What’s Good In Tampa Bay
Ann Kelly discusses the food gap with Juvenile Welfare Board CEO Beth Houghton, and their proactive approach to make sure families in need have fresh food this summer with free food distribution events. For additional information on their collaboration with the St. Pete Free Clinic, visit their site at www.jwbpinellas.org.
Listen to the interview:
This summer there will be four more opportunities for families in Pinellas County to receive free fresh food from a drive-through mobile food pantry. The next food pantry is scheduled for Saturday, June 29th in Palm Harbor and the first food drive served over 400 families this past Saturday.
An email news release from the Juvenile Welfare Board (JWB) and St. Petersburg Free Clinic (SPFC) provided details about this and the other five free food events that they anticipate will help feed about 2,000 families.
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JWB’s Chief Executive Officer Beth Houghton says the groups will distribute fresh food. She says these events are important to a lot of families. “Things like housing are getting more expensive, other things are getting more expensive, and while wages are moving up, they are not keeping up. Particularly for families with middle incomes or lower.”In addition, Houghton says a lot of kids rely on their school to provide meals for them. “The estimate is in Pinellas County, 1 in 8 kids are food insecure. It doesn’t mean they are starving, but it means on any given day they might miss a meal.”
“JWB is committed to ensuring no child goes hungry. We invest $4.2M in bulk food with the St. Pete Free Clinic, which then distributes to food banks and pantries across Pinellas County,” Houghton said.
According to the press release, each “family will receive a variety of fresh fruits, vegetables, proteins/meats, dairy, eggs, cereals, canned goods, and more – approximately 52+ pounds of food per family. A total of 21,000 pounds of food will be given away at each event, which equates to 126,000 pounds of food distributed across the six events when summer ends.”
Here is a list of all six summer food events: www.jwbpinellas.org/calendar/free-summer-food-for-families/
Read the article as originally published at https://www.wmnf.org/palm-harbor-saturday-pinellas-families-get-free-fresh-fruits-vegetables-meats/
MANATEE COUNTY
Britney Vela is doing what she knows best, serving food to people in need. She has been working at Our Daily Bread in Bradenton for 10 years. As the food pantry manager, she ensures all the food is organized and the volunteers are on task.
“If we weren’t here, and you were hungry, how would you get a meal? You’d end up breaking a law, having to go somewhere or dumpster diving. Being able to prevent that is a blessing,” she said.
She said giving free food and warm meals is a blessing that people desperately need right now.
“The price of food has gone up. Rent, gas. And they live off a fixed income, and their checks aren’t going up. But the cost of living is. So thankfully for them, we’re here and we can, you know, help with that,” she said.
Britney says more people need help. Our Daily Bread produced 20% more meals this March compared to March 2023. Their food pantry has increased production by 40% compared to this time last year, helping more than 10,000 people save money and get the food they need.
“That makes them able, you know, to have that extra money to meet rent, meet their light bills, meet their water bills and their kids,” she said.
They serve roughly 300 families every day with food pantry items, basic care products, and meals.
“Protein is important. Kids are growing,” she said. “Everybody deserves to have a good dinner. Everybody deserves it. Nobody should go hungry,” she said.
Britney knows what it’s like for people who need help because, at one point, she did too. She had just moved to the county as a single mom of two young kids with only $200 in her pocket.
“Just being able to know that help and now what that help feels like is a blessing, a very big blessing,” she said.
She’s already made a difference for her family and is now offering the same help to those in need.
The soup kitchen is open every single day from 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. The pantry is open Mondays and Fridays 8:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.
PINELLAS COUNTY
There was a food drive through event in St. Petersburg on Saturday to help fill the gap this summer for families in need.
One in eight kids in Pinellas County are food insecure, which is why local organizations hosted a drive-thru food pantry for the summer.
The Juvenile Welfare Board of Pinellas County and St. Petersburg Free Clinic are hosting six drive-thru pantry events for the summer, and the first one was on Saturday. Officials tell us that this summer they will be feeding more than 2,000 families. They explained why this summer is crucial to fill the gap for families compared to past years. Officials say it is because of the increased cost of basic necessities like groceries.
Each family will receive more than 50 pounds of food at each event. That includes items like fresh fruits, vegetables, and meat, as well as canned goods and other non-perishable items. Altogether, at the end of the summer, they will have donated 120,000 pounds of food to families in the county.
