Nourishing Our Neighbors: The Heart of Community Food Banks

In today's episode we explore the operations of community food banks with Debbie Marson, Executive Director of the North Bay Food Bank.   Debbie talks about the need for community support and advocacy to address issues of food insecurity. Together, we peel back the curtain on how these vital institutions run without government funding, rely on the generosity of people, and what truly makes a difference in aiding families in need.  We discuss how we can enrich our family studies classrooms through community service.  In this our last episode of season two, we wish all of you a relaxing and rejuvenating summer.  See you in September for season three!

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Transcript

Catherine Murphy: 0:09

Welcome back to what? The Family Studies podcast. I'm your host tonight, Catherine Murphy. We can't believe that we've made it through another season. We've learned so much and hope that you have too. But tonight, for our final episode, we want to welcome Debbie Marson. Debbie's a dynamic community leader currently serving as the executive Director of the North Bay Food Bank since 2020. With a background spanning over two decades, Debbie's journey includes pivotal roles at the Canadian Cancer Society's North Bay branch, where she was both a fundraising specialist and volunteer coordinator. Before her current position, she played a crucial role in a local advertising marketing firm, wearing multiple hats and contributing to its success for nearly 25 years. No. Outside of her professional career, Debbie's passion for community service shines through her leadership in projects like the 2007 Craft Canvas Hockeyville, where she spearheaded efforts resulting in significant rewards in an NHL exhibition game. And, of course, she finds joy in her wonderful 35-year marriage to H. She's proud parents of an amazing son and a beautiful daughter-in-law, and the loving bond that she shares with two very adorable grandchildren.

Catherine Murphy: 1:09

First thing we're going to do as teachers take a look at our learning goals. So tonight we're going to explore the operations of food banks, including funding sources, food distribution and strategies for serving communities in need. We're going to analyze the complexities of addressing food insecurity, including within the family studies curriculum, and evaluate potential long-term solutions to food insecurity beyond traditional food banks. So, Debbie, welcome to our episode tonight. Thanks for joining us.

Debbie Marson: 1:37

Well, thank you so much for having me. I look forward to this riveting conversation.

Catherine Murphy: 1:41

It will be riveting, I promise. Okay, so my first question for you. You are executive director of the North Bay Food Bank and you have had many, many wonderful experiences that have brought you to where you are today. Can you tell us a little bit about your own personal education and training that led you to this job?

Debbie Marson: 1:58

Absolutely, so way back in the day in 1984, I took dictatyping at our Canadore o college here in North Bay and it's a trait I have never, ever used, so that was a good one.

Debbie Marson: 2:10

And then about three years later I decided to really go to where my passion was with journalism and signed up for journalism print, took one of two years in that course before the money ran out and realized I had to work, and that's where I began my career at the agency back in 1989. And from then on it's really been all life experience and learned experience through work environments that got me to where I am today to have the capacity of being able to lead a team, manage a business, do a not-for-profit, all the fun things that happen where we are now at the food bank, and I think the experience that I received in working with the marketing firm as well as the Canadian Cancer Society got me some of the background experience and education through again lived experiences that allowed me to take the position of executive director into a really new direction and a successful one with the team that I built there at the food bank.

Catherine Murphy: 3:03

I think it's really important to note that your pathway was not a straight one. Was it that got you to where you are today and to the job that you're currently loving doing? So I think that's important for our teachers who are listening to note, for any of our students that are listening to note as well too, so I'm glad you brought that up. Can you tell us about the operations of the food bank? So how does it receive funding? How do you distribute food to those needs? It's? It's a big question. I know it's not a nine to five job for you, so maybe you can give us you know, like a day in the life of the executive director of the North Bay food bank.

Debbie Marson: 3:33

We do it all. You know I am executive director, I have an office with tons of paperwork and reports and so there's a lot of admin to what I do. But there's also the boots on the ground, where you know, we received four pallets of donated food today that had to get. So that was about 5,000 pounds that between myself and two colleagues we moved in around the warehouse, counted it, made sure it was all where it needs to be. So the days are different but they do the same. You know our main goal is to raise money to keep the door open.

