TONASKET – In light of the upcoming holiday, the Tonasket Food Bank’s hours have been re-scheduled for 9 a.m., Tuesday, Dec. 22. The food bank will be closed Thursday, Dec. 24 and open again at its regular time Thursday, Dec. 31.

“The board of Directors of the Tonasket Emergency Food Bank would like to thank the greater Tonasket Community for their generous support in this difficult year. We strive each week to supply food assistance to local families, a need which has increased substantively these last nine months,” said Diana Weddle, on behalf of the board. “Last year, 2019, our family count averaged 130-140 per week. The last 9 months our weekly family count has often been well over 200 per week with a Thanksgiving high of 285 families. The generosity of our community has helped make it possible to meet this growing need.”

She went on to say the board would also would like to acknowledge and thank the food bank’s large group of volunteers who haul, unload and distribute food on a weekly basis. Also the continued support from Beyers and Grants.

“Our local grocery stores have been a big help in soliciting donations for additional food and through special menus at Thanksgiving and Christmas time. We are indeed happy to be working in a community that so generously supports their friends and neighbors,” said Weddle.

Since Covid, the food bank’s government commodity food suppliers have been able to supply eight to ten thousand pounds of food per-month.

“Now as we enter this new year, the volume of the support from these organizations is in question while local food dependency still seems to be increasing. The Tonasket Food Bank is determined to meet this increasing need for food assistance in our community. Once again, thank you for your generous support,” she said.

If you would like to help in this effort, donations can be made to the Tonasket Food Bank, 101 Highway 97, Tonasket, WA 98855