Beth Houghton, CEO of the Juvenile Welfare Board, said, “And so this summer, you have this time where rents have been going up, utilities have been going up. Wages are not going up as much. Food costs are up for families really in a crisis this summer, more than we’ve seen for a few years.”
Their next drive-thru food event will be on June 29 at the Feast Food Pantry in St. Petersburg.
Watch the Bay news 9 interview with JWB CEO Beth Houghton at https://baynews9.com/fl/tampa/news/2024/06/23/more-families-in-need-of-food-in-the-tampa-bay-area-
The number of families struggling to put food on the table keeps growing.
The Juvenile Welfare Board says one in eight children in Pinellas County is food insecure.
“But summer is even worse, because school is not in session all summer, kids are at home more, and they don’t have school food to rely on all the way through the summer,” Juvenile Welfare Board CEO Houghton said.
Houghton says the two big gaps in resources in the summer are between the end of the school year and start of summer school, and at the end of the summer before the school year starts back up.
The JWB and St. Pete Free Clinic are partnering to hold six drive-thru mobile food pantries over the summer to serve a total of 2,000 families in Pinellas County.
“Every single car that’s going through this line has a story,” Houghton said.
Houghton says cars lined up at the drive-thru food pantry on Saturday in Clearwater to receive bags of fresh groceries.
“It takes a village to raise five kids,” one father of five said.
Houghton says food insecurity has continued to grow post-pandemic.
“Pushing 50% of our families in our county are either at or below the poverty level, or most of those, about 35%, give or take, are at or below just a living wage,” she said.
Families at the drive-thru food pantry say they feel the economic burden every day.
“I feel it every day, trying to make sure they’re fed, make sure they have a roof over their head and everything,” one father said.
At the drive-thru food pantry, families received fresh fruits and vegetables, eggs, meats and other groceries. Event organizers also provided families with resources to other food pantries throughout Pinellas County.
“It means a lot, because a lot of us, it’s hard because I work, but still can’t afford a lot of stuff, so with a little bit of extra help would help the community a lot,” one father said.
Organizers say rising rent costs, prices at the grocery store and everyday bills often force families to choose between paying one of those bills or putting food on the table.
On Saturday, they say around 400 families left with groceries and resources.
“It is always very, incredibly touching,” Houghton said. “There are tears, there are ‘Bless you’. There’s always incredible gratitude. Often, often we hear, ‘I don’t know what I would’ve done without this.’”
The Juvenile Welfare Board and St. Pete Free clinic are holding several other drive-thru food pantries this summer.
To find more information on these events, click here.
View the news segment and interview with JWB CEO Beth Houghton at https://www.fox13news.com/news/drive-thru-food-pantries-pinellas-county-helping-struggling-families-over-summer
Several families in need were able to put food on the table thanks to local organizations who partnered together.
The Juvenile Welfare Board and St. Pete Free Clinic gave out hundreds of meals.
Families received food like fruits, vegetables, meats, dairy, canned goods, and more.
“Even though I do work, it’s still hard to have food for your household,” said Chery Harris, a mother of three.
The event started at 9 a.m., but cars were lined up hours before the event started.
“Most of the folks you would see here in this line, one or both of the adults in the household are working, which is why we scheduled this on a Saturday,” said Beth Houghton, with JWB.
Juvenile Welfare Board’s CEO, Beth Houghton, said they are committed to ensuring no child goes hungry, and invest $4.2 million in bulk food with the St. Pete Free Clinic.
During the summer, Houghton said they wanted to come up with a solution to help bridge the gap of children who may not have access to food.
“It was clear that we were going to have two really big gaps this summer where kids were not at school getting food, but would go a week or two weeks without access to school food,” she said.
According to Houghton, families face several challenges in today’s world, including COVID funds ending.
“Higher rent and higher food costs, and other costs where families’ incomes do not keep up, there are just a lot of people who are strapped,” Houghton said.
Mothers like Harris said nobody should be starving, and that as a working mother, it’s still hard to put food on the table.
“You can go to the grocery store and spend $100 and come out with three bags. What’s three bags that’s going to last a week, not very much,” she said. “At least with this, you’ll have something to add to whatever you have in your household.”
More than 50 pounds of food were given away to each family, with several volunteers dedicating their time to help make a difference.
“Keep in mind tonight, if you sit down with your kids and have food in the pantry or refrigerator that you can pull out, without worrying, how fortunate you are,” Houghton said.