Debbie Marson: 4:03

Cathy<br>, if we go back to the funding question, we are community funded. We do not receive government funding whatsoever. We did receive a pot of money the first summer of COVID, more so, I guess, spring summer, to make sure that we were able to stay open. We have a volunteer base at that time of a lot of seniors who were encouraged to stay home. When COVID first came out, people were not out doing food raisers and fundraisers, so that money stream and product stream wasn't coming in. So we did receive government funding through our association with Feed Ontario, who is a part of Foodbanks Canada. So if we look at it like government hierarchy. North Bay Food Bank would be the municipal side, Feed Ontario, provincial Food Banks Federal. None of those entities are government funded. We are all those three levels are all community funded or through whatever funds we can secure that would trickle from Food Banks, Canada, Feed Ontario and other provincial entities into the North Bay Food Bank. And what they do is they really advocate for our food banks, for the work that we do? They advocate for our clients. They will push the government envelope to say you know, we need an increase in basic living needs, basic income, to get people off using food banks. They secure a lot of partnerships with big corporations to get us these four pallets of free food or throughout the month we'll have other pallets that we can get our hands on, of items we wouldn't be able to receive or purchase on our own. So it's a little known secret that we do not get government funding. People really think that we are funded through the government. We're not. We're out there hustling every day to get those $1, $100, $1,000 donors to keep the door going. If we go into how we distribute what we receive through, you know whether we purchase it or it's donated.

Debbie Marson: 5:54

Every food bank operates differently. We may do things on a core basis the same. Some of us are hamper food banks, so it's a preset hamper that will go to clients. Some are a shopping model where clients can go in and each food represents a certain amount of points and they get points based on family size or household size and they can pick out the items that they want. I think those are the two main ones.

Debbie Marson: 6:17

We're a hamper food bank so we have preset there milk cartons. Each household will get two milk cartons full of their dry goods for the pantry. You know, rices, cereals, canned items like beans, legumes, vegetables, Kraft dinner soups, pasta, pasta sauce, cereal, oatmeal the basics that you're going to look for in your cupboard. And then, based on what we've able to secure, what we need to purchase or what has been donated, we also add in eggs, cheese slices, milk, margarine, coffee, tea, sugar, flour, personal hygiene products, baby items and then again, through Feed Ontario, we have other fresh or frozen items. So right now clients have an option of hot dogs, chicken breasts and frozen vegetables to add to their hamper and basically our clients can come in once a month and they come in four three-hour sessions a week and we see about 30 households in those three hours each day that we serve Mostly adult households, singles.

Debbie Marson: 7:23

We're starting to see a lot more families, seniors. You know the demographic isn't what it used to be. You know, traditionally food banks. You know, when I think back to when I was a kid, I don't even remember hearing about a food bank. It was mostly for people on government assistance that really fell short of being able to sustain, and now it's everyone. We're all struggling with food prices and food insecurity.

Catherine Murphy: 7:45

That really does bring me to my next question, because I think we hear a lot about food insecurity these days and we hear a lot about inflation. It's absolutely affecting your demand for food, isn't it?

Debbie Marson: 7:54

Well, yeah. So if we're seeing new, different demographics coming in, that's putting a strain on my existing inventory. So before I can plan and know that, you know I'm going to see 20 households come in in the three hours and I know I need to have enough Kraft dinner, for example, to put two in each hamper. Well now I can't even guess how many. So I'm trying to keep the inventory where it needs to be, to do 30 to 35 households a day. With more people coming in, I have to stretch my inventory, but it's also costing me higher amounts to buy the food that I need. So I'm kind of getting hit twice. Right, and donations are down because people do not have that extra cash right now to spend $5 when they're going to get their own groceries or drop a check in the mail. It's a very quiet time and we're not the only food bank experiencing that. In North Bay, talking to my colleagues and counterparts, we're all feeling that pinch right now.

Catherine Murphy: 8:50

So when I look at the food budget for my house and for my family, I'm feeling it's stressed too, and you, you know the government funding that I think we all maybe assume that you guys might get, but you're also, you know, having greater need and greater people coming to look for food from you. So what are some other long-term solutions that you think that we could implement? Do you have any suggestions, any ideas of what we can implement as long-term solutions for you know, helping out this problem?

Debbie Marson: 9:17

Well, I think when we look at for our food banks. So we are a fixed address hamper program and that means that we serve clients that have fixed address. They're in a household. We don't serve the unhoused. We have a lot of support in North Bay for our unhoused population so we've always been, in the 37 years we've been around, focusing on keeping people in their homes. A lot of them are, you know, one paycheck away from being homeless and we want to make sure that they don't have to worry about that. So I think we need affordable housing to be able to house more people in places where they have more money at the end of the month. You know it's the reverse right now. They have more month than money and we have to get back to a place where people can sustain.

Debbie Marson: 9:59

We don't all need to be millionaires, but it would be nice for some of our clients to have $10 at the end of the day to go out and rent a movie or go to a movie. I guess we don't rent them anymore but do something outside of their house that gives them good mental health. They don't have that. They're living less than paycheck to paycheck. Now people on ODSP are getting about $1,200. And out of that you know the bulk of it is shelter. Let's say it's $700. You know that doesn't leave that much money for groceries and cleaning supplies and new shoes or socks. You know the things that we all, as you know people able to work and sustain our bills that we don't have to worry about as much as others. So the government's going to have to start looking at some increases in those ODSP, Ontario Works, Old Age Security. Give these people a little bit of, you know, outside of the poverty line living.

