Stateline 1105 Master Script

IN THE WANING DAYS OF 2009 IT WAS REPORTED MORE RETAIL OUTLETS THAN EVER BEFORE ARE ACCEPTING FOOD STAMPS—THESE DAYS IN THE FORM OF AN ELECTRONIC BENEFITS TRANSFER CARD.  37 MILLION AMERICANS DEPEND ON GOVERNMENT BENEFITS, AN INCREASE OF 35 PERCENT IN TWO YEARS.

IN OKLAHOMA, JUST OVER HALF A MILLION PEOPLE RECEIVE ASSISTANCE ON EBT CARDS AND THAT NUMBER TOO IS INCREASING.

BUT GOVERNMENT BENEFITS, WHICH AVERAGE FIVE DOLLARS A DAY, JUST AREN’T ENOUGH IN MANY CASES.  INCREASINGLY, OKLAHOMANS ARE TURNING TO CHARITABLE ORGANIZATIONS FOR HELP.

1:49:04

RODNEY BIVENS:  “I WOULD SAY THE REGIONAL FOOD BANK DISTRIBUTION CENTER HAS REALLY BEEN STRETCHED TO ITS LIMITS THIS YEAR.  LIKE WE HAD A 15 PERCENT INCREASE IN OUR DISTRIBUTION LAST YEAR.

BOOTH

IT IS A DIFFICULT AND EMBARASSING STEP FOR MANY WHO DON’T SEE THEMSELVES AS TYPICAL RECIPIENTS OF CHARITY.

17:24:24

SHERRI ACOSTA:  “THEY ARE ME.  THEY ARE NOT A CATEGORY OF PEOPLE.  THEY ARE NOT TATTOOED THAT SAYS ‘I GO TO THE FOOD BANK EVERY WEEK.’ OR I AM HOMELESS OR I AM OUT OF A JOB.  THEY ARE WE.”

BOOTH

MANY OKLAHOMANS ARE JUST A LAYOFF OR CAR ACCIDENT AWAY FROM NEEDING HELP.  ON THIS EDITION OF STATELINE, THE VOLUNTEERS AND ORGANIZATIONS HELPING NEIGHBORS ON THE EDGE OF CRISIS.

TRT

Paul Hipshire

S-204     C0002     13:28:01

My name is Paul Hipshire I live in Guthrie, Oklahoma and I am a Fifty eight years old.

Paul Hipshire

S-204     C0002     13:29:33

I was a heavy equipment operator.

Paul Hipshire

S-204     C0002     13:29:16

Got in a bad wreck and got all busted up really bad neck, back, knee, shoulder…everything.

Paul Hipshire

S-204     C0002     13:30:03

I had everything messed up I couldn't move, I couldn't walk. I was never supposed to be able to walk again. I was lucky I lived because everything in me was broke.

Paul Hipshire

S-204     C0002     13:37:57

That is how that all started. I was never sick a day before in my life.

Paul Hipshire

S-204     C0002     13:30:31

I don't even remember being in the hospital. But my health just went down hill. They found out I was a diabetic a very serious diabetic which I am today. My heart went down hill. I started having heart attacks. My spine and my neck started deteriorating from the accident and it is still deteriorating.

Paul

S-204     C0002     13:30:13

But like I said God blessed me and he healed me.

Paul Hipshire

S-204     C0002     13:41:21

Before my social security had come in and stuff. I had no way of affording nothing.

Paul Hipshire

S-204     C0002     13:41:58

Actual homeless was probably a year and a half. Maybe a little longer than that. I try to forget those days but I look back at them now and you know someone was looking over me the whole time. But it was hard.

Paul Hipshire

S-204     C0002     13:41:21

I have slept behind grocery stores and had to push two dumpsters together with a piece of card board on the ground. Push the dumpsters together like that to make sure I didn't get killed during the night to get some sleep you know.

Paul Hipshire

S-204     C0002     13:41:45

Or I would be awake all night just sitting somewhere. In a park or in a bus station somewhere. There has been many, many, many days like that.

Paul Hipshire

S-204     C0004     14:12:22

Awfully lonely…awful cold, especially if it was in the winter time. You pray for the sun to come out.

Paul Hipshire

S-204     C0004     14:08:35

So much stuff goes through your heart and your mind when you are in a situation like that. What did I do to deserve this? Was it my fault that I am in this position? What am I going to do here?

Paul Hipshire

S-204     C0002     13:46:41

It happens. I just was thankful that I was alone at the time. I didn't have a wife and a couple of kids to get on the street with because I have seen plenty of that. Whole families staying in the street corners begging for food and that would be hard to deal with right there.

