OCT. NIBJ: Love paving the path for a hunger-free community

Every month, the Bonner County Community Food Bank provides food assistance for over 5,000 people — a reality that executive director Debbie Love said she didn’t fully understand until she joined the nonprofit more than a decade ago. 

The beauty of Sandpoint easily masks the underlying food insecurity that many residents experience, said Love. 

“There is a high rate of food insecurity in our community,” said Love. “That’s really what drew me here, was to be able to help people in that way.” 

In 2016, former food bank executive director Alice Wallace was seeking to retire. After approaching Love about the role, Love became Wallace’s assistant, and a year later, took over as executive director. 

“I really wanted to be back in social services and helping families in that way,” said Love. 

Love’s grandmother played a significant role in her upbringing. From childhood through her teenage years, Love attended the nursing home where her grandmother worked as a nurse, an experience that grew her passion of caring for others. 

Love, who has been with the food bank for 11 years, has seen how much the nonprofit has grown, especially as the community has come together to offer services that combat food insecurity. 

“What I’ve seen over the years is not just receiving canned goods. We really push to receive that fresh food as well,” said Love. 

One of Love’s first goals for the food bank as executive director was to have an on-site garden. 

In 2017, Love and other community volunteers received a grant and were able to build nine raised garden beds. 

“That’s when we really started to advertise to the community that we can take fresh produce,” said Love. 

Since then, partnerships with the farmers market at Sandpoint and the University of Idaho Agriculture Center have helped to provide local, fresh produce for food bank shoppers. 

Love said she’s also seen how the demographic of those needing the food bank’s help has shifted as the cost of essential expenses, like groceries and rent, increase. 

“We’ve seen a lot more working families and folks on fixed incomes as well,” said Love. 

Whether it’s a shopper in need of groceries or a donor, pitching ideas for how they want to support the food bank, Love said everyday looks different. 

“You never know who’s going to walk through the door,” said Love. 

One of the most rewarding parts of Love’s work is seeing previous clients who no longer need assistance from the food bank return as donors, giving back to support others in need. 

"It's just really gratifying to see that, said Love. "The look in their eyes, to be able to give back to their community the way their community supported them, gives me chills.” 

Love said it took courage to take on a leadership position as a woman. 

“It was intimidating coming in when I had a board chair who was male and male employees,” said Love. 

However, Love said she trusted her experience, continuing to lead with strength and compassion.  

Love encouraged fellow women in leadership roles to connect with other leaders, a skill she learned early on working with the food bank. 

“When I first started, I was just grasping for help outside of the food bank, looking for mentors and role models that I could sit and meet with weekly to talk about the challenges or the good things, too,” said Love. 

Now, she pays it forward by reaching out to new leaders in the community coming into a nonprofit and sharing her expertise. 

The biggest piece of advice Love had to offer was to be able to laugh at yourself and learn from mistakes. 

At the beginning of her time as the executive director, Love said she was hard on herself after making mistakes. Now, she approaches those learning curves as an opportunity for growth. 

“Don’t let one setback convince you that you’re not capable,” said Love. 

COVID was a trying time in Love’s career. During an era that seemed so volatile, she was determined to maintain some normalcy for the staff while still feeding the community safely. 

“That was a big pivotal moment for me,” said Love. “We made it through that. Our first pandemic, we can do anything.”