“Because it takes a village,” Jodie Vanwert, Food Community Advocate, said effortlessly when asked why she is passionate about supporting those in our community experiencing food insecurity. After just a short conversation with Jodie, it was easy to see that she is truly the village behind many of her Whitney Point neighbors.
Jodie graduated from the Food Bank’s Community Advocates Training (CAT) program in 2023, but her passion for helping others has deep roots, spanning from the implementation of a community garden, to helping at our Whitney Point Mobile Food Pantry and working for Meals on Wheels. She has observed the spectrum of food insecurity and is passionate about educating others on the complexities of hunger.
“I was a post office employee, and while delivering mail I realized how big of a need there is in our community, and how much stigma there is around food security, that some simply will not ask for help. I would see a single mom or senior struggling to make ends meet and couldn’t just turn a blind eye; I had to do something.” — Jodie
And that’s exactly what she did. “After semi-retiring I started to help with the Food Bank food trucks,” Jodie shared. She helps each month as a flagger, a volunteer who holds a flag, so drivers know when and where to stop through the drive-thru pantry. “I flag because over time I have built a relationship with many of the people who attend, and it allows me to check in on them and show them that we care.” 
Jodie also delivers food from the Mobile Food Pantries to two single moms and a grandmother who is raising her grandchildren. “I was a single mom and I know how hard times can be. The first time I delivered to one of the moms, she cried because she was so overwhelmed with the quality of food available to her and her children,” she recalled.
As a leader in our community, Jodie is a great example of how Community Advocates are not only temporarily helping their neighbors through action, but also raising the voices of those who are underrepresented in the anti-hunger movement.
If you are interested in getting involved as a volunteer, contact Dylan Roderick, Volunteer Coordinator, at volunteer@foodbankst.org or (607)796-6061 ext. 4043.
This article was part of our Spring 2024 Harvester newsletter, click here to view.