Press release

Northern Inyo Hospital (NIH) and Inyo Mono Advocates for Community Action (IMACA) have teamed up to help Owens Valley families in need.

nihfood

Northern Inyo Hospital employees Susan Pernal and Cheryl Underhill show some of the food items already donated toward the hospital’s annual Holiday Food Drive. This food drive, which runs now through Nov. 23, benefits the food pantry at the Inyo-Mono Advocates for Community Action, also known as IMACA. Donations can be dropped off at the hospital’s West Line Street lobby or in the lobby of The Rural Health Clinic. Photo by Northern Inyo Hospital/Barbara Laughon

From Nov. 2-23, the hospital will be holding its annual Holiday Food Drive for the benefit of IMACA. NIH employees and patients, as well as the public, are invited to drop off non-perishable food donations in barrels at the Rural Health Clinic Lobby or the hospital’s Main Lobby off West Line Street.

According to IMACA, a recent survey showed 14.3 percent of Inyo County’s 18,495 residents did not know if they had enough food to feed their family. This is otherwise known as being “food insecure.” Of those residents, 23 percent were children. Fifty-seven percent of those residents are not eligible for the federal food stamp program.

IMACA’s weekly food pantries in Bishop, Mammoth Lakes and Lone Pine are stocked through donations. Currently, IMACA serves 889 families and 2,097 individuals in the three pantry locations. This means 6.4 percent of Inyo and Mono residents rely on IMACA for some portion of their meals, and there are 7.9 percent of food insecure individuals who are not being served.

Suggested donation items include canned goods such as tuna, beans, soup, vegetables or fruit; corn flour (masa) or all purpose flour; low-sugar cereal or oatmeal; crackers or other snack items; peanut butter; rice or pasta; bottled pasta sauce; or jelly.

For more information on how you can help, contact Cheryl Underhill at (760) 873-5811 ext 2153.

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