Asking for help takes courage. And for some, coming to our drive-thru food bank is the first step in starting a new path. Clients feel comfort when talking to the friendly faces there to serve them. Relationships and community start to build. And then trust and openness start to happen.

We recently met sweet, 86-year-old Marie. She’d come through food bank and had said she needed help with a bill. In talking with one of our case managers, she expressed worry over her services being shut off.   Because she lived in one of our service areas, we were able to reach out to the city, on her behalf. The city then worked with a local organization who aims to “bridge the gap in the underserved communities of East Pierce County” and see what sort of help could be provided to Marie.

And like a snap of the fingers, our case manager received a phone call that said, “We’ve taken care of it all”. Not only was POM able to help Marie with financial assistance, another community partner could too! It reminds of us of the reason we were founded – to make sure that the elderly in the community be taken care of. We feel lucky to be able to continue to serve our senior citizens and that today, our service extend to children, individuals and families – all of our neighbors in need of assistance.