KENT, Conn.—In response to concerns raised at an earlier Board of Selectmen’s meeting, Social Services Director Samantha Hasenflue recently laid out the current need for food services in the community.
In a letter read at a special selectmen’s meeting held March 17, Hasenflue referred to the selectmen’s stated concerns about families with unmet needs or those who cannot access the Kent Food Bank because of its hours of operation on Fridays.
Hasenflue said her office reached out to Kent Center School to try to find families who might be food insecure. A survey was sent out twice but prompted no responses.
She also garnered data through contacts with Principal Michelle Mott, determining that about 25 percent of the students at KCS receive free and reduced lunch. That 25 percent includes households that are automatically enrolled in the program because they receive SNAP/ food stamp benefits.
“In my experience, households with children who are receiving both SNAP benefits and free and reduced lunches tend to feel that they have sufficient food available,” she wrote.
“The elderly population tends to be the group that struggles with food insecurity as they may receive as little as $20 a month in SNAP benefits,” she stated. “As of right now, 16 percent of the households using the food bank have children under 18 in the home; the majority of food bank participants are persons over the age of 60.”
She said her department has not received requests for food bank services beyond those provided and asked for information about the how and where the selectmen heard of unmet needs.
“It is very important that we connect with these families and ensure that their basic needs are met,” she wrote.
She reported that Kent Food Bank participation has doubled since she started her position in April 2022.
“We are serving an average of 55 households a month, which equates to more than100 individuals,” she said. “… Delivery is offered to any households unable to attend in person, whether it is due to being homebound, without transportation, or because they are working. To date, there are eight households utilizing the delivery services that are offered.”
The food bank offers some dairy products, frozen meat, and food, as well as non-perishable and perishable foods. The food is procured from Connecticut Foodshare, donations, Connecticut Foodhub, Food Rescue, Marble Valley Farm, and items purchased with monetary donations and support from the Kent Community Fund, the Kent Land Trust, the Lions Club, and all the schools in Kent.
She expressed concerns about having Saturday food bank hours as was suggested at the previous selectmen’s meeting, among them the fact that the Community House is rented for private events on many weekends.
The food bank is located in the basement of the Community House and Hasenflue said maintaining confidentiality and privacy would be difficult if weekend hours are instituted.
In addition, operation of the food bank requires a Social Services staff person to be on site for any food bank hours and she said this would be impossible for her and her assistant. Three to four volunteers would be needed to open the food bank on a Saturday. This would be difficult because many of the volunteers are involved in other community activities.
Selectman Lynn Mellis Worthington, who had raised the issue, said she would contact Hasenflue but did not know the names of the families reported to be food insecure. “I respect confidentiality, too,” she said.
First Selectman Marty Lindenmayer said that plans to convert a portion of the Swift House for use by Social Services and the food bank could relieve confidentiality issues.
