Ottawa Food unable to salvage senior-focused program in 2024
OTTAWA COUNTY — Ottawa Food is showing more signs of strain as a popular service has been suspended for remainder of the year.
"During our Ottawa Food Update Meeting on Feb. 8, 2024, we mentioned the possibility that the Ottawa County Department might be able to provide a scaled-back version of Senior Project Fresh this year," Chara Bouma-Prediger, assistant director of food access at Community Action House, wrote in a March 28 email to members.
"Unfortunately, due to cuts to the health department's budget and the resulting loss of staff, OCDPH is unable to provide the Senior Project Fresh program for residents in 2024. We apologize for this inconvenience."
SPF helps older adults eat healthier as they age. The program provides participants free nutrition education and $25 in coupons that can be exchanged for fresh fruits, vegetables and other healthy foods sold at local farmers’ markets and roadside stands.
Bouma-Prediger said Evergreen Commons in Holland and Four Pointes Center for Successful Aging in Grand Haven will still distribute SPF vouchers this year.
The lack of a coordinator for Ottawa Food has been a recurring problem, since dramatic funding cuts were made last year. OCDPH’s nutrition and health education line item was cut by 48%, which OCDPH officials warned wouldn't leave enough to fund the position.
Despite numerous warnings by embattled Health Officer Adeline Hambley and her staff, Administrator John Gibbs and Board Chair and OI Founder Joe Moss insisted enough funding was in the budget to fund Ottawa Food.
Of particular concern was the full-time coordinator position, which provides the logistical connective tissue between the private and public sectors that participate in the countywide program. Ottawa Food is a collaboration of over 45 agencies and individuals working to ensure community members have access to healthy, local and affordable food.
More: Officials said 'no one' wanted Ottawa Food to be impacted. It was anyway.
"Does anyone want to go on record as against Ottawa Food?" Moss asked during the board's Sept. 26 meeting. "The board is not defunding Ottawa Food," he added. "I’ll just say, on the record, I would not like the health department to cut this program. I don’t think anyone does. I would venture that no one in the room would want this cut."
And yet, the board voted to cut the necessary line item by 48% for the fiscal year beginning Oct. 1.
On Nov. 13, Ottawa Food announced its membership voted to suspend the current operating model, since the budget for thw year was only $8,950, which covers only materials and supplies.
"Following the cuts made in late September, 76% of Ottawa Food members voted to pause the model of Ottawa Food as it’s been operating, rather than continue without a full-time coordinator," the organization wrote in a statement.
The organization said it wasn't disbanding, but without a coordinator in place, certain programs would need to be cut.
Health department officials have made several requests since the start of the fiscal year for the board and its various committees to consider restoring funding for the position, but the issue wasn't publicly discussed until March 19.
More: ‘Unfortunate how it’s devolved’: Ottawa Food sparks tense debate between board, health officials
Hambley submitted an updated request during her monthly report, adding she'd submit it to the finance committee, too. The request would fund the position at a prorated amount for the remainder of the year.
Commissioner Gretchen Cosby said she would look to schedule a meeting soon with Hambley and others to discuss the position and evaluate metrics.
Moss, meanwhile, said there needs to be a discussion on “overlap” between the work of Ottawa Food and other departments, like Community Action Agency.
— Sarah Leach is executive editor for The Holland Sentinel. Contact her at sarah.leach@hollandsentinel.com. Follow her on Twitter@SentinelLeach.
This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Ottawa Food unable to salvage senior-focused program in 2024
