Each year for the “Have a Heart, Help a Neighbor” fundraising campaign, hundreds of pounds of food are donated to Second Harvest Northland. The food bank serves 15 counties in the region and helps around 70,000 individuals a year. 

Several local businesses work with Second Harvest Northland, including Grand Rapids State Bank.

“It’s a great resource to answer the needs of the community in relation to food insecurities and, you know, the need of not only just our local community but the community around us, the whole Itasca County. It’s a great resource for providing folks with the needs that they have on an everyday basis,” said Vice President of Consumer Lending Dale Rosier. “We’ve had a long historical relationship with helping the Second Harvest Food Bank that helps them achieve their mission statement of ending food hunger.” 

Grand Itasca Clinic and Hospital also works closely with Second Harvest, volunteering regularly. 

“I’d say in 2020, the relationship with Grand Itasca and Second Harvest was really strengthened. When the pandemic came, the need for food grew significantly,’ said Community Health Coordinator Kelly Campbell. “On the other side of that, then the volunteers weren’t able to get here and help package all the food, and so Grand Itasca started sending a team over monthly, and they would help package the food, get it ready to go out the door.”

A variety of volunteers from different departments at Grand Itasca help out at the food bank each month. Additionally, the clinic and the hospital screen everyone in the same way to help those with food insecurity. 

“We knew how important it was to find out who in our community is really struggling, and so we started changing up our process,” said Campbell. “So when people are coming in for every appointment, they’re getting screened, asking the questions, ‘Have you run out of food in the last 12 months, or have you been afraid you’d run out of food?”’

Asking these questions provides the opportunity for staff to direct those in need to local food shelves and other programs without calling anyone out. 

“The people that we’re helping are the people we’re sitting at the football games with. They’re the people that we’re talking to in the grocery stores. And so, when someone comes in, I think it’s sometimes hard for people to reach out to people they know,” explained Campbell. “But when we made that part of our process, it took that stigma away. They know that we ask that of every person coming through, and so, we can help our community and help the people in it and lessen the stigma so that they can get the help that they need.” 

To donate to Second Harvest Northland, go to this link. 

More information about local resources to fight hunger in the Northland can be found here.