The Denton Community Food Center and the Shared Burden of Survival

Food is not only a human need, but also a human right. The human body cannot live without it. Without food, the chances of making it to tomorrow become gradually unlikely. Metabolizing food so our bodies can function is one of many things humans have in common with other living things. Foraging for calories, for sustenance, be it in garbage receptacles, on the vacant tables of eating establishments, or in workplaces, is not a shameful act. It is survival by any means. Some choose to survive in so-called undignified ways because hunger is painful. It hurts.

Underneath that physiological sensation may be feelings of suffering or isolation. That’s when starvation mode kicks in, survival mode is activated, and along with one’s body, organs and all, their world shrinks. When all those things compound with one’s day-to-day activities, maintaining relationships, holding down a job, etc., it may compel one to say to themselves, “I can’t eat love,” because when one faces prolonged, perpetual hunger, when one starves, they are in survival mode. Their body shrinks, organs and all, and their world along with it. When the next morsel is all there is, making it to tomorrow takes more than just waking up in it. Hunger hurts, food is a human right, and nobody deserves to suffer.

“Hunger is a Human Need”

Operational since 1974, and located in Denton, Texas, the Denton Community Food Center (DCFC) provides food to “individuals and families struggling with hunger insecurity.” When asked about their use of the term “hunger insecurity,” Tanci Paulson of the DCFC said in an email, “The industry used the term ‘hunger insecurity’ so we have followed their lead. But…hunger is fear, stress. Needing food is a problem to be solved. Hunger is a human need–it has a face. We are geared to help those who are ‘hungry’ more than those in need of food. This is my reaction to ‘hunger’ vs ‘food’.”

The DCFC’s Tom Newell added, “Past mayor[s] have held the annual Mayor’s Day of Concern for the Hungry to help draw attention to ‘hunger insecurity’ in our local community. And the current mayor recently featured DCFC on his monthly ‘Around Town with the Mayor’ spot for DTV (City of Denton cable channel).”

The community-based charity is volunteer-run and donor-funded, and “has served 10,600 families since March 2020.”

“DCFC is such an effective group of volunteers,” Paulson said. “We have compartmentalized the duties so that there isn’t any wasted effort. There are so many moving parts behind the scenes that have to be in mesh in order to distribute food.” Volunteers do everything from coordinating volunteers, interviewing, and serving people, sorting and stocking, to sacking food for people to take with them. “Volunteers are everything to us. We are successful because of their enthusiasm and commitment. We have the best volunteers!” Paulson continued. “Extra volunteers help us by doing the routine work and giving us all some ease.” When asked about how much food is distributed in a given day, Paulson said, “Currently, each client [household] receives about 105 pounds of food–our goal is to provide enough food for a family of four for a week. Shelf stable food, fresh produce, meat, bread, milk/eggs, dessert. We give pet food and baby food upon request when we have it.”

Where do Food Banks Come from?

According to Feeding America, the largest hunger-relief organization the United States, it all started with retired businessman John van Hengel in Phoenix in the late 1960s when he was volunteering at a soup kitchen. One day he encountered a mother sifting through a grocery store’s garbage cans for food to feed her children. “She suggested that there should be a place where, instead of being thrown out, discarded food could be stored for people to pick up–similar to the way ‘banks’ store money for future use.”

Van Hengel then founded the nation’s first food bank in Phoenix: St. Mary’s Food Bank. In its first year, 275,000 pounds of food were distributed to those in need. By 1977, there were food banks in 18 cities in the US. Afterward, that number increased, and van Hengel “created a national organization for food banks.” In 1979, he founded Second Harvest, which later became America’s Second Harvest, then in 2008 became Feeding America, a nationwide network of 200 food banks.

Food Insecurity and Hunger

Food insecurity is a direct result of the economic conditions created by the commodification of human needs, which in this case, is food. Food costs money. When people don’t have enough money, they cannot purchase the food they need to feed themselves or their families. In short, food insecurity is an economic issue. Because of the overall complex nature of hunger, however, its effects go beyond the scope of economics.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations defines hunger as, “an uncomfortable or painful physical sensation caused by insufficient consumption of dietary energy. It becomes chronic when the person does not consume a sufficient amount of calories (dietary energy) on a regular basis to lead a normal, active and healthy life.” A Committee on National Statistics of the National Academies (CNSTAT) panel recommended the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Economic Research Service refer to hunger as “a potential consequence of food insecurity that, because of prolonged, involuntary lack of food, results in discomfort, illness, weakness, or pain that goes beyond the usual uneasy sensation.” Feeding America’s Hunger Blog features an article about the effects of hunger on the human body. While going hungry increases the risk for chronic illnesses like high blood pressure, diabetes, and heart disease, hunger can also lead to other chronic illnesses like depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Food insecurity, as defined by the USDA, is “the limited or uncertain availability of nutritionally adequate and safe foods, or limited or uncertain ability to acquire acceptable foods in socially acceptable ways.” In Texas, according to Feeding Texas, one in seven, or 4 million Texans, experience food insecurity. In Denton County, according to Serve Denton, one in five, or 21 percent, of Denton County residents experience food insecurity. Food insecurity happens because, according to the USDA Economic Research Service, “the household lacks money and other resources for food.” When it came to the question of who is impacted the most by hunger or food insecurity, in Denton, the DCFC’s Paulson said, “We are seeing every segment of society at the moment; families who have been coming to us for years and those who never expected to have to ask for help.”

