Waverly Food Insecurity Taskforce
February 21, 2014
Last week, over 30 leaders in the fight against hunger
gathered at Waverly City Hall to begin a coordinated effort to
eliminate food insecurity in Waverly. This initial gathering
emphasized networking and identifying community assets
that could be leveraged to end hunger in Waverly. The next
step will be the formation of a smaller taskforce of
approximately 8 – 10 leaders to research and recommend
specific projects and areas for collaboration.
While the taskforce is being formed, Waverly’s hunger
fighters have already benefited by finding out what everyone
else does and identifying areas where collaboration can
improve service delivery. For example, the Saints Café
ecumenical soup kitchen was introduced to the Northeast
Iowa Food Bank, where they can partner to purchase food at
low cost; and child-care advocates and disability service providers received up-to-date information on
the scope of childhood hunger from the Waverly Community School District.
The idea for the food insecurity gathering and taskforce began during conversations between the
ELCA and the City of Waverly about how to expand the impact of the Waverly Sharing Gardens, in
which residents grow and donate produce to area food pantries and soup kitchens. Organizers
recommendations for other communities seeking to build a taskforce include:
1. Secure City Support: If possible, secure support from the city government early in the process.
City support lends legitimacy to the process and the process benefits from the experience that
city staff have in facilitating discussions about community issues. Early in the process, the
verbal and moral support of city leaders is much more important than financial support. In
larger cities, it is valuable to approach housing or social services staff early on, as their daily
work sensitizes them to the importance of ending hunger.
2. Be Citizen-Led: The process should be led by active citizens who have both passion and
experience fighting hunger. Food banks and pantries, schools and institutions of higher
education, faith-based organizations, local government, and social service providers should all
be represented. Waverly’s process centers on an emerging partnership between area
churches, the school district, the city government, and food pantries.
3. Be Inclusive: While a taskforce is necessarily limited in size, networking and fact-finding
gatherings should be as inclusive as possible. The City of Waverly identified and invited 20
leaders from faith communities, the school district, homeless and housing services, and
emergency food providers. These leaders reached out through their networks to invite
additional leaders that the City was not previously aware of.
For more information about the Wavery Food Insecurity Taskforce, contact Mr. Tab Ray at 319-352-
6263 or [email protected]
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