NEWS
MyEagleNews.com
Wednesday, April 14, 2021
A3
Grant County Food Bank serves 1,200 more people in 2020 than in 2019
Pandemic, new guidelines
lead to massive increase
By Rudy Diaz
Blue Mountain Eagle
The Grant County Food Bank
served 1,200 more people in 2020
than in 2019.
Tom Sutton, a member of the food
bank board of directors, said the pan-
demic and changes in food bank eli-
gibility created the increase in people
served.
The 2020 income guidelines to
qualify for the Emergency Food
Assistance Program greatly raised the
monthly and annual income limits in
2020, according to Sutton.
In 2019, a monthly income of
$1,926 or a yearly income of $23,017
for a family of one was the maximum.
In 2020, a monthly income of $3,190
and a yearly income of $38,280 for a
family of one was the maximum.
Sutton said the pandemic also
created an interesting pattern in the
amount of people going to the food
bank. When people received stimulus
checks, less families went to the food
bank the following month, but this
made it so the members on the food
committee would need to adjust their
plans for distributing food.
“On the food committee, we need
to expect if we’re going to gain or
lose the amount of clients coming
from the previous months,” Sut-
ton said. “This month, because of
the numbers from last month, we’re
planning to feed 150 families. When
we set up, we set out enough food
based on this distribution to cover
that.”
Sutton said, since the pandemic,
the food bank has seen an increase
in people from outside of John
Day requesting food. He said Long
The Eagle/Rudy Diaz
Boxes used at the Grant County Food Bank have been provided by Grant Coun-
ty Veteran Services for years.
The Eagle/Rudy Diaz
Jim Spell takes a box of pears March 4 at the Grant County Food Bank.
Creek and Seneca signed paperwork
that authorized volunteers from
those cities to haul other people’s
food to them.
This allowed more people from
outside of John Day, especially the
elderly, to gain access to the food
bank.
“In those communities, the peo-
ple that needed food are getting food
that had never gotten food before
(from the food bank) because it was
too far to drive or they couldn’t
drive at all,” Sutton said. “They can
work with their local people who
can pick up their food for them.”
Sutton said, prior to the pan-
demic, there would be about three
to four families from Long Creek
driving to the food bank for food,
but now they receive about 20-30
families a month, thanks to the vol-
unteers in their city. He said they
noticed the same increase from
Dayville and Seneca.
“What’s making this so good is
that we’re getting food to senior
citizens in Long Creek that didn’t
have it before,” Sutton said.
“That’s what it’s all about.”
The trend continues in 2021
as 419 families were served food
throughout the months of January,
February and March — 29 families
more than 2020.
Sutton said there has also been
an increase in volunteers coming
from cities outside of John Day.
He appreciates and enjoys the
enthusiasm they had to prepare the
food and serve their community.
“They have foreign exchange
students that come from Long
Creek, and they enjoy being
The Eagle/Rudy Diaz
John Day Mayor Ron Lundbom drove the truck that delivered food to food
bank in John Day.
here, and we enjoy having them
here. They are hard workers,
and it’s a pleasure having them
here,” Sutton said. “We enjoy
and appreciate the help from the
Boy Scouts.”
Hope on the menu for Grant County restaurants, bars and food trucks
By Steven Mitchell
Blue Mountain Eagle
Eagle fi le photo
Brandon Elliott runs the grill at The Outpost last spring.
ate 20 or fewer establish-
ments as of March 13 are eli-
gible. Grants cannot exceed
$5 million per individual
restaurant.
Palmer said the SBA appli-
cations and deadline have not
been announced.
Palmer said she has
emailed, called and has even
hand-delivered fl yers to
restaurants, bars and small
businesses in the county to get
the word out to people.
“Restaurants and food carts
throughout the county are
defi nitely showing interest,”
she told the Eagle.
She said the SBA said
applicants for the Restau-
rant Revitalization Grant pro-
gram do not need to register
for a Data Universal Number-
ing System, which removes a
complicated and timely piece
of the system.
The National Restaurant
Association dubs eligible
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541-575-1850
Open Mon-Fri 7am-6pm
Sat 8am-5pm
Open Sunday
Grant SWCD Weed Control Dept.
Working for You in 2021
Regular and High
Risk Foot Care done
by specially trained
RN or CNA.
Ears are examined
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Call to make an
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S238010-1
OUTPATIENT EAR
AND FOOT CLINIC
Open
Mon. - Thurs.
8AM - 4PM
Palmer said she regu-
larly updates the county’s
website,
grantcounty.net.
For other questions, call
541-575-1555.
Thanks to the Grant County Court and Northeast Oregon Forests Resource
Advisory Committee, Grant Weed Control is able to offer a 50% Cost
Share Program for Noxious Weed Control on Private Grazing Lands,
through a Title II funded Grant Project. This program will provide a
maximum $5,000 of noxious weed control services with a $2,500 maximum
landowner contribution to qualifying participants. To be eligible for
participation, the treatment property must not be actively irrigated and
must be primarily managed for livestock grazing, minimum of 20 acres in
size, located within Grant County, and must contain weed species listed on
the Grant County Noxious Weed List. Applications for this limited weed
control assistance opportunity will be funded on a first come first serve
basis.
Applications due by April 16th.
Contact the Grant Soil and Water Conservation District Office at
(541) 575-1554 or visit 721 S. Canyon Blvd., John Day, OR 97845 for
applications and additional information.
S235643-1
S238173-1
139101
Hope is on the menu for
Grant County restaurants,
bars and other food service
businesses.
A year after Gov. Kate
Brown ordered restaurants
and bars to shutter because
of the COVID-19 pandemic,
the county’s local eateries will
soon get a lifeline.
Within the $1.9 trillion
American Rescue Plan signed
by President Joe Biden, law-
makers earmarked $28.6 bil-
lion to create the Restaurant
Revitalization Fund, a grant
program for small restau-
rant owners impacted by the
pandemic.
Misty Palmer, an economic
development specialist with
Grant County’s economic
development offi ce, said the
new grant program provides
eligible restaurants tax-free
grants equal to the amount lost
due to the coronavirus.
Palmer said the Small
Business Association said the
awards are calculated by sub-
tracting the 2020 gross receipts
from 2019 gross receipts. She
said those who own and oper-
for small businesses owned
and controlled by women,
veterans or socially and
economically disadvantage
small businesses.
S236998-1
expenses like payroll, prin-
ciple or interest on mortgage
obligations, rent and utilities.
She also said construction to
accommodate outdoor seat-
ing, supplies such as protec-
tive equipment and cleaning
materials, regular food and
beverage inventory, and cer-
tain supplier costs are also
covered.
The flyer states it will
prioritize awarding grants
S234537-1
Grants may cover all
COVID-19 losses