Rodney Bivens

1:26:23

It's estimated about 18% of those living in poverty are hungry on any given day. So you’re really looking at about 80-100,000 Oklahomans are either hungry or at risk of hunger every day in the state of Oklahoma, which is really deplorable.

Rodney Bivens

1:25:44

I'm Rodney Bivens, Executive Director of the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma.

Rodney Bivens

1:36:50

We serve over 460 private, non-profit organizations and faith based organizations throughout 53 counties in central and western Oklahoma.

Rodney Bivens

1:38:18

Last year we distributed over 28.5 million pounds of food. Which was a 15% increase on the year before. The first 4 months of this fiscal year we've distributed another 19% above last year, so we're on track to probably distribute another 32 to 33 million this year.

Rodney Bivens

1:33:21

About 12% of those we serve are the elderly. Regrettably they find it very difficult, especially in today's economy.

Rodney Bivens

1:31:41

One elderly woman, she's 84 years old...came into one of our food pantries in Bryan County and the volunteer was talking to her, said she hadn't had anything to eat in three days. And the volunteer asked her why, she said because I'm trying to save my money up to get my prescription filled.

Rodney Bivens

1:31:57

It's just stories like that we shouldn't hear. Seniors have given us so much...shouldn't have to suffer without food.

Paul Hipshire

S-204     C0003     13:51:16

I first started at the food bank I think it was around April of '05. I think it was around there…around April of '05. Miss Irene took me down there.

Paul Hipshire

S-204     C0003     13:33:55

I was really having hard times and I signed up for. I have been praying to God too. I wanted a church to go to. I didn't know where the churches were and it come to be that the people that run the food bank and manage it Bill and Carol Thorn They have their own church here.

Carol Thorn I

14:52:00    S-204   C0039

The first time I met Paul he came to the food bank and signed up for food. He's become a wonderful friend, a wonderful volunteer when he's on his feet, and just a very inspiring person.

Carol Thorn I

14:46:20    S-204   C0039

I'm Carol Thorn and I'm the Operations Manager of God's Food Bank in Guthrie, Oklahoma.

Carol Thorn I

14:48:07    S-204   C0039

When I first started we had 150 families we served; now we have almost 500 families signed up. Some don't come every week, many come every week. Some just come when they get low on food.

Bill Thorn

16:11:31    S-101   C0111

We took over this about four or five years ago.

Carol Thorn II

16:48:21    S-101   C0139

We have a chart for different sized families, how much money they can make and come here once a week. For instance a family of four can make $3,269.00 a month and come here once a week.

Paul Hipshire

S-204     C0004     13:54:17

I didn't know what to expect to get. And my goodness why they had some canned goods. Every now and then you get milk. And eggs too…bread.

Paul Hipshire

S-204     C0004     13:55:59

You can go once a week…if they have it. The people are just very terrific.

Paul Hipshire

S-204     C0004     13:57:19

I felt really bad about taking something. Because when you are up at the food bank and you see those little kids come in with there mothers and stuff. I just said “take mine and put it in their bags and I will do something else” you know.

Sherri Acosta

17:42:10   C0020 Stateline    1105 Bin

There is a lot of people who need to be coming who don't know how it works and are afraid to come. And no one should be afraid. 

Paul Hipshire

S-204     C0004    14:00:07

I have seen people come in there crying their eyes out and not know what to do. They got families up there with seven eight nine kids. Even the single people, it is just something.

Sherri Acosta

17:24:24  C0017 Stateline 1105 Bin

They don't have beat up broken down vehicles. They are me. They are, you know. They are me. They are not a category of people. They are not tattooed that says “I go the food bank every week.” Or “I am homeless” or “I am out of a job.” They are we.

Rodney Bivens

1:27:18

The faces of hunger in Oklahoma are really everyone. It's the working poor, its families, its children, its seniors, it's our neighbors.

Rodney Bivens

1:27:29

Many of us are one pay check away from being in those categories ourselves and needing food. And these are the people we work with everyday. Almost 40% of those people we serve are children of the working poor.

Rodney Bivens

1:29:16

Almost 25% of all the children are considered poor or in poverty and therefore at risk of going hungry at night.

Rodney Bivens

1:27:40

And people are struggling everyday to put food on the table. They're having to make choices whether to get a prescription filled or buy food...or if they can afford to put gas in their car, or get to work. Or put food on the table for their family...or if they can pay the utility bill that night.

