I had the pleasure of touring Gleaners Food Bank today with Victoria Petersen. Victoria’s title is “Major Gifts Officer” and she is responsible for working with donors to keep Gleaners stocked with enough supplies to feed the hungry in Indiana. Touring the facility was a humbling and awe-inspiring experience and I would like to share it with you.

First, some facts:

• 83% of IPS students qualify for a free lunch or reduced lunch program
• Every dollar donated to Gleaner provides 6 meals to a hungry person
• There are 83,590 children living in poverty in the food bank’s service area
• There are 225,075 people overall living in poverty in the food bank’s service area
• Many of the people assisted by Gleaners are living on approximately $500 a month

Some of these figures were very shocking to me and very eye-opening. As I started the tour, I was immediately impressed by the scale and the efficiency of the Gleaners warehouse. Boxes upon boxes and crates of food were stacked floor to ceiling waiting to be categorized, stored, inspected, and processed. Though Gleaners has staff members, much of the day-to-day work is done by volunteers.

As Victoria led me through the vast structure that fills an entire city block, she told me about the programs specifically designed for children and seniors and how everything is carefully organized and accounted for to ensure maximum efficiency. She showed me a doorway in which a board member had supplied a makeshift metal fixture to drain off excess water that was seeping in through a crack in the ceiling so that they would not have to spend money to replace the structure. She also introduced me to many of the staff members and volunteers who make it possible for Gleaners to feed the hungry.

Gleaners Food Bank has been under the stewardship of Pamela Altmeyer, President and CEO, for over 30 years. Victoria had nothing but glowing words of praise and admiration for Pamela and in short, communicated to me in no uncertain terms that Gleaners has been Pamela’s entire life’s work. The respect and awe in her voice was unmistakable.

What also impressed me about Gleaners was the close partnerships that the food bank has with major corporate donors. In particular, Victoria spoke with deep respect when impressing upon me how instrumental Kroger has been in helping Gleaners. Kroger is the largest donor of both food and money to the food bank and has been for nearly three decades, during which the grocer has contributed almost $1 Million in donations to Gleaners. Since learning this, I will be making more of an effort to shop at Kroger whenever possible. I am impressed by the level of generosity displayed by this major grocery chain.

My tour of Gleaners gave me a powerful experience and lifted my spirits. It was a pleasure to see so many people working together to fight hunger in Indiana. I very much appreciate Victoria’s time in telling me the story of Gleaners and giving me a behind the scenes look into how the food bank functions.

Victoria would love to take others on a tour, as well. Anyone who would like to take a tour or is interested in donating time, money, or food to Gleaners should contact:

Victoria Petersen
Major Gifts Officer
(317) 925-0191
vpetersen@gleaners.org

I have also posted photos from my tour on Facebook. Please feel free to browse through them for a behind the scenes look into the daily operations at Gleaners Food Bank. I highly recommend taking a tour.

Now, I’m off to make a donation to Gleaners.