What actions would you take as a state legislator to protect and strengthen Washington’s food security safety net, including both public nutrition programs and the food banks and food pantries serving communities across the state?

A problem like this will require a combination of legislation, state funding, and partnerships to strengthen our entire food system. It will require increased state and federal funding for food banks and rural food pantries, which will be difficult with our current budget in Olympia. We will also need to work to expand farm to pantry partnerships with local farms. We will need to find and restore grants for food-rescue services such as refrigerated trucks, cold storage, processing and packaging to surplus food from farms and grocers doesn’t go to waste and gets in the hands of vulnerable families. Washington received $227,000 in new federal Farm to Food Bank funding for SFY2027, which demonstrates an existing model that can be supplemented with state resources. We need to protect school breakfast, lunch and summer meal programs and make it easier to apply for food assistance. I would love to see us advance farm to school purchasing and expand community gardening programs in schools. I would also love to work on strengthening nutrition health programs with Apple Health and strengthen tribal food sovereignty.  HB 2238 became effective in June 2026 and requires the WSDA to develop a statewide food security strategy addressing food access, viable agriculture and food chain resilience. I would push for measurable goals, community input and actual legislative funding recommendations.

What have you done to understand food insecurity in the communities you seek to represent—including engaging with people experiencing hunger or local hunger-relief organizations—and what policies would you prioritize to address the root causes of hunger and ensure Washington residents can afford and access the food they need?

My understanding of food insecurity comes both from listening to my community and from lived experience. I have personally experienced what it is like to live with food insecurity, so I understand the difficult choices families face when there more month than money. I have also used food bank banks and rural food pantries and understand how important it is for these resources to be accessible without shame or judgement. I have turned that experience into service. I have volunteered at tural food pantries, participated in homeless outreach, and volunteered with summer feeding programs that help ensure children have access to meals with school in out. Through that work, I have seen firsthand how food insecurity is connected to housing costs, low wages, transportation, healthcare, childcare and other basic expenses. As a legislator, I would prioritize policies that address those underlying pressures while strengthening the emergency food system. That includes attainable affordable housing, accessible healthcare and childcare, living wages, reliable transportation, and strong public nutrition programs such as SNAP/Basic Food, WIC and school meals. I don’t just understand food insecurity; I understand the human reality behind it. My goal in legislature is to address it head on while tackling the economic pressures that cause families to go hungry in the first place.

What policies or investments would you support to strengthen Washington’s food system, increase access to locally produced food, support Washington farmers and producers, and reduce food waste?

I would support expanding Farm-to-School and Farm-to-Food-Pantry programs so Washington farmers have reliable local markets; Grants for food hubs, cold storage, processing and transportation; state purchasing preferences for Washington-grown food and food rescue investments; find supports for small farmers and producers and rural food-access programs.