Making it Work

The Denton Community Food Center does work with “every other agency in the area,” as well as all their partners, to serve its clients. Paulson said, “We are located on Serve Denton’s campus and work in conjunction with all of their partners to assist our clients. There is also a weekly Zoom meeting with the city, and other major agencies, to discuss potential issues and discuss trends in giving and need.” The DCFC’s Newell said the charity “serves 21 cities, towns and communities in Northern Denton County.” The charity also serves clients that live in Oklahoma. This is because they are serving areas that are “not refusing service based on address, [or] even state.”

“[The] City of Denton has supported DCFC with two significant CDBG grants (Federal Community Development Block Grant) to increase our capacity (a walk-in freezer and cooler and we will soon be expanding our distribution facility by an additional 4500 sq ft),” Newell added. “We coordinate local disaster response with C of D Community Development and Emergency Management divisions. Our services are listed on C of D websites along with United Way, Denton County and State 211 websites.”

Regarding where food donations come from, Paulson said, “We purchase the majority of our food from the Tarrant Area Food Bank. Through the TAFB, we can multiply our donations seven to eight times in value ($1 purchases about $7 to $8 worth of food). Area stores donate food on a regular basis and help us tremendously. Truck drivers also contact us and bring us truckloads of goods that have been rejected by the recipient but are still viable.”

An issue being addressed is clients not having transportation. In Denton, many residents do not have a motor vehicle and rely on bicycles and public transportation. “This is an issue that is getting a lot of attention at the moment, not just for us but for many food centers,” Paulson said. “Currently, we ask a new client to come in person for their first visit as we ask several basic questions in order to set them up in our system. We do not ask for social security numbers, and none of their information is ever put on the internet nor shared with other agencies. The information (address, number of adults/children in the household, what race they identify with, income level) is only used as the basis for demographics for grant requests and such. After this initial visit, the client can authorize another individual to pick up their food. We just do not have the volunteers to create a separate delivery component. As an alternative, we are working on mapping our clients so we can see if there are areas that are not being served.”

Hidden Need

There is no shame in being poor, being hungry, or asking for help. Some know what it is to wait for a place to be empty so no one can see them forage for scraps, or anything that would get them through the next day, the next hour, or the next few minutes. Some fear the judgement of others because the means of survival is consuming what others discard. Some are too proud to ask a friend for food or money to purchase food for fear of “putting someone out.”

That loneliness, that isolation born out of shame, is what lies at the core of living with hunger. When we do take that plunge, and ask for help, however, upon receiving it, and getting back on our feet, that loneliness, that isolation, that shame abates. We and those around us acknowledge that it is okay to struggle. We are human beings, after all, and that is okay, too. Our world, then, begins to grow, and our minds and bodies heal, over time. Then we must face that much-needed adjustment that entails not just living in the world, but finally being part of it.

The DCFC homepage features a powerful statement: “Survival is a shared burden, not an individual obligation. There's a lot of shame around asking for help. Since we've been in school, we're taught that it’s eat or be eaten—survival of the fittest. But survival is a shared burden, and when institutions fail to meet our needs, we can rely on the values that make us human—the social bonds that hold us together as we provide for each other.” When it comes to our community’s fight against hunger, beyond volunteering, beyond donating, what we can do is find “hidden need,” Paulson said. “Those who are quietly existing, and either aren’t aware of the help that is available or (are) too proud to reach out.”

If you or someone you know are hungry and in need of assistance, the Denton Community Food Center can be reached by phone at 940-382-0807, by email at info@dentoncfc.org, their Contact Us page, or in person at 306 N. Loop 288, Suite 400; Denton 76209.

Click here if you would like to volunteer or donate.

Sources

Denton Community Food Center:

http://www.dentoncfc.org/

http://www.dentoncfc.org/get-involved

http://www.dentoncfc.org/contact-us

Email responses from Tanci Paulson on August 24, 2021, and August 27, 2021

Feeding America:

https://www.feedingamerica.org/about-us/our-history

https://www.feedingamerica.org/hunger-blog/3-ways-hunger-affects-your-body

Feeding Texas:

https://www.feedingtexas.org/learn/hunger-in-texas/