Catherine Murphy: 10:50

One thing you mentioned was you know housing and making sure people are housed, because those are the people that you serve. That's going to essentially bring you more clientele, and will it not? And then you know stretch you're gonna have to stretch those dollars even more to serve those people as well. I t a? Is it a good solution? I mean, I know what's the solution, but is it going to be an effective solution long term?

Debbie Marson: 11:11

I think it's a good solution. I mean, ideally we all need a roof over our head, but the difference is when you're on ODSP and you can barely get by trying to keep that roof over your head, you know you have to come and see us. I'll work three times as hard if that means more people get housed and can use our services. Absolutely, I think that's what we need to look at. I mean, sometimes I feel like the government looks at grassroots organizations like ours because we're not government funded as a checkmark. You know we're working hard, we're doing a good job and we're helping people out. So let's take that off their plate or out of their sightline. When really food security, affordable housing, basic income increases, those are the things that we need to at least give a little bit of success to some of these people, and that's going to help in the long run, won't it?

Catherine Murphy: 11:58

I think so. I do. Yeah, Our listeners. Debbie, we're looking at. You know family studies, teachers and part of our curriculum. We teach all sorts of different courses. We teach food and nutrition, nutrition and health, their food and culture right, they're big courses that I think most of our schools teach, and we talk about food insecurity in our curriculum and it's an incredibly complex issue that we're trying to explain to teenagers. So do you have sort of any insight on how we can effectively address this with these, these students that we're teaching?

Debbie Marson: 12:27

I think it's. They don't get it because they're not living it. And even if they are, they may not know they're in it right, because, as kids that rely on our parents to take care of us till we're out of the household or on our own in other degrees, that's all taken care of the bills. They don't worry about bills. They don't worry about where the food's coming from, what's on the table. They may, you know, get a glimmer that it's not as great food or, you know, as much snacks and stuff in the cupboards as others.

Debbie Marson: 12:54

But I think a way teachers could really bring that to light is get them in those places. Get them volunteering at food banks and ones that do different service models. Get them into the soup kitchens where they can see meal prep happening for people that are relying you know, on how's relying on those types of services when your eyes are opened, b/ / I I mean mine were when I first joined the food bank. I really had no background in food banks and when I got in there and saw you know the people that were using our services and you know how humbling it is to go in there and do that. It sure opens your eyes, you know, to the plight of others.

Catherine Murphy: 13:28

Yeah, and I think that's a good message for our teachers as well too, because I know we, where I live, there is a soup kitchen and they bring in classes. Where I live, there is a soup kitchen and they bring in classes, so my class, I can sign my class up and we I think our issue would be transportation, getting kids there during the school day and then they can actually cook some of the food for the soup kitchen and then they can actually we do bring kids after hours to earn volunteer hours to serve the food. So is that something that you would look for in your food bank? Would you look for, you know, student volunteers to come in so they could work on getting some of their volunteer hours too?

Debbie Marson: 14:01

Oh, yeah, we have quite a few right now that they've surpassed their hours, but they just want to be there and we like them, so they get to stay. But yeah, we really rely on high school students to come in and do things like not necessarily client services, because you have to have your vulnerable sector check done, because you're dealing, you know, with certain types of people and sometimes they're in, you know, mental health issues or addiction issues and you have to be able to deal. But we get them to do things like sort the food, break down diapers into different bundles, like all the jobs that have to get done to make things run smoothly. But sometimes we neglect them because we're doing all these other things. But, yeah, we definitely bring in high school students all the time.

Catherine Murphy: 14:42

Okay, that's a great, a great opportunity, I think, for some teachers to present to their students so we can help them get those requirements for graduation. Debbie, my last question for you is, you know, teaching aside, your job aside, everything aside, how can we, just as individuals, as human beings, how can we best support the food banks in our community?

Debbie Marson: 15:00

Call them and ask, because you know you may think that you're going to do a food drive, pasta based, for example. Okay, we, we, we know the food bank hands out pasta. Let's go get a whole bunch of pasta and then that's great, we've got this overflow of pasta but no sauce, you know. So I really encourage you to call them and ask them what they need. They'll tell you whether they're they want you to do a food drive at a certain time of year. You know we get a lot of food drives happening October to December, because that's really feels like the giving season leading up to Christmas and we will never say no.

Debbie Marson: 15:31

But we try to educate the school system as well, saying if you guys all parceled it out right now, it's really quiet. If we had a couple of schools doing it right now, that would really help us out. In the Catholic school system especially, they want to do it around certain celebrations and things that happen within Christianity and what they teach. But I think just absolutely asking where do you need help the most? And they'll be honest.

