Othello Food Bank doing well, finances stabilized

OTHELLO — Othello Food Bank Board Chair Adam Janes, pastor of Othello Christian Church, spoke to the Othello City Council during Monday’s regular meeting to provide an update on the organization and its financial status heading into 2024. 

“In August of 2022, I stood before you with a request for funds to help your Othello Food Bank overcome the financial shortfall of nearly $30,000,” Janes said. “On behalf of the Othello Food Bank Board, I want to thank the council for your generous grant that allowed us to cover our shortfall and gave us time to shore up our financial position.”

The city of Othello previously provided $60,000 in funding with the condition that Janes return to provide the update on the food bank’s position, he said. 

“Over the past 18 months, the food bank has gone from a shortfall of $29,977 to ending 2023 with a surplus of $26,712, and my treasurer tells me that actually, that figure is low because we have some grant money reimbursements that had not cleared at the time that she gave me these numbers,” Janes said. “So we're actually fairly close to going from a $30,000 deficit to a $30,000 surplus.”

Janes said the food bank is still not making a profit but is in a much better position. 

“If I take out the money from the city that was given to us in 2023, that puts us at breaking even, with our income meeting our financial obligations, which has not happened for a very long time for the Othello Food Bank,” he said. “The board has attempted to implement various fundraising activities with mixed results, mostly negative results. Some efforts failed entirely, while others have returned meager results.”

The food bank has seen an increase in donations and grants in recent months, Janes said. 

“Over the next year, we're looking at significant increases in some of our grant funding that we were not expecting,” he said. “One grant is going to triple over what we have received in the past. We believe that these increases in grant funding will keep the food bank fully funded at our current level of spending.”

The food bank had also been working toward increasing their food storage with upgrades to the facility.

“The renovations to the shed are near completion but have been delayed due to other structural issues that we've discovered with the main building that require changes to both the main building and the shed to ensure our operations continue safely,” Janes said. “Our manager was able to secure grant funding that will cover most of the additional costs, and we are in a solid financial position to cover the remaining costs, so all those repairs will be taken care of without impacting our ability to operate and serve the community. 18 months ago, I could not have told you that.”

Janes said that now that the food bank’s finances have been stabilized, the board is looking to find more funding and promote the food bank’s manager and only paid employee, Jose Garza.

“We want to take Jose Garza, who is just an incredible go-getter, who is … incredibly underpaid for the value that he brings the food bank, and we want to make him a full-time executive director with a salary that is fair and equitable and suits his skills and abilities,” he said. “Then bring in a part-time person who will oversee the operations.”

Janes elaborated on why the board wants to promote Garza. 

“Jose is a gifted fundraiser, he is good at building relationships, he is good at visioning and dreaming and pushing us forward and I really want him to be able to shine in that position as we bring in somebody else you can oversee the day-to-day operations,” Janes said. “We anticipate that we will need to generate an additional $100,000 a year in funding to ensure that we can provide adequate salaries for both of those positions, so that's not something we're looking at doing right away, but it is a goal that we are shooting for in the future.”

The food bank has managed to stay open despite the many challenges it has faced, Janes said, and is now able to focus on its future.

Gabriel Davis may be reached at gdavis@columbiabasinherald.com. Download the Columbia Basin Herald app on iOS and Android.

    Othello Food Bank Board Chair Adam Janes addresses the Othello City Council during Monday evening’s regular meeting with an update on the food bank’s operations and finances.
  

    Othello Food Bank Manager Jose Garza, right, participates in a workshop in June 2023 with the Adams County Board of Commissioners to request funds and assistance acquiring equipment for the food bank.