines, most of SeaTac and some of Kent's West Hill.
"We were shocked to learn that three out of five children in our area are growing up in poverty," Van Gasken continued.
"For some of those children, the federal free and reduced breakfast and lunch are their only meals of the day. Kids need to eat on the weekends, too. That's the reason for the backpack program."
Last year, the food bank helped almost 2,500 different families, providing food for over one million meals.
"It only cost us 19 cents a meal because of the generous food donations from families and merchants in the area," she said. "But in order to provide nutritionally balanced food and do special programs like our school backpacks or the holiday meals, we still need to purchase a lot of food."
Burnet's challenge will run until December 24. Any local merchant who has not been contacted by a food bank representative and would like to participate may contact Kris at 206-878-2660 for a donation container and instructions.