Lionel Acosta

16:0034    S-101    C0103

Today the truck arrives, usually around 11:45, and we just unload and Carol takes inventory. And then these helpers back here they put it in different freezers, according to what they are like the pizza and so on, here we put all the meats.

Bill Thorn

16:09:42       S-101   C0111

This is our day that we get our food supplies in and probably average about four tons a week.

Bill Thorn

16:09:59       S-101   C0111

That sounds like a lot of food and sometimes what we spend besides the free stuff is between $800 and $1,000 a week. And by the end of the week it’s gone.

Lionel Acosta

16:04:25    S-101    C0103

When Dennis gets here usually he'll unload. If we have potatoes, oranges or anything in sacks that's the first thing he unloads, and we'll be ready with our carts and we bring it in.

Lionel Acosta

16:01:18    S-101    C0103

Soon as we get that done we'll make 50 bags and we'll be ready for in the morning.

Faith Sears

16:31:31    S-101    C0117

Yeah, It feels good because it’s like, Imagine you out on the road, you're under a bridge you have no food for your entire life...you would die.

Faith Sears

16:25:39    S-101   C0117

I'm Faith Sears, I'm eleven and I volunteer at God's Food Bank.

Faith Sears

16:36:13    S-101   C0117

What I do is like; I like put it in a cart and just wait until it’s gone. 

Faith Sears

16:26:23    S-101   C0117

It’s really fun, I like doing it.

Lionel Acosta

16:03:42    S-101    C0103

It took us probably 25 minutes for 5,000 pounds. I mean we hustled it in and then 2-3 people will just start putting it away as fast as we can. So that really worked out. A lot of times, like I told you if only 3-4 people show up it will take us an hour. But that's no biggie...an hour.

Bill Thorn

16:10:53       S-101   C0111

Come around Thursday evening, the shelves will be like Mother Hubbard's cupboard.

Carol Thorn I

14:56:14    S-204   C0040

Wednesday we come in at 9:00, we open at 10:00 and we distribute…we try to give a three day supply of food to everyone that comes in.

Carol Thorn II

16:47:51    S-101   C0139

And actually sometimes we have more than that.

Sherri Acosta

17:40:59    C0020 Stateline 1105 Bin

From what we saw this morning when the doors got ready to open at ten o'clock Carol already knew that for. / She already knew who was going to be first in line. And some people will call them regulars. She calls them family.

Carol Thorn I

14:57:04    S-204   C0040

When they come in they sign in and they get a pre-bagged...a sack with food for three days for however many is in the family. We add to the two and three bags on up until we get enough for everybody.

Carol Thorn II

16:47:51    S-101   C0139

Of course there’s things in there that will last more than three days.

Bill Thorn II

16:19:07    S-101   C0116

The things that are the hardest to get are the meat.

Carol Thorn I

14:53:44    S-204   C0039

The best thing that people can donate to our food bank is canned meat, canned fruit and peanut butter...and cereal, cereal is very expensive. So, I like to have cereal for the kids.

Sherri Acosta

17:41:16  C0020  Stateline 1105 Bin

If they don't come she calls them. She wants to know. You know, what happened to you today?

Paul Hipshire

13:50:37    S-204   C0003

There is a lot more people out there that is going hungry that are just too prideful to do anything about it.

Carol Thorn II

16:47:22    S-101   C0139

"We just never thought we'd have to come to a food bank." Some of them cry even, we had a man and his wife come in, he had lost his job and they both were just real emotional over it. Some of them are just single moms that can't make it even on food stamps, you know? They want to feed their children. And that’s what we're here for, to help everyone we can.

Rodney Bivens

1:34:29

Because of the down turn in the economy there's a lot of people on the very edge of losing their homes and just getting by and right now don't know where their next meal is coming from.

Rodney Bivens

1:34:46

For example there was a family that came in the emergency food pantry. Had a great home, $150,000 home, they both had good jobs, had three children, he had been laid off from his position and a month later she lost her job. Three months later they lost their home, and they came into the emergency food pantry at a local church and they had their children with them and they were living in their car.

Rodney Bivens

1:35:09

Think about it, the American dream. Have your car, your working full time, your kids are in school...you can provide for your family and have a savings and all of a sudden you're living in your car with your three children.

Louise Allison I

12:50:58    C0005    S-302

Honestly it was kind of embarrassing. You know that you have to ask for help. But then you have to think of your kids and do it for them.

Louise Allison I

17:56:42    C0006    S-302

I tended to stare at the floor a lot. And act like I am going to run in and run out, you know. It is no big deal. But I guess once you start going more and more it eases up on you, and you understand that they are trying to help you. They don't judge you. So it makes it a little bit easier.