Catherine Murphy: 15:55

I think that's great advice. I think it's good advice. I think our teachers should maybe make those phone calls, call those food banks and just see what they need at that point in time and then run our donations based on that. That's awesome.

Debbie Marson: 16:06

It may not even be a donation. It may be like we've had a couple of schools come in the West. First Secondary School here in North Bay always does a big food drive in conjunction with some of the other high schools, but they always bring in a lot of food and last September it was 30,000 pounds in one shot. Wow.

Cassandra MacEachern: 16:24

so.

Catherine Murphy: 16:25

I have amazing.

Debbie Marson: 16:26

It is, it's, it's, it's wonderful. So I had to call a couple of other schools and say, can you bring some classes over to help us move it from this trailer into the storage facility? And that was just as big of a help as them . I going and getting that food.

Catherine Murphy: 16:48

Yes, because you have to manage that food. Now our podcast and this is our rapid fire question. So I'm going to ask you five questions and you are just going to answer with the first thing that comes to your mind. Is that okay? Yes, it is Okay, All right. So our first question if you could only eat one cuisine for the rest of your life, what would you choose? Popcorn? Oh, popcorn, Any special flavors? Cheese popcorn?

Catherine Murphy: 17:11

I actually like shredded cheese on it, melted, okay, interesting. What about cheese whiz? I have done cheese whiz. It's too expensive right now. Okay, if you could time travel. Are you going backwards or forwards?

Debbie Marson: 17:26

Backwards. Oh, why backwards? Because I always don't you laugh at me. I've always wanted to be a teacher. I did, but never had enough, I guess, self confidence to go for it. I didn't have the money to go for it, but I would have loved to have been a kindergarten grade one teacher.

Catherine Murphy: 17:43

Oh, you know what I was just gonna offer that you could come into my class and teach, but that's not kindergarten or grade one, so but it might be a second best for you. Anyhow, we'll talk about that. Okay, number three if you could live inside a movie, which movie would you choose? A Walk to Remember? Oh, great movie, Mandy Moore. Right, yeah.

Debbie Marson: 18:02

Yeah, that's a tearjerker for sure. Only because of that one part of the movie where she was at two places at once.

Catherine Murphy: 18:11

Okay, this one, number four, is a really tough one. I think this is a hard one, so I hope you're ready for it. Okay, share a mistake you made recently, can can be big or small. A mistake, a mistake, yeah.

Debbie Marson: 18:21

Oh, my husband's in the background saying 35 years ago. But I disagree with that. I said recently, yeah, I think not trusting my gut, that I said recently, yeah, I think not trusting my gut, because sometimes we see clients that you know you feel like maybe there's more to a story there and you don't explore it enough because, number one, you don't have time, you're trying to respect people's privacy. But, yeah, I think you know, there's been a couple of times where we've had, I've seen clients come in and I want to spend more time with them and and don't, and I should.

Catherine Murphy: 18:50

Right, and I think you know what. I think you are preaching to the choir over here, because I think a lot of teachers are like that too. I think in our day-to-day life it's so busy that, you know, we don't often get enough time to do the things, the important things that we should be doing. Yeah, okay, our last rapid fire question for you you, what are you most looking forward to his t? summer Vacation ummer vacation, . . . summer? vacation? Vacation vacation do you guys have anything fun planned?

Debbie Marson: 19:15

We're going away in the next two weeks to New York and Vermont for our 35th nice. I need to take my time off from my own mental health and well-being, not bank my time, not put it aside for later. I have to do.

Catherine Murphy: 19:30

Yeah, I think that's an important lesson for a lot of us, isn't it? Yep, yep, for sure, for sure. Well, Debbie Marson executive director of the North Bay food bank. I want to thank you very much for coming and joining us tonight, and I really feel like this is a huge topic that we could dig much, much deeper into, but we don't, unfortunately, have a lot of time on our podcast. But thank you so much for joining us tonight. We really appreciate you being here and helping us out with this big, difficult issue.

Debbie Marson: 19:55

Well, it's my pleasure and anytime I can tell my story, tell you know about our food bank and what we do. We always like to share who we serve and how we serve and why we do it.

Catherine Murphy: 20:04

It's there and I think you know if you guys just tap into your own local food banks and ask them questions, they're going to give you the answers you're looking for, and I do love that you gave a shout out to our friends at West Ferris High School because probably some of their teachers might be listening to us, so I think that's awesome Right on, and thank you very much to all our listeners for joining us as we close off season two. I can't believe we got here, but we hope you'll join us again in the early fall for season three and be sure to follow us on social media and we'll have more exciting details about what season three holds as they come available to us. Thanks so much.

Cassandra MacEachern: 20:42

What the Family Studies is brought to you by the Ontario Family Studies Home Economics Educators Association. Special thanks to our producer, m Gallant, tech support and podcast editor, Cassandra McEachern . Thank y.