ONE GUEST, ONE CONVERSATION
I think everyone who volunteers at Daily Bread has a big heart and great compassion for the people we serve. But for many of us, certainly myself, there is a big gulf between the lived experience of most guests, and our own lives outside the Pantry. Language, culture, economic circumstance, and many other factors conspire to introduce an "us and them" dimension to our interactions. Our "grab and go/move the line quickly" model does little to bridge that divide.
At our distribution on Christmas Eve, however, I received a real gut-punch corrective to that experience. Another volunteer pointed out a lady - a new guest - who was insistent on taking just the very minimum amount of food. She spoke with an English accent - unprecedented during my time with the Pantry - and seemed about my age. A short conversation revealed she had grown up in Northwest England, just a few miles from where I had. So we immediately established a personal connection that is often elusive with other guests. She was articulate, thoughtful, matter-of-fact; and homeless. We talked a little about how difficult it was to navigate the social security programs in Connecticut, and how unattractive the shelter system was, even if you had no other option but to sleep on the streets. She gratefully accepted a few cans of tuna and other easy-to-eat items, but refused a bag of clementines because they would freeze - or if they did not freeze, would make her hands sticky. It was somehow this last, almost throwaway observation, that shook me most. Being homeless brings with it innumerable discomforts, but the lack of running water to wash your hands after the simple enjoyment of an orange somehow crystallized the whole wretched condition.
Very few of our guests are homeless, and this lady was not representative of most of our visitors in many other ways. But her gift to me was a reminder that each and every one of our guests is unique, with their own story. In a better world, each guest's circumstances would resonate with me just as much as they did with my compatriot. That is my deficit, not theirs, and I shall always try to remember that.
On a far more prosaic level, the conversation also reminded me why, with so many government programs available to alleviate hunger, we need to exist. These programs are difficult to navigate, and even when navigable are slow and cumbersome. Like justice, food delayed is food denied. Yes, we have to have some process around helping our guests, but we are here to help people now, with the absolute minimum of red tape. We are not blind to the opportunities that creates for abuse, but that is a small price to pay to ensure those truly in need get help when they need it.
I know I'm preaching to the converted here, but I wanted to share this with you, while it was fresh in my mind.
The Year in Numbers
2021 was a truly remarkable year for the Pantry. While in countless ways it is a tragedy that so many of our neighbors needed help to put food on the table, we should be proud of the way Daily Bread's volunteers responded to the challenge. In this, the first full year of the pandemic, we served more far more guests, and distributed far more food, than ever before. With one more distribution to go in 2021, here's how things stack up:
Holiday Distributions
Our Thanksgiving distribution saw us serve what I'm pretty sure was a record-setting 446 guests. We handed out over 420 turkeys, plus a sprinkling of hams, chickens, and ground beef. Over 18,000 pounds - nine tons - of Holiday food in total. Even with tremendous support from our Food Bank partner, Connecticut Foodshare, this was an amazing undertaking. It'll be a hard one to beat next year, for sure.
For Christmas - a major holiday for so many of our guests - we broke the task down into two distributions with special treats. Although numbers were not quite as large as Thanksgiving, we did everything possible to make sure our guests had something special to put on the table. We even had a large selection of stocking-stuffer toys to hand out to our smaller guests, courtesy of the great employees at the Savings Bank of Danbury.
On Christmas Eve, there was even a little snow to add to the festive occasion, plus some holiday music and impromptu dancing from our more nimble-footed volunteers.
Accounting Dept.
One of the first things I wanted to do after becoming President of Daily Bread was to increase transparency into Pantry operations. For most of the time Daily Bread has been around, this wasn't really a priority, because we were small enough that most folks knew what was going on, or at least knew whom to ask.
Starting with the renovation of the Pantry in 2019, and then with the massive increase in guest numbers in 2020, this situation changed dramatically. Our revenue grew exponentially, as did our expenses, and with that the need to adopt practices more suitable for our new size. This Newsletter was the first step to keeping everyone informed about what was going on. An overhaul of our accounting systems was next, so I and the rest of the Board could have more real-time visibility in how we were doing on the money side of things.
With the help of our new Treasurer, Kay Gelfman, that work is now largely complete. There is still more to be done, but we are definitely heading in the right direction.
For this first glimpse into Pantry finances, I'm presenting here three things:
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Our audited 2020 Accounts
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A 2020 Statement of Activity (largely duplicative of the audited numbers, but included to make comparison with 2021 easier)
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A 2021 YTD Statement of Activity (there is still a small lag in recording income and expense, so this is not quite indicative of how the year will end up -- but it clearly shows the direction of travel).
Some observations:
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We are in pretty good shape financially, mainly due to three things:
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A very significant increase in donations during the early months of the pandemic in 2020. This was driven in large part by the amount of media attention focused on Food Banks and Food Pantries during this time. As expected, there was a material drop-off in donations in 2021 as that media attention turned elsewhere, and many folks assumed the crisis was over. Even so, the small cushion in our cash position from 2020 has been preserved, if not really enhanced, in 2021.
