Neighbors helping Neighbors: How Friday Harbor Food Bank Ensures Everyone on the Island has Fresh, Nutritious Food
Running a food bank on an island presents unique challenges. Friday Harbor Food Bank on San Juan manages the logistics of getting food to the island and keeping it fresh, while also supporting a community navigating a higher cost of living and fewer available resources. But the sense of community is strong on San Juan Island, and the food bank and its community have worked together to develop creative solutions to ensure everyone has the food and resources they need to thrive.
The food bank prioritizes sourcing fresh, nutritious food. They provide a grocery-style food distribution program with fresh produce, dairy, eggs, bread, proteins, canned and shelf-stable foods, and also offers online ordering and pickup.
They rely on hyper-local partnerships with groups like the San Juan Island Master Gardeners, which hosts a share table the first week of every growing month (April-November) where the masters share their plant starts and growing. They also team up with their local Grange to use their commercial kitchen to dehydrate island apples and pears to distribute into the fall season.
They’re proud that they continue to provide nutritious food and are not simply filling boxes.
“We want the people we serve to have choices and to have access to the kinds of foods we all want our families to eat.”
And they work closely with other local organizations to connect their neighbors with additional resources.
Executive Director Rachelle Radonski says the mutual care of the whole island is key to their operation.
“I’m especially proud of the way our community comes together around food. Local farmers, grocery stores, businesses, volunteers, donors and individual community members all play a role.”
-Executive Director Rachelle Radonski
The food bank serves a wide variety of residents, including working families, seniors, people working in tourism and service industries, and farm workers. Because the Island depends heavily on tourism and agriculture, which are seasonal, many people are on tight budgets. Food bank use tends to increase when tourism picks up and brings more seasonal workers to the island.
“These are people who keep our island functioning, and we want them to know that the Food Bank is here for them without judgement,” said Rachelle.
They have seen more working people facing food insecurity in recent years due to the rising cost of living. The cost of housing is especially challenging on the island.
“We’ve seen people who are working but still have to make difficult choices between buying groceries and paying rent or other bills,” said Rachelle. “That isn’t unique to Friday Harbor. But on an island, the challenges can be magnified because the cost of living is high and there are fewer resources and fewer places to shop.”
With food prices remaining high, many of their neighbors have little financial cushion.
“The important thing to understand is that hunger doesn’t always look the way people expect it to. Someone coming to the Food Bank may have a job or 3, may have children, may be a senior, or may have lived on the island for many years. They may simply have reached a point where their income isn’t enough to cover all of their basic needs. Our job is to make sure that when someone needs help putting food on the table, they can come to us.”
Partnering with Food Lifeline has allowed them to stretch their food purchasing budget and provide a greater variety of foods.
“Food Lifeline helps us access food that we could not obtain as efficiently or affordably on our own. That’s particularly important for an island food bank, where transportation and the cost of bringing food to the island add another layer of complexity.”
“Their support means that when someone walks through our doors, we’re better positioned to say, ‘Yes, we can help.’”
Rachelle is proud of how staff, volunteers, and community all come together to ensure everyone has enough to eat.
“There is sometimes a misconception that food banks are only for people who have absolutely no income. That’s not the reality. People can be working and still struggle to afford food. They can be seniors on fixed incomes. They can be families dealing with an unexpected expense. They can be seasonal workers whose hours have changed.”
Rachelle doesn’t want there to be any shame for anyone to ask for help, but wants everyone to be able to access food in a way that preserves their dignity.
“I want people to understand that the Food Bank belongs to the whole community.”
-Executive Director Rachelle Radonski
She’s excited to continue building connections with local farmers, businesses, volunteers, and community organizations. She believes that the more connected they are, the better they can respond to the changing needs of their neighbors and to any emergencies.
“That’s really the story of the Friday Harbor Food Bank: we’re neighbors helping neighbors. Whether we’re responding to an everyday need, a difficult economic period or an emergency, our goal is the same—to make sure people on San Juan Island have enough healthy food to get through the day and the confidence that their community cares about them.”