Last month, we hosted two legislative roundtables, one at our Bing center and one at our Cypress center. Representatives from all different levels of government – local, state and federal – were invited to learn more about the Food Bank, our legislative priorities and how they can help us achieve a vision of a hunger-free community.
Attendees at our Bing Legislative Roundtable
The event was a success – with dozens of attendees at each location – and a lot of great dialogue.
Both events started with a short introduction to the Food Bank and the scale of our work, followed by a review of 2018 policy victories and challenges. VP of Community Engagement and Policy Tracy Weatherby then presented our 2019 policy priorities, including a focus on protecting and enhancing CalFresh and improving school and summer meals programs.
Then, two of our staff, Claribel Chavez, food connection coordinator, medical partnerships and Vicky Avila-Medrano, food connection manager, Promotores, shared their personal stories and the challenges our clients face in today’s environment.
“We are delighted to have such strong relationships with our partners in government and to have the opportunity to have a robust and productive dialogue around key policy priorities for the year ahead,” said Tracy Weatherby. “We are lucky to live in an area of the country where there is such support for solving food insecurity.”
Attendees went on a warehouse tour after the event.
Check out our 2019 Policy Agenda here.
Thanks to everyone who attended. We look forward to working with you in the coming months!