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Since the beginning of the pandemic, all of the food from our Food Bank partner, Connecticut Foodshare, has been provided free of charge. We have been assured this huge benefit will continue at least through June 2022.
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We have a solid base of loyal donors who are well informed enough to know the pandemic-related crisis is by no means over
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Despite this relatively good position, we cannot be complacent. Our major donor base, though loyal, is quite limited. And as many of you know, we may not be able to stay in our present location indefinitely: moving elsewhere will be a costly endeavor.
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The financial statements greatly under-represent the size of our operations because they do not reflect the value of food we distribute that comes from the Food Bank, in-kind donations, or food "rescued" from stores
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To give you an idea of how much the Pantry has changed in the last three years, in 2019 we spent just $10,500 on food purchases. In 2021, we will spend around $120,000 - an almost twelvefold increase. And that is with all Food Bank food provided free of charge!
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The Budget for 2022 has not yet been approved by the Board, so I will hold off presenting that until the next Newsletter. As things stand right now, though, it will not look materially different from the 2021 Statement of Acticity, adjusted for inflation.
As with all presentations of accounts, the numbers hide almost as much as they reveal, and can be sliced, diced, and interpreted in many ways. If you are at all interested in this aspect of the Pantry, I would encourage you to ask me questions about anything you see here. If I don't know the answers, I will do my best to find out.
Personnel Dept.
Daily Bread's volunteers - you lot - are the oxygen that breathes life into the Pantry. You may find this hard to believe, but I spend 91% of my Pantry time thinking about the volunteer experience. The other 23% I divide equally between thinking about our guests, thinking about donors, and polishing up my math skills.
If that seems odd - surely it is obvious that we should put our guests foremost - I would just say this. Without volunteers, we would not be able to help a single guest. Without cheerful, motivated, and committed volunteers, the guest experience would be massively diminished. Happy volunteers make coming to the Pantry fun, at least for me. Engaged volunteers come up with great suggestions to improve what we do. An army of incredibly hard-working, dedicated volunteers even provides donors with assurance that their dollars will be put to good use.
Here are a few of my favorite photos from 2021. Some of you are represented more than others. Most - 176 volunteers spent time at the Pantry this year - are not represented at all. As a Pantry photographer, I give myself a failing grade. But pictured or not, I love you all, to borrow our spotlighted volunteers catchphrase. Thank you for everything you do.
Physics Dept.
Over on the Personnel Dept. page, there are pictures of volunteers taken at various distributions over the Pantry year. Not pictured, however, is a vital activity that only the very elite of the volunteer cadre are allowed to participate in. The training is hard and unforgiving, and not everyone makes it. Frankly, it is helpful if you are prepared to put on a few pounds. Either that, or be able to jump really high. F = MA, or Newton's Second Law of Motion, applied to the physics of cardboard compression in a confined space. Dumpster trampolining, if you will. Here are some pictures of the few who made the grade.
Volunteer Spotlight - November/December 2021
In what is a long-overdue award, we turn the Volunteer Spotlight on a true Pantry character. Not that Gladys Almonte really needs a spotlight, or a megaphone, to make her presence known. Gladys's now-famous catchphrase, "I LOVE YOU ALL" can be heard far and wide, certainly to neighboring towns, and it would be a brave soul to contend that she does not have a personality to match.
The perfect line-wrangler and warm-hearted shepherd of those guests requiring a little extra help, Gladys will also readily throw herself in harm's way by directing backing-up trucks, whether assistance is needed or not. Gladys, we all love you too!
Now, it has come to my attention that those featured in this segment of the Newsletter could easily take the view that, being spotlighted is all well and good, but it hardly competes with the Nobel Prize in terms of monetary reward. So, going forward, spotlighted volunteers will receive an actual tangible token of recognition! My first thought was to give them a gallon of expired hot sauce, which we unaccountably have a warehouse full of. But on reflection, I have decided to deplete my lifetime supply of the greatest hospitality how-to book ever written - I Like You, by Amy Sedaris. At the Pantry, we are all about hospitality, with a side of offbeat humor, but we could all usefully brush up on our skills once in a while. The book may not be to everyone's taste. but then neither is a gallon of expired off-brand hot sauce. You are welcome!
Leaving On A Jet Plane
One of the longest-serving and hardest-working volunteers at Daily Bread has decided to move back to his native Peru. Juan Medrano, who is also a member of our Board of Directors, has been a great asset for all these years. His engineering background produced some great suggestions for improving our processes (sorry Juan if I didn't always follow through) and his knowledge of the communities we serve has proven extremely valuable both "on the ground" at distributions, and in discussions at Board meetings about the direction of the Pantry.
Thank you, Juan, for your contributions to the Pantry. Good luck in this next chapter of your life, and please keep in touch. And no matter what Mercedes might say, no estas completamente loco . Solo un poco loco tal vez: - )
