After surviving destructive flooding in June 2008, residents of Janesville are now disproportionately feeling the effects of the economic storm. Since the General Motors plant closing at end of 2008 and the subsequent job losses at several auto supply companies, food and other emergency needs have rapidly increased.
"Janesville recorded the highest unemployment rate at 13.5 percent for the state's twelve metropolitan areas in March 2009," said Sue Conley, Executive Director for the Community Foundation of Southern Wisconsin (CFSW). "The foundation decided it was time to look for new ways to address the emerging needs in the community."
As part of the Foundation's efforts to promote social innovation and entrepreneurship, Conley organized a collaborative effort including the local food pantry, UW-Extension, the farmers market, and a private foundation which all serve Janesville.
"I was aware of a program benefiting the hungry and local farmers in Viroqua and thought we could raise the capital needed to replicate the program in our community," explains Conley.
The local food pantry, Everyone Cooperating to Help Others (ECHO), distributes certificates to clients on a weekly basis to use at the Janesville Famer's Market held every Saturday May-October in the downtown. The certificates are accepted for locally grown food items only such as fresh produce, meat, honey, eggs and have no cash value. At the end of each market day, the vendors redeem the coupons for a check. The benefits of the program are numerous:
- The hungry are treated as first-class citizens by being offered their choice of the finest and freshest locally grown produce.
- The Janesville Farmers Market, which provides an inexpensive, fun activity that people can participate in, benefits as vendors earn substantial extra sales.
- The role of the food pantry evolves from providers to educators about the benefits of eating nutritious food.
"With a growing number of people on the Food Share program in Janesville - many of them recently in need of food - this community-wide effort alleviates hunger with fresh, quality, locally grown produce," said Janesville Farmers Market Manager Teri Huber.
The Janesville community responded when CFSW announced that an anonymous donor would match up $2,500 in donations to cover the costs of the certificates. In approximately one month, the Foundation surpassed their fundraising goal and is now looking forward to the possibility of establishing similar programs in the other seven counties they serve.