This event was one of six that will be taking place this summer. For a list of all of the summer events, click here.
Watch the interview with JWB CEO Beth Houghton at https://www.wfla.com/news/hundreds-line-up-as-local-organizations-partner-to-feed-kids-during-the-summer/
This summer there will be six opportunities for families in Pinellas County to receive free fresh food from a drive-through mobile food pantry.
The first one is on Saturday, June 22.
It’s at the JWB Parking Lot, 14155 58th Street North in Clearwater (33760) from 9:00 a.m. until noon (while supplies last).
An email news release from the Juvenile Welfare Board (JWB) and St. Petersburg Free Clinic (SPFC) provided details about this and the other five free food events that they anticipate will help feed about 2,000 families.
“A perfect storm is brewing for struggling families,” stated Beth Houghton, JWB Chief Executive Officer. “Summer is always a challenge, given so many children count on school meals for their daily nutrition. This summer is particularly tough since a pandemic-initiated stipend of $300 per child will end for families who receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, otherwise known as Summer EBT. This comes at a time of high housing, utility, and food costs, and the gap-weeks before and after summer school are of particular concern.”
“JWB is committed to ensuring no child goes hungry. We invest $4.2M in bulk food with the St. Pete Free Clinic, which then distributes to food banks and pantries across Pinellas County,” Houghton said. “We will access these investments to distribute free fresh food to families at six drive-thru mobile sites in mid, north, and south Pinellas County, starting this Saturday.”
According to the press release, each “family will receive a variety of fresh fruits, vegetables, proteins/meats, dairy, eggs, cereals, canned goods, and more – approximately 52+ pounds of food per family. A total of 21,000 pounds of food will be given away at each event, which equates to 126,000 pounds of food distributed across the six events when summer ends.”
Here is a list of all six summer food events: www.jwbpinellas.org/calendar/free-summer-food-for-families/
Read the article as originally published at https://www.wmnf.org/six-opportunities-for-pinellas-families-to-get-free-fresh-fruits-vegetables-meats
With school out, and students no longer will have access to free meals at school, there’s help this weekend to help pack the fridge with free fresh fruits, vegetables, meats, and more. Pinellas County families in need are welcome to join the Juvenile Welfare Board (JWB) and St. Petersburg Free Clinic (SPFC) for the first of six drive-through mobile food pantries this Saturday. This event will be in the JWB Parking Lot located at 14155 58th in Clearwater.
“A perfect storm is brewing for struggling families,” stated Beth Houghton, JWB Chief Executive Officer. “Summer is always a challenge, given so many children count on school meals for their daily nutrition. This summer is particularly tough since a pandemic-initiated stipend of $300 per child will end for families who receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, otherwise known as Summer EBT. This comes at a time of high housing, utility, and food costs, and the gap-weeks before and after summer school are of particular concern.”
Each family will receive around approximately 52 pounds of food. But this is on a first come, first served basis that begins and noon and is scheduled to end at noon. If you are not able to join in this first event, I can show you where the next five will be by clicking here.
Read the article as originally published at https://www.wduv.com/entertainment/mobile-food-pantry-event/NLECSKAQONDY3NC5MMYXRFIP5A/
This Saturday, June 22, the Juvenile Welfare Board (JWB) and St. Petersburg Free Clinic (SPFC) will partner to giveaway free fresh fruits, vegetables, meats, and more to families struggling to put food on the table for their kids this summer. This event will take place in the JWB Parking Lot located at 14155 58th St. N., Clearwater, FL 33760, and is the first of six events planned at sites across Pinellas County this summer.
“A perfect storm is brewing for struggling families,” stated Beth Houghton, JWB Chief Executive Officer. “Summer is always a challenge, given so many children count on school meals for their daily nutrition. This summer is particularly tough since a pandemic-initiated stipend of $300 per child will end for families who receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, otherwise known as Summer EBT. This comes at a time of high housing, utility, and food costs, and the gap-weeks before and after summer school are of particular concern.”
JWB’s Childhood Hunger Collaborative forecasted this issue ahead of summer and convened partners to quickly devise a plan. The group has been highly effective in identifying and filling food gaps for kids, responding swiftly to urgent needs as it did throughout the pandemic.
“JWB is committed to ensuring no child goes hungry. We invest $4.2M in bulk food with the St. Pete Free Clinic, which then distributes to food banks and pantries across Pinellas County,” continued Houghton. “We will access these investments to distribute free fresh food to families at six drive-thru mobile sites in mid, north, and south Pinellas County, starting this Saturday.”
