Apple Valley Church's Food Shelf Celebrates 1 Year

When members of in Apple Valley opened the Our Daily Bread food shelf in February 2010, they had no idea that it would grow to be one of the most relied-upon food shelves in Apple Valley.

In its year of existence, the food shelf has helped fill a gap that has only widened over the past few years as the economy has made day-to-day life more difficult for some families. According to data from the census and the 2005-2009 American Community Survey, the poverty rate in Apple Valley has increased 3.1 percent since 2000.

"When we first started, we were averaging 11 families a week,” said Lisa Hegerman, the adult ministries director of social concerns and justice. “Sometimes volunteers would come in and we'd have two orders. Now we're averaging 19.”

Our Daily Bread also began partnership with 360 Communities, a nonprofit that offers a variety of community services in the Twin Cities area, when Hegerman and SOTV expressed interest in a new form of outreach.

"They meet with families first,” she said. “They don't want to just give out food; they want to figure out why this person is struggling.”

The organization then calls the food shelf and places an order to have filled.

"It used to be that more often food shelves were there for an emergency,” Hegerman said. “We're now seeing people having a harder time over the long-term."

Eight coordinators staff Our Daily Bread, and they process orders and coordinate donations within the community. The shelf also has a weekly rotation of 25 volunteers.

Donations range from bread and bakery items to donations from Costco and partnerships with other food drives within the community. The food shelf also benefits from financial donations.

"Some people walk right in and drop off a big check,” Hegerman said. “It's amazing how people fill the need.”

She said the monetary donations can helpful if the shelf is flooded with orders, so volunteers can run out to buy more food if needed.

Hegerman said she’s proud of the Our Daily Bread volunteers’ capacity for giving.
“We started out really knowing nothing about what we were doing, and it's amazing how it's grown into this well-oiled machine,” she said.

Volunteers spend their shifts stocking the food shelf with donations, preparing bags to place with orders, and assisting families.

"I love meeting the people, chatting with them to find out what makes them tick," volunteer Baerbel McNally said. She also remembers a particularly moving experience, that makes volunteering seem that much more important.

"I met a young woman and she had lost her job, her child was sick, and her house was being foreclosed on the next day,” McNally said. “She didn't know where she was going, or what she was going to do.”

As Our Daily Bread looks to the future, hopes are high. While the shelf now stocks primarily non-perishables and household items, Hegerman hopes to carry more produce, milk, meat and diapers, as well as do more community outreach.

"It's a good feeling," volunteer Kathy Benson said. "To see all of the food come in from different stores and know that it's not going to waste—to know that you're helping."