Imperial Valley Food Bank honored as Nonprofit Organization of the Year
Imperial Valley Food Bank honored as Nonprofit Organization of the Year
JESSAMYN DODD Staff Writer
IMPERIAL — The Imperial Valley Food Bank has been named the 2025 Nonprofit of the Year for California’s 36th Assembly District by Assemblyman Jeff Gonzalez, an honor recognizing the organization’s enduring efforts to fight hunger and support families across Imperial County.
The food bank, which has served the region since 1991, distributes food in two major ways: through its network of partner agencies and churches and by operating Mobile Food Pantries each month in underserved areas.
"The food they distribute is gathered from many sources," Imperial Valley Food Bank Executive Director Sara Griffen said. “The principal source is the USDA Commodity program known as The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP). We rescue food from local farms, grocery stores, and local distribution facilities. We also receive food from food drives, and whenever possible, we purchase food to fill the gaps in our food supply.”
Griffen acknowledged the recognition with humility and deep appreciation for her team.
“Well, I guess it's a line from a commercial lately that says, it's nice to be recognized,” she said. “Our mission is, you know, well, the actual mission is fighting hunger and bringing health and hope to Imperial Valley. And our staff are out there every day of the month doing this work in the community. And so the fact that someone recognized that in this manner and this magnitude is great for us as an organization, but particularly for my staff who are out there doing that really hard work, you know, especially in the summer, going to all parts of the county, delivering food to Palo Verde and Sub City and Salton City and Bombay Beach and every other town in the county.”
She continued, “It's very hard work, especially in the heat. And we are just grateful that this is more than just doing the work. It's being well managed by our board so that we have the resources that we need to do this work continuously and good management of our resources.”
Griffen noted that while the honor is encouraging, it underscores a deeper issue. “We wish so many people were not hungry and needed our assistance as much as they do. And so, you know, it's wonderful and bittersweet at the same time.”
Systemic issues in the region
Despite being in an agricultural hub, Griffen highlighted the disconnect between local food production and food availability for residents.
“But we're in a hub that was designed for big ag and big agriculture,” she explained. “It's moved out of the Valley to distribution centers and plants in other counties. And so it's not designed to stay here. And, you know, that's why we don't have farmers markets.”
Griffen believes more investment in local, small-scale agriculture could help bridge the gap. “It'd be nice if we could do some, you know, farming incubator programs where, you know, small farmers could, you know, grow for the local economy. But we're not at that place right now.”
She emphasized that hunger is often a symptom of deeper systemic issues.
“Hunger is a symptom of poverty. It's not the main cause. It's, you know, lack of housing, lack of transportation, all those things factor into just that bigger item of poverty,” Griffen said. “Our economy is not very diversified. We have agriculture, and we have government, and those are our big employers in the county... It's subsistence-level work. And it would be a beautiful thing in the county if we had more jobs that could elevate people into a better living for their families.”
Griffen also described a shift in who is seeking help, particularly among seniors. “The biggest shift we've seen is more single-person families among our seniors,” she said. “We are speculating that that is sort of the COVID effect...the two-person senior household is now a one-person senior household... Incomes don't increase when you lose a spouse.”
She added that rural communities often face unique barriers, including limited access to grocery stores and transportation. “You can't just walk to the store... And there are fewer resources.”
It takes a village
Community support is essential to the operations of the Food Bank. Volunteers help with critical tasks such as preparing food packages in the warehouse during two-hour shifts and supporting programs like the backpack initiative for children in need. “The program that helps children who teachers can see are not eating on weekends.”
The organization encourages participation from individuals, small businesses, and corporations, offering entry-level opportunities that can lead to more involved roles.
The hands-on involvement helps the food bank serve thousands of families each month.
“It's drive-through,” Griffen says of the process.
“Sometimes it's two and three families in a car. Because transportation is a real problem in our county. But we pre-package everything that we can so that we can get people out in an efficient manner as fast as possible, but also because of food safety.” Food can only be out of the refrigeration unit for two hours.
Griffen divulged that they are already seeing cuts to funding for food programs. The Food Bank is in desperate need of help.
“And the best way to help us is with money. Because we can buy food at retail, much cheaper than other people can, because we can buy truckloads of food with money instead of, you know, the cans that you can buy at retail in the county. So just a reminder to people to thank them and support us in that manner. Because it allows us to do food purchasing on a scale on which you can feed 25,000 people a month.”
In a press release, Gonzalez wrote, “I am thankful to Sara Griffen and the entire team at Imperial Valley Food Bank for their unwavering commitment to service and community well-being, which exemplifies the spirit of nonprofit excellence. The Food Bank continues to expand its reach and services, including mobile pantries and senior nutrition programs, to address the evolving needs of our community.”