Making a Difference

Written by Patra Kelly. Reprinted by permission of the PRT

Jim Staudacher and Faith Coburn became participants in produce distribution for the East Santa Cruz County Community Food Bank in 2016. They had been receiving produce and donating regularly when Clark Lydick and Judy Saber, organizers of the Food Bank program for many years, invited them to become more involved. Later Jim and Faith became Food Bank Board members and Jim has been the Board’s president since October 2019.

Jim described their work as volunteers in distribution as “a unique experience. It is rescuing produce and making it available to people in the community. So much food goes to waste.” He explained that produce crosses the border shipped in pallet increments, but pallets often break. Produce companies turn over boxes from broken pallets to Borderlands Produce Rescue, who makes these boxes available to the Food Bank. Also, some produce arrives too ripe to be shipped farther north, but still in good condition and is offered to the Food Bank. They take both organic and non-organic, though they prefer organic.

Distributing produce is a natural outgrowth of their work in Viroqua, Wisconsin, where they live during the summer months. In 1999 they bought a small farm to grow organic produce and in 2005 began selling it each summer, which they still do. Their philosophy is that organic produce needs to be made available and affordable to everyone. In order to keep prices down and cover costs of the farm, Faith worked full time for the U.S. Department of Justice as a crime victim specialist, providing services to victims of federal crimes. She continues this work, but now from home.