County food banks lose a determined advocate

David Ottey is not what you would call a patient man, at least not when it comes to the idea that anyone should have to go without food.

Ottey saw both want and plenty in his 22 years at the helm of the Emergency Food Network. But it is a credit to his determination and passion that the last time the EFN had bare shelves was 1991.

Ottey sounded the alarm that year, and individuals, organizations and businesses have been answering it ever since. Today, the EFN supplies more than 80 percent of all food to Pierce County food banks. Its reserves ensure that no one here need go hungry.

Ottey, who retired last week, was a big part of the reason why many of us have heard so little about hunger in recent years. His work to secure dependable streams of food and make the most of what was available left little need for community appeals.

When a food bank did make the news for fretting that it would have to turn people away, the story usually prompted a call from an exasperated Ottey telling food bank officials to get their trucks to the EFN’s Lakewood warehouse, pronto.

Ottey seems to understand the power that the specter of hunger holds over a generous community, and he reserved its use for the most dire circumstances.

But even a man not given to doom and gloom is cautious about what lies ahead. Ottey takes his leave as anti-hunger forces are facing huge challenges to keeping people fed as the recession drags on.

Visits to food banks and hot meal sites countywide are up 20 percent – more than 30 percent at some places – with a disproportionate share of new clients being seniors and children under 19. Emergency food workers consider those two groups the proverbial canaries in the coal mine; that they are seeking help in greater numbers could point to a long-term rather than temporary problem.

At the same time food banks expect to continue seeing new faces, the corporations that once donated vast amounts of food are paring back. Corporate donations at the EFN were down about 25 percent in the last two months.

End-of-the-year donations from individuals, service clubs and workplaces helped fill the gap, but worry is setting in now that the holiday giving season is over. Donations always are down in the first few months of a new year.

Ottey has left the county’s network of emergency food sites in a strong position to weather the difficulties ahead. But six more months of continued economic downturn coupled with severe cuts in other social services would weaken the underpinnings of even the most healthy system.

In a parting interview with News Tribune reporter Mike Archbold, Ottey said. “Don’t tell me everybody can’t be fed. That’s absurd.”

Absurd, indeed. Hunger is not inevitable, not as long as a caring community refuses to allow it a toehold. Helping sustain the food safety net should be a top priority for donors.