Neighbors Helping Neighbors: Addressing Senior Hunger with Respect and Dignity in Ocean Shores

Our FAN (Food Access Network) team regularly travels across the state to visit with the incredible community partners doing the work to end hunger in Washington. And we’re excited to share their inspiring stories and highlight what’s happening behind the scenes!

“A lot of seniors struggle to eat well, either because of medications or loneliness, or physical limitations. We try to make it easy for them to make healthy and nutritious food,” says Sandy Harley, Executive Director of the Ocean Shores Food Bank.

Harley and her husband retired to Ocean Shores nearly a decade ago to escape the Seattle traffic and enjoy the decidedly quieter company of whales, eagles, and hawks. In 2014, Harley started volunteering with the food bank after meeting the executive director at a fundraising event. Her first shifts were on Tuesday mornings, sorting through produce and stocking the shelves. She quickly joined the Operations Committee, the all-volunteer group that coordinates ordering and receiving logistics from food distribution partners.

Early into her tenure on the Ops Committee, Harley demonstrated her relational skills by facilitating a tense conversation with a local partner. There had been some friction with a community garden where the food bank had some beds designated to grow produce for shoppers. With Harley’s help, the issues were resolved, and they were able to expand their plot. Today, the Ocean Shores Food Bank tends to eight huge beds in the community garden to provide their guests with fresh and nutrient-dense fruits and vegetables.

In 2017, Harley was asked to take on the role of Executive Director and has been serving in this position since. “Ocean Shores Food Bank is an all-volunteer organization and 98% of all donations go to Program Services,” reports Harley, “And I would like to emphasize that the majority of our donations are from individuals and families. Some think of the local food bank as an outside organization helping in their community. But really, the food bank is the vehicle through which the community helps the community. It is neighbors helping neighbors.”

The Ocean Shores Food Bank is fueled entirely by a volunteer cadre of 60-70 retired community members who are committed to addressing senior hunger in their community. “Many guests are our friends!” remarks Harley. “According to the US Census Bureau, Ocean Shores’ population is 7,549. It is primarily a retired, senior community with 41% being over the age of 65. Life expectancy in Grays Harbor County is 3.5 years less than the rest of the state; and we have higher rates of obesity and diabetes.”

The connection between health and nutrition is important for everyone, but especially for senior populations who often must navigate health concerns, medication regimens, limited mobility, and the challenges of living on a fixed income. “In addition to money, physical and emotional limitations come into play,” Harley shares. “Most of us take for granted we can open a can of beans, read a recipe, or stand long enough to prepare or clean up after a meal. There becomes a tipping point where many can no longer do it anymore and they have no alternatives.”

The rising cost of inflation has also prompted more seniors to visit the food bank. The need is growing, and Harley says they are seeing many folks for the first time: “Our guests, especially seniors, come to the food bank because they have no choice. They are hesitant, embarrassed, and we even see tears. Many have said, ‘I’ve never needed help before.’ It’s a matter of pride.”

In 2021, 665 seniors visited the Ocean Shores Food Bank, in 2022 they had 921 shoppers, in 2023 there were 1037 visitors, and as of August, 2024 there have already been 790 visitors to the food bank.

“We have often talked about being a supplemental source of food for our seniors. For many of our guests, inflation has outpaced social security increases. I wonder if our role has shifted? It seems like we are something more than supplemental. Our food costs during the first six months of this year increased 66% over the same period last year,” Harley says. The increased cost of food and the increase in the number of guests has put many food banks in a tight position.

Despite the constraints that food banks and food pantries are struggling to operate within, Harley emphasizes the ways in which her community collaborates to take care of each other: “It takes a lot of compassionate, dedicated volunteers because we don’t have a lot to work with.”

Harley and her team are committed to treating every guest with respect and dignity. They work to reduce the stigma associated with visiting a food bank by implementing a grocery store model: all who visit the food bank are given a shopping cart when they arrive and are welcome to choose the foods they prefer from the shelf. Guests are greeted with coffee and a friendly and earnest conversation. For many, this is the first social interaction they have had since the previous Thursday, when they visited the food bank the last time.

Harley and her team work to make sure shoppers have access to some of the most beautiful produce and are encouraged to take home the vitamin-rich fruits and veggies. Ocean Shores is too remote to host a farmers market, despite interest from the residents, so having fresh produce available at the food bank is crucial. There is only one grocery store in the community. This small, largely senior, community is experiencing “food apartheid,” an alternative term to “food desert” coined by food justice advocate Karen Washington, that draws attention to the root causes of inequity in our food system based on race, class, and geography.

According to a 2024 United Health Foundation report, senior food insecurity rates increased by 8% between 2020 – 2021. 12.9% of older adults across the United States experience food insecurity. In Washington State, that number is 8.2%. 12% of Ocean Shores residents are living in poverty. For those people, the most basic resources can feel few and far between. Luckily, wherever there is need, there are compassionate and hardy people working to make magic happen. The team at Ocean Shores Food Bank works hard for, and alongside, their friends and community members – neighbors helping neighbors.

If you would like to support the meaningful work of the Ocean Shores Food Bank with the gift of time or funds, please visit their website.