New Kent Charles City Chronicle

News for New Kent County and Charles City County, Virginia | March 29, 2024

Supervisors in NK dealing with food bank controversy

By Alan Chamberlain | November 18, 2010 10:37 am

A sudden and unexpected controversy has erupted concerning proposed operation of the currently unused cafeteria in New Kent’s Historic School as a community food bank.

Several county residents, some representing at least one local church, sat in on New Kent Board of Supervisors’ Nov. 10 meeting, and a speaker from the group said the current practice of food programs operating in individual churches works adequately.

“You need to look into the ramifications of tying up school programs whereas now churches take care of it very well,” county resident Richard Dawes told the board.

Dawes also expressed concern over talk that the county is applying for grant money that could carry a local match. Once the grant runs out, the county could have to foot the bill, he said.

“I would suggest not letting the county get involved with the food bank program. It works well the way it is,” he added.

But county administrator Cabell Lawton said the grant in question already has been obtained by Quin Rivers Agency for Community Action. There is no cost to the county, and the grant is not in any way connected with the county, he said.

The grant covers one year through September 2011 and pays for an employee to help establish and oversee the food bank. Once the grant runs out, a committee is slated to take over food bank operation.

At least one supervisor, meanwhile, believes people are missing the point when it comes to serving county residents in need.

“As a board, we try to make the best decision for all the hungry people in New Kent, not just the ones the churches serve,” District 5 representative Ray Davis said.

“I don’t know where it got to be so controversial,” he said. “It started with the Brown Bag program wanting to use the cafeteria, and we said we wanted to make it available to anyone in New Kent who wanted to use it.

“We thought it would be a good idea to centralize,” he said. “We’re trying to set it up so everyone shares equally, and it will be more efficiently run, and there’ll be more food.

“Now we hear people say it runs okay, why change it. We want to change it to reach all hungry people in New Kent County,” he said. “We don’t want to run it, and we’re not trying to cut somebody’s little program out. We want to make it better for everybody.”

District 1 Supervisor Thomas Evelyn suggested seeking input from all churches with food pantry programs. Board chairman Marty Sparks agreed, pointing to Friday’s meeting with county school officials (see story on this page) to discuss the matter, “and get everybody on the same page.”

“That’s what I’ve been trying to do all along,” Davis chimed in.

County money, however, is expected to enter the picture to pay for an estimated $10,000 in repairs that must be made before the cafeteria opens. Fixing the facility’s walk-in freezer, which needs a new condenser, takes up the lion’s share or $6,000-$8,000 of the anticipated repair bill.

A draft shared use agreement is on the table before county and school officials and those groups that have expressed interest in the cafeteria. Recently, the agreement has been amended, upping what was a five-member governing committee to seven to include representatives from county Social Services and Extension (or Master Gardeners). The other five members include two representatives each from local churches and the Brown Bag program plus someone from the business community. The committee is slated to meet at least six times a year to discuss operations.

In his report to the board, Lawton noted statistics showing an estimated 18 percent of New Kent’s population or close to 3,200 people “have the potential of food insecurity.” He pointed to the ongoing economic turndown as contributing to the growing numbers.

District 4 Supervisor Stran Trout urged the board to proceed slowly and determine along the way if additional expense could be lurking.

“We’ll not rush into anything,” Sparks responded.

“Our ultimate goal is to help those in New Kent who really need the help,” he added. “There are a lot of hungry people out there. This economy has really taken its toll.”