BOISE — — Idaho Food Bank has a new CEO for the first time in 14 years as former COO Randy Ford takes over for Karen Vauk.
— Ford has a long history in Idaho and considers himself a native who's number one priority is feeding the food insecure.
— Ford says recent million dollar donation, one of the largest in history, will be set aside for various uses as the need continues to grow in Idaho.
(The following is verbatim from story that aired)
FEEDING THE STATE IS NO SMALL TASK.
IT TAKES AN IDAHO FOOD BANK THAT RUNS LIKE A WELL OILED MACHINE.
AND A C-E-O, WHO KNOWS LOGISTICS.
Roland: "This is like your stomping grounds, right? You're used to all this? "
Ford: "Yes, I came from the warehousing side and operations."
RANDY FORD WORKED FOR THREE YEARS AS COO AT THE FOOD BANK BEFORE TAKING THE LEADING ROLE ABOUT A MONTH AGO.
00:30 RANDY FORD##IDAHO BANK CEO: "'I've found it very exciting over the past month and, uh, looking forward to carrying on some of the traditions we have and exploring some new and innovative ways to eliminate hunger across the state of Idaho."
THE IDAHO NATIVE IS TAKING OVER FOR 14 YEAR VETERAN, KAREN VAUK.
AND THE CHALLENGE SINCE CORONAVIRUS, ESPECIALLY, IS LARGER THAN EVER THANKS TO MORE PEOPLE AND HIGHER COSTS.
"That was highlighted during pandemic where no one knew about a supply chain until it stopped working."
"From the food banks perspective, we haven't seen the need drop, you know, to pre pandemic levels. and we're seeing increases across the state in different communities. It's- it's trending upward."
FORTUNATELY, THE VOLUNTEERS, LIKE NIKI TOMLINSON ARE AS DEDICATED AS ANY EMPLOYEE.
ROLAND: "How great of a place is this to come volunteer at?"
1:10 NIKI TOMLINSON##Volunteer : "It's wonderful. You know you're helping the local community. Everything is planned, so when you're here, you're productive and making things happen."
A ND THE COMMUNITY HAS STEPPED UP TOO, FOR INSTANCE, ONE OF THE LARGEST MONETARY DONATIONS IN HISTORY CAME IN FROM CRAIG AND LINDY STEIN DURING A CHEF'S AFFAIRE.
"We will put the money in savings and it will help fund us throughout the year "
TO SOME EXTENT, WITH ALL THAT HELP, THE FOOD BANK COULD REALLY JUST HIT CRUISE CONTROL.
BUT THAT'S NOT FORD'S STYLE.
HE SAYS THE EXTRA WAREHOUSE SPACE COULD COME INTO PLAY SOON.
"Within the next three years, I could see us utilizing that space, in different ways, and really what it's about what the communities need. So we want to be able to be, you know, agile and responsive, and that's what the other part of this facility means to us, is the ability to grow and change in the ways the communities needs."
FORD CERTAINLY HAS A LOT ON HIS PLATE. THE BANK WANTS TO RAISE ENOUGH MONEY DURING THE HOLIDAYS TO PROVIDE FOOD FOR FOUR MILLION MEALS.
FORD SAYS HIS MOTIVATION RUNS DEEP.
"My main rule is helping people. I wanted my kids to know what I was doing, I wanted to make a difference in my community."
"All I want to do is make a difference and that's what the Idaho food bank is about.
THE FOOD BANK IS A RARE ENTITY THAT HAS A FOUR STAR RATING FROM CHARITY NAVIGATOR BY PUTTING AN AMAZING 96 PERCENT OF FUNDING BACK INTO PROGRAMS.
