The physical property of North Kitsap Fishline has become the model other food banks since the social service provider rebuilt along Viking Way in 2018. That’s when the organization moved out of a drafty warehouse set back from the thoroughfare into a reimagined facility that houses an array of services in a centralized location with a food bank that mimics a small, traditional grocery store.
Now South Kitsap Foodline is in the midst of a capital campaign to relocate from its small home and rebuild in Port Orchard, Bremerton Foodline this year renovated a former warehouse space and moved its food bank to create a atmosphere like Fishline that brings a level of choice and dignity to patrons, and St. Vincent DePaul in Bremerton is also in the midst of a major effort to create a campus covering nearly a city block with the same multi-service aspect that works in Poulsbo. It’s encouraging to see ambitious plans across that network of providers.
The physical property of North Kitsap Fishline has become the model other food banks since the social service provider rebuilt along Viking Way in 2018. That’s when the organization moved out of a drafty warehouse set back from the thoroughfare into a reimagined facility that houses an array of services in a centralized location with a food bank that mimics a small, traditional grocery store.
Now South Kitsap Foodline is in the midst of a capital campaign to relocate from its small home and rebuild in Port Orchard, Bremerton Foodline this year renovated a former warehouse space and moved its food bank to create a atmosphere like Fishline that brings a level of choice and dignity to patrons, and St. Vincent DePaul in Bremerton is also in the midst of a major effort to create a campus covering nearly a city block with the same multi-service aspect that works in Poulsbo. It’s encouraging to see ambitious plans across that network of providers.
I called Thompson last week, and he told me that this fall clients have been lining up outside Fishline before the doors open each day. That has happened before, he said, as inflation the past few years notably drove demand across the county. What’s new in 2024, even as national inflation has eased, has been the line’s persistence. Thompson said that for the first time, on a single day the line out the door remained there all day long, until Fishline closed the doors at 4 p.m. A line of dozens that last for hours, to get basic assistance with food.
That’s the situation right now, and in surveying a few other food banks as I prepped for this annual column I was told that type of demand isn’t unique in Kitsap County. Fortunately, your effort of dedication toward the Bellringer has always been notable as well. I’m here to ask for you to get involved once again.