People who have never relied on a food bank before are increasingly walking through the doors of Community Space Food Bank looking for something to eat.
Some tell founder Gaines Newborn that their CalFresh benefits have been reduced or ended. Others say they recently lost their jobs and do not know where else to turn.
“I hear the same story — hey I’ve never done this before. I need food. I need to make it a couple days. I’ve never done this before. My food stamps just ended. I have no idea what to do,” Newborn said.
The food bank typically saw between two and 10 new people a day. Since the beginning of this year, Newborn said, that number has climbed to about 30 to 40.
That demand is coming as the food bank is dealing with its own financial challenges. Community Space Food Bank is trying to raise $17,000 to cover its expenses for the next two months while also working to buy the building where it operates.
“Every food bank tries their best, but funding is not always there. I think the biggest issue with food banks is that they’re only open once a month, once a week,” Newborn said. “So us being here daily … people thank us everyday and that’s why I’m here everyday. And I can’t see this place go.”
The food bank has been open seven days a week for more than two years, including through a fire last year. It serves about 150 hot meals a day and about 100 families through its pantry, Newborn said.
The pantry operates on a suggested-donation model, and people who cannot afford to pay can still receive food. It is stocked with donations from local supermarkets, restaurants and farmers markets. Newborn said donors include Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, Lassens, Lazy Acres and Mother’s Market.
A community fridge operated in partnership with LA Community Fridges sits outside the pantry and is available 24 hours a day.
“Our whole goal is to make sure no one goes hungry, no food goes to waste,” Newborn said. “There’s no ID, nothing required here, just show up for services.”
Keeping the food bank open has also come with a string of setbacks. Two vans were stolen, another broke down recently and three freezers have stopped working, Newborn said. A unit damaged in last year’s fire remains unusable, but the organization is still paying rent on it.
“That’s really kind of eaten into our ability to survive,” he said.
The building where the food bank operates is also for sale. Newborn wants to buy the property so the organization can stay there and have more stability.
Newborn and his wife, Hang, also want to expand the food bank’s freeze-drying operation. They started exploring the technology during the pandemic as a way to preserve surplus food that might otherwise be thrown away.
Hang Newborn said the idea grew out of two problems she saw while working in education: people going hungry and food being wasted.
“That was a way to help us solve two problems, which is there’s too many hungry people, and then there’s food going to landfills and polluting our ozone,” she said.
The food bank currently has eight freeze-drying machines and hopes to eventually have 30.
The idea also became personal for Gaines Newborn after his father died last year at 91. His father had difficulty chewing, so the family began freeze-drying foods that could be broken down and added to soups.
“We started freeze drying and realized you can crumble steak into a soup. You can crumble fruits, veggies, corn, carrots, things that are hard to eat, and he was able to maintain his nutrition,” Gaines Newborn said.
Hang Newborn said the long-term goal is to open a freeze-dry supermarket where people could buy food that can be prepared with hot water rather than relying on a stove or microwave.
“Freeze-drying would help us extend the window in which people could eat … people are given a finite time to eat, and most of the food is tethered to refrigeration,” she said.
