Scott Swanson
Sweet Home Emergency Ministries has had a “strange and surreal” year, one of its directors told the Sweet Home Rotary Club Tuesday, Dec. 1.
Cindy Rice, who as pantry manager oversees the distribution of food, the nonprofit relief organization’s main outreach, said SHEM has been serving more people with fewer volunteer staff resources during the COVID pandemic.
The “100% volunteer” organization has been in Sweet Home nearly 41 years and has impacted thousands of lives, of all ages, Rice said.
SHEM’s four outreaches are the Manna Meal dinners served three nights a week at the United Methodist Church, financial assistance, Carmen’s Closet clothing distribution and emergency food boxes.
Rice told the Rotarians that due to COVID and the wildfires, “local families are unprepared or unable to navigate job losses, lack of social connections and loss of support systems.
“Many are visibly struggling with a sense of urgency and vulnerability, with a tenuous grasp on being able to cope,” she said, noting that “the loss of school meals have had a tremendous negative effect on children.”
SHEM has provided 14,466 meals since the first of the year, Rice told the Rotarians.
She noted that the organization offers a wide variety of other services as well:
– Pet food provided to more than 150 families each month in conjunction with the Pongo Foundation;
– Coordinating the community Christmas Box;
– A partnership with Harvest Christian Fellowship in providing backpacks to needy children in an annual back-to-school event;
– Providing diapers and hygiene products such as soaps and shampoo;
– Sharing Tree hat/socks/gloves/scarf packets – thousands have been handed out;
– More than 150 masks sewed by volunteers and handed out to clients;
– Blankets, household items, hygiene products and clothing handed out on a limited basis; and
– Financial assistance to aid those who have had utilities shut off, or need bus passes, prescriptions filled, ID’s or gas money for out-of-town doctor visits.
“When COVID first hit, people came to our door for food boxes so they could get the two rolls of toilet paper inside,” Rice said, thanking the Rotarians for a stack of toilet paper packages on a table nearby that they had collected.
SHEM is short of volunteer help, she said. “A lot of us are wearing so many different hats.”
As an example, Rice said, she recently had to prepare a volunteer-screening questionnaire required by the Food Bank, which turned out to be a time-consuming process, while she took care of her many other duties at SHEM.
“I had to do that on my own time because I’m too busy at SHEM,” she said, adding, “This year, much time has been spent juggling logistics and the complications of the changing system of delivery.”
Because of ever-changing COVID restrictions, SHEM has gone from handing out food boxes to a drive-through system, to installing an intercom system so applications for meals can be taken via that mechanism, without personal interaction.
She said that SHEM has had to cancel this year’s bell-ringing program, in which volunteers collected money at local stores. Two local grocery stores had already backed out due to insurance complications, she said, and COVID curtailed the effort at Bi-Mart, the remaining participant. That left SHEM without the $1,500 to $1,600 it usually collects through the bell-ringing effort, which pays for 300 backpacks.
She said donations from other sources had filled some of that gap.
Rotary President Bill Matthews asked her how much SHEM needed, and Rice said it would be about $500.
Matthews then called for an impromptu vote from the 11 members who were present about covering that cost from the club’s emergency funds. They voted unanimously to do so and Treasurer Ken Bronson cut a check on the spot, which Matthews presented to Rice after the meeting.
Rice said more “significant changes” are expected in the near future.
“Almost weekly we’re seeing changing protocols and policies – sanitizing our facility, volunteer screening – and it’s hard to keep abreast of all the changes,” she said. “It’s been a scramble.”
She said SHEM is having difficulty acquiring paper products, particularly toilet paper, and hygiene products.
She thanked the Rotary Club for its efforts in the community.
“I appreciate being able to share about SHEM and our hope and prayer is that all families thrive in Sweet Home, with greater livability.”