GREENFIELD — Stone Soup Cafe and the United Way of the Franklin & Hampshire Region are continuing their work in anti-hunger advocacy for western Massachusetts at the state level, joining Gov. Maura Healey’s Anti-Hunger Task Force dedicated to navigating federal cuts to food programs.
The task force was established through an executive order signed by Healey on July 17, bringing together Cabinet secretaries and agency leaders (or their designees), Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients, farmers and small business owners, plus leaders of food banks and nonprofits. The panel will also coordinate with existing food security initiatives, including Make Hunger History, which encompasses more than 300 organizations led by Project Bread, according to Healey’s office.
“President Trump’s cuts are going to force millions of people — children, seniors, veterans, people with disabilities — into hunger. They’re also going to hurt local farmers and retailers who rely on these programs to support their business and create jobs,” Healey said when the task force was formed. “In Massachusetts, we won’t accept that.”
Stone Soup Cafe, which operates out of All Souls Church in Greenfield, offers pay-what-you-can community meals, a community store where people in need can access free groceries and produce, and a culinary institute program. The organization was invited to join the Anti-Hunger Task Force by Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources Commissioner Ashley Randle, who is a native of Deerfield.
Stone Soup Cafe Executive Director and Chef Kirsten Levitt said it’s an “honor” to be asked to be part of the task force.
“When the state asks you to give of your time in this kind of capacity to do greater good, you really find it in yourself to say, ‘Yes,'” she said.
Levitt said Stone Soup Cafe was invited to join one of the three working groups — increasing accessibility, rural resiliency and philanthropy — that were established to discuss the conditions of the communities these members represent and help brainstorm policy recommendations that the full task force will present to Healey.
Randle said the decision to ask Stone Soup Cafe to join the task force comes from its operations model, which could potentially be mirrored in other areas of the state.
“They were a perfect fit because of their experiences, because of Kirsten’s leadership and the team that comes together … to make it happen,” Randle said. “I think that’s a good example, as we look across the state for potential long-term solutions and models that do have a significant impact in times of need, and help to address food insecurity.”
The task force already had a meeting on Aug. 19, Randle pointed out, where members got acclimated and started discussing what some of the major concerns will be moving forward as SNAP cuts begin to go into effect. Per the presentation for that meeting, SNAP brings $3 billion to more than 5,500 Massachusetts businesses, and cuts to SNAP on the federal level are expected to result in the loss of coverage for certain populations per new work requirements, coverage loss for immigrant asylees and refugees, and cost the state millions in administrative costs, a larger portion of which used to be covered by federal funding.
Stone Soup Cafe will be part of the task force’s philanthropy working group, furthering advocacy for funding solutions to curb food insecurity.
Food Bank of Western Massachusetts Public Policy Manager Laura Sylvester, another local member of the task force, said in July that she looks forward to working with her fellow task force members to ensure assistance keeps coming to residents.
“Access to food is a human right, and too many people are already struggling to feed their families,” Sylvester said previously. “We’re looking forward to working together with our trusted anti-hunger advocate partners, along with leaders in Gov. Healey’s administration, to combat the harm our federal government is perpetrating with these cuts to SNAP and Medicaid. We’re excited to get to work leveraging every idea and dollar to make sure all Massachusetts residents have enough to eat.”
Similarly, the United Way of the Franklin & Hampshire Region was invited to the table to represent western Massachusetts by Kristen Elechko, western Massachusetts director for Healey’s office. United Way of the Franklin & Hampshire Region Executive Director Geoff Naunheim joined the task force as the nonprofit’s representative.
“We’re always engaged with anti-hunger work to some degree, but with inflation and the increased cost of living in Massachusetts over the past few years, this became a focus area of ours,” Naunheim said about the work the United Way has been prioritizing in collaborations with local survival centers and food access organizations. “We’re really excited to participate in this task force and to try to make a real impact in Franklin and Hampshire counties.”
Both Levitt and Naunheim feel they have an opportunity to share the unique experiences of those living in western Massachusetts with state leadership. For one, Naunheim pointed out the “irony” that exists, with the Pioneer Valley being home to the majority of the state’s food producers while also facing limited accessibility to food given the spread-out nature of the towns and a lack of available transportation.
This issue of transportation impacting rural western Massachusetts is something Randle also pointed to, sharing how food insecurity relates to transportation access.
“The rural nature of western Massachusetts certainly plays into the conversations around food insecurity, and when the task force and the working groups are meeting, those will be major areas that are part of the discussions,” Randle said of the unique issues in this region of the state that can be addressed.
In preparing for the task force to start meeting, Levitt said she spent time listening and sharing as part of her continued work at Stone Soup Cafe.
“My prep work is actually the experience of running the organization every day,” Levitt said. “I don’t have to gather data. I’m living it.”
This sort of lived experience, Levitt said, is not only what she hopes to share with others, but she also plans to use her role on the task force to gather information and resources from other areas of the state. She feels it’ll be an opportunity to see how other communities combat food insecurity and what successful solutions might be worth expanding to other regions.
“Some of my assumptions could be incorrect, that other parts of the state are much better resourced than we are. My assumption is that they are, and maybe my assumption will be validated,” she said. “And if it is validated, then maybe one of the action plans we’ll figure out is a more equitable distribution of resources across the state.”