Submitted by the Nourish to Flourish Coalition
Dear San Juan Island Community Member,
We need your help. Food insecurity is rising on the island. At the same time, island farmers are struggling to make ends meet.
The Friday Harbor Food Bank has seen a 152% increase in household visits and a 228% increase in individual visits between 2020 and 2024. The Nourish to Flourish Coalition* is working to address these challenges by connecting lower income Island families with fresh food grown or produced by local farmers and fishermen.
From the Memorial Day weekend through September 2024, the Coalition ran the Fresh Bucks Program through the SJI Farmers Market. Every Farmers Market-day individuals and families earning 200% or less than the federal income level (adjusted by family size), received $ 40 in Fresh Bucks to purchase meat, fish, vegetables, fruit, nuts, eggs, dairy products, seeds and plant starts for food.
Our heartfelt thanks go out to the Soroptimists of Friday Harbor, the Mullis Community Senior Center, the SJI Farmers Market Association, and several individuals who raised $ 28,000 for Fresh Bucks in 2024. We are also grateful to the Joyce L. Sobel Family Resource Center which serves as the fiscal agent for the Fresh Bucks Program and to San Juan County Health and Community Services for administrative support.
This money helped lessen food insecurity for 192 low-income families (serving 318 community members) by providing access to fresh, healthy food and it provided additional income to our local farmers and producers.
In 2025, the Nourish to Flourish Coalition and the SJI Farmers Market would like to run the program year-round, starting on Memorial Day weekend with $20 – $40 distributed to each qualifying household per Market Day. Our goal is to raise between $ 60,000 and $ 75,000.
Help us make a difference in our community by giving your tax-deductible donation to the Joyce L. Sobel Family Resource Center, in support of the Fresh Bucks Program.
Thank you in advance for helping to end food insecurity and to support local farms.
* Nourish to Flourish Coalition: Joyce L. Sobel Family Resource Center, SJ County Health and Community Services, SJI Farmers Market, Soroptimist International of Friday Harbor, Mullis Community Senior Center, the Friday Harbor Food Bank and the Rotary Club of SJI.