Each family will receive a variety of fresh fruits, vegetables, proteins/meats, dairy, eggs, cereals, canned goods, and more – approximately 52+ pounds of food per family. A total of 21,000 pounds of food will be given away at each event, which equates to 126,000 pounds of food distributed across the six events when summer ends.
For a list of all six summer food events, visit www.jwbpinellas.org/calendar/free-summer-food-for-families/
Childhood Hunger Stats:
*Food insecurity means children do not have enough food at times for a healthy, active life.
WHAT: Summer Food for Families Drive-Thru Mobile Food Pantry Giveaway
WHEN: Saturday, June 22, 2024, from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM (while supplies last)
WHERE: Juvenile Welfare Board Parking Lot, 14155 58th St. N., Clearwater, FL 33760
WHO: Families with children in need of food (anticipate feeding 400+ families at this one event). Elected officials and other dignitaries will be on hand to volunteer to pass out food.
Editor’s Note: There will be opportunities for interviews with JWB CEO Beth Houghton, elected officials/VIPs who will be volunteering, and families in the drive-thru line who are receiving free food. We will also have staff available to give interviews in Spanish.
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ABOUT JWB: For more than 75 years, JWB has been investing in the futures of children to strengthen our community. JWB invests in programs, services, and initiatives so children are ready to learn, succeed, and thrive in homes, schools, and neighborhoods that are healthy and safe. To learn more about JWB, please visit www.jwbpinellas.org.
ABOUT SPFC: With compassion and respect, SPFC changes lives by providing health care, nutritious food, recovery housing, and education for our neighbors in need. To learn more about SPFC, please visit www.thespfc.org.
The Juvenile Welfare Board of Pinellas County (JWB) is pleased to announce that Robbi Stivers has been named Chief Financial Officer of the organization.
“We are extremely fortunate to have Robbi join our team,” stated Beth Houghton, JWB Chief Executive Officer. “He has extensive experience navigating the intricacies of government finance in top executive roles, mainly in higher education, and has a track record for demonstrating strong accountability and transparency, making him a good fit for our organization.”
Stivers is a proven leader with 20-plus years of finance experience with local and state governments and public higher education. Building on a successful banking career, he has applied principles of sound business practices, financial management, and organizational leadership to his government finance roles. Stivers is a skilled problem-solver who applies his entrepreneurial vision to create new programs for increased accountability and efficiencies; possesses in-depth knowledge of risk assessment and mitigation; and is savvy to federal, state, and local leadership, legislation, and regulatory environments.
In his role as JWB CFO, Stivers will be responsible for the development and use of sound fiscal and contracting policies and practices that support JWB’s mission and activities while furthering its strategic plan. As Department Chief, he will plan, direct, and supervise the work of JWB personnel engaged in the activities of accounting, budget preparation and analysis, procurement, administrative contract management, and program finance. In addition, he will regularly report to JWB’s 11-member Board who are representative of the community and guide citizens’ investments.
Stivers earned his B.S. in Business Administration from Tennessee Wesleyan University and his M.A. in Organizational Management from Tusculum University. He is a Certified Government Financial Manager (granted by the Association of Government Accountants). He has early career certifications and experience in both insurance and banking.
JWB in an independent special taxing district that has been committed to making children a priority for more than 75 years. Governed by an 11-member Board and driven by data, JWB ensures children are ready to learn, ready to succeed, and ready to thrive in homes, schools, and neighborhoods that are healthy and safe. JWB invests in 100 quality programs with 53 nonprofit agencies, and works collectively to address childhood hunger, grade-level reading, and preventable child deaths. Last year, JWB’s investments strengthened the lives of more than 70,000 children and families across six strategic result areas: Early Childhood Development, School Readiness, School Success, the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect, Strengthening Community, and Organizational Capacity.
The Juvenile Welfare Board of Pinellas County (JWB) is pleased to announce that Robbi Stivers has been named Chief Financial Officer of the organization. “We are extremely fortunate to have Robbi join our team,” stated Beth Houghton, JWB Chief Executive Officer. “He has extensive experience navigating the intricacies of government finance in top executive roles, mainly in higher education, and has a track record for demonstrating strong accountability and transparency, making him a good fit for our organization.”
See the original coverage as published at https://stpetecatalyst.com/shuffle/robbi-stivers/