COVID - click to learn more

 We are working the front lines of hunger... all across Washington State.

We are your coalition of emergency food providers, governed and directed by people in the trenches, representing all areas of the state. We are based in community to serve our communities. Gathering strength through peers, organizing to find common goals, bringing our shared values together to create a strong collective voice of the emergency food system.

Help support the work of the Washington Food Coalition by making your tax deductible donation today. The WFC supports food programs across the State of Washington by providing technical assistance, and more recently, by providing information and resources on COVID-19. We are sending out a daily e-newsletter to all members and friends on current COVID resources  from the Department of Health, WSDA, the USDA and the Center for Disease Control, plus many others. We have also been busy distributing supplies such as gloves, masks, hand sanitizer and signage, to assist programs across the state in serving their clients.  

 

WFC's Quarterly Newsletter - Fall

 The coalition's quarterly newsletter is out! 

See our fall and winter training offerings, updates from WSDA, membership news and more! 

We appreciate all you are doing to keep our hungry neighbors fed and safe. We will be offering several trainings in the next few months to help you sustain and re-emerge from the pandemic. Please join the conversation! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

COVID-19 - What You Need To Know:

The coalition created a new resource on food distribution methods and what it means to move into the next phases of the Governor's Stay Home, Stay Safe Plan. To view the PowerPoint click here. 

 

 

 PPE Vendors: 

Click here to see the coalition's PPE Vendors list for Hand Sanitizer, Signage, Gloves, Masks, Disinfectant Spray and Wipes and Thermometers.
If you have resources to share, please let us know. 

 

 

 

WSDA is hosting every other week calls on Tuesdays from 9:00 am to 10:00 am, for food banks to hear the latest news on the COVID-19 virus.  Calls are optional. 

Please join my meeting from your computer, tablet or smartphone.
https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/809174509
You can also dial in using your phone.
United States: +1 (646) 749-3122

Access Code: 809-174-509
Join from a video-conferencing room or system.
Dial in or type: 67.217.95.2 or inroomlink.goto.com
Meeting ID: 809 174 509
Or dial directly: [email protected] or 67.217.95.2##809174509

New to GoToMeeting? Get the app now and be ready when your first meeting starts:
https://global.gotomeeting.com/install/809174509
EFAP and TEFAP Contractors have their own calls every other Friday. Contact WSDA to get information to join those calls. 

There is a lot going on in our state right now and I encourage you to stay informed of news regarding Covid-19, a strain of the Coronavirus, and how you can protect yourself and those you serve. 

Remember, hand washing is key! Make sure you are modeling proper hand washing techniques - Wash for 20 seconds. Wash top and bottom, wrist, in-between each finger, and under fingernails. Dry on paper towel.

As with most respiratory viruses, we can expect advice for the general public to include avoiding gathering places and exercising social distancing.

https://www.cdc.gov/handwashing/posters.html

DOH, Posters for staff and clients: https://www.kingcounty.gov/depts/health/communicable-diseases/disease-control/novel-coronavirus/posters.aspx

  

Sources for information: 

Simple ways to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in your workplace:

The low-cost measures below will help prevent the spread of infections in your workplace, such as colds, flu and stomach bugs, and protect your customers, volunteers and employees. Employers should start doing these things now, even if COVID-19 has not arrived in the communities where they operate. They can already reduce working days lost due to illness and stop or slow the spread of COVID-19 if it arrives at one of your workplaces.

Make sure your workplaces are clean and hygienic

  • Surfaces (e.g. counters and tables) and objects (e.g. telephones, keyboards) need to be wiped with disinfectant regularly
  • Why? Because contamination on surfaces touched by employees and customers is one of the main ways that COVID-19 spreads.
Promote regular and thorough hand-washing by employees, volunteers and customers
  • Put sanitizing hand rub dispensers in prominent places around the workplace. Make sure these dispensers are regularly refilled
  • Display posters promoting hand-washing – ask your local public health authority for these or look above to links to hand washing signage.

 Make sure that staff, volunteers and customers have access to places where they can wash their hands with soap and water

  • Why? Because washing kills the virus on your hands and prevents the spread of COVID19 
Promote good respiratory hygiene in the workplace o Display posters promoting respiratory hygiene. 

Ensure that face masks and / or paper tissues are available at your workplaces, for those who develop a runny nose or cough at work, along with closed bins for hygienically disposing of them.

  • Other tips: 

    • Wipe tables, counters, etc. with a bleach solution before and after programs & guests.

      • Not only dining (or distribution) tables but registration tables & coffee counter.

    • Wiping down handles, doors, doorknobs, handrails multiple times a day with a bleach solution or disinfectant wipes.

    • Wiping down pens and other items that can possibly provide a place for the virus to spread with a bleach solution or disinfectant wipes.

      • Since this virus is so new, we do not know yet how long it can stay alive on surfaces.

    • Washing our hands regularly:

    • Keep hands away from face.

    • Finally, and most important, IF YOU ARE SICK, PLEASE STAY HOME!! We want you to get well ASAP and do not want you to share your germs.  This is not a time to "tough it out". While most cases are mild, if you pass it along to someone else whose system is not as strong, and that can prove fatal.

 Renew Your WFC Membership Today! 

To renew your membership click here. It's quick and easy. Membership is based on a sliding schedule of your food program's budget starting as low as $25/yr. 

Your membership comes with many benefits including:  

  • Discounted fee to our annual conference and other trainings and events
  • A discounted copy of valuable resources manuals, and discounted pricing on additional copies – Food Safety, Special Dietary Needs, Food Banking 101, and Best Practices. 
  • Bi-monthly e-newsletters and quarterly newsletters
  • Training opportunities for staff & volunteers plus technical assistance, answering your questions about programs and services, models and best practices, how to get started, and more.
  • Food Bank Certification course for your staff/volunteers
  • Access to a discounted membership with WA Nonprofits, for even more fabulous trainings that are offered both online and in person, all across the state
  • Access to over 300 other WFC members – your colleagues in the fight against hunger!
  • You have a vote in the election of your District representatives.
  • Discounted agency insurance through Conover/Great American Insurance. 

 If your EFAP lead pays your membership dues, we will notify you when they pay on your behalf.  Happy New Year!  

  

 

 Thanks to our great Sponsors who bring the Washington Food Coalition Annual Conference to life!

WFC T-Shirts! 

To order our new T-shirts please link here to our order form. 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I FIGHT HUNGER T-Shirts are available in RED and BLUE.

I GROW FOOD T-Shirts are available in GREEN.  

 COST IS ONLY $15.00 PLUS MAILING COSTS