Louise Allison I

17:51:28    C0005    S-302

One of them actually took it upon herself to take me under her wing and she got me a refrigerator and a stove and filled up my trunk with groceries.

Louise Allison I

17:51:54    C0005    S-302

I really.... I cried.

Louise Allison I

17:55:00    C0006    S-302

If they know you have children or see children come in with you. They usually try to give you something else like milk, eggs something sweet for the kids. They are always handing out candy. 

Louise Allison I

18:00:25    C0006    S-302

Not everybody has a really good job, didn’t go to college. Didn't get to finish high school, I dropped out got my GED and went to work.

Louise Allison I

17:58:27    C0006    S-302

When my oldest was a baby he is fifteen now I had three jobs. And my third job was a shade tree mechanic. I took mechanics in high school. And that's what I did while he was asleep at night. I worked at a fast food place during the breaks from the school bus. Because you pick up the kids in the morning then you drop them off at school I would go to Wendy’s.

Louise Allison I

17:58:53    C0006    S-302

And I worked there for however many hours I could. Then when it was time to go pick the kids back up I would get back on the bus and take the kids home, and I was a monitor for handicapped children. And when the school route was over go home eat dinner and when my baby went to bed I went outside and started working. 

Rodney Bivens

1:28:30

Almost 40% of the people we serve through the food bank distribution system are the working poor. And that means at least on person in that family are working full time. Many times two or three jobs. Its a single mother trying to support her children making decisions everyday whether she can put gas in her car to get to work, or whether she can keep the utility bills on so her children can study at night...whether she'll be able to feed her children the next day. Struggles that our Oklahoma neighbors should not have to face.

Louise Allison

19:17:49   C0179       Stateline  1105 Bin1

I don't ever get to balance anything. I mean its either pay rent or electric, and right now I've been paying rent. So, the electric...it’s hanging in there.

Louise Allison

19:18:07     C0179         Stateline 1105 Bin1

Yeah, we don't have propane because I can't afford propane and electric.

Louise Allison

19:19:50     C0179         Stateline 1105 Bin1

Now I'm down to...I don't know what my check is going to be, I can go pick it up today...but it’s, I'm going to have to pay rent. Because my landlords a real sweet guy but he's got bills to pay too.

Louise Allison I

18:05:06    C0006    S-302

Errands to run till dark thirty and then get home and have to clean and cook, and clean again. Yeah I mean we try to spend time. We talk about our day in the car. And while I am cooking they are doing homework.

Louise Allison

19:20:05     C0179         Stateline 1105 Bin1

My car, thank god, is paid off. But, um...yeah, I've been waiting and waiting for a little bit of extra money so I can get the heater fixed.

Louise Allison

19:19:36     C0179         Stateline 1105 Bin1

I actually asked one of the ladies at the food bank yesterday to see if her church could help me with whatever is left over that I can not pay.

Louise Allison I

17:53:47    C0006    S-302

Well the story I told you earlier about the lady up here. She volunteers there and I didn't know that and when she did the favor she did for me I asked her how I could repay her and that is what she asked me to do.

Louise Allison I

17:53:30    C0006    S-302

Well since I have gotten back up on my feet I will still appreciate any help they give me. But I am having just as much fun volunteering for them and I will be there again this week.

Louise Allison I

17:54:04    C0006    S-302

The people they are real sweet, and I like to help. Cause they helped me.

Rodney Bivens

1:53:05

People are always asking us Rodney how can I help? How can my can make a difference? And I always look at them and say you know one can does make a difference. If you donate one can and a million other people donate a can that is a million pounds of food we didn't have other wise. How can my dollar make a difference well for every dollar that is donated to us that will return seven meals back to the community because of all those donations. And people that are struggling they were struggling last year and the year before are struggling even more now. And people who didn't have that struggle last year are having it for the first time in their lives.

Paul Hipshire

13:58:11    S-204     C0003

You get about 300 families come through there in one day you have some work to do. But it is good work. Any way I asked them could you use me? They said we sure could. We could sure use the help…Carol and Bill both. So I just started doing it. And every day when that door opened up I was there.

Paul Hipshire

16:40:29    S-101    C0130

It just changed me, it made me more...more of a loving person, and I care.

Paul Hipshire

16:38:57    S-101    C0130

I've been hurt here the last few months and I can't wait to get healed up so I can get back to doing everything, because as you can see today there's a lot of work to be done.

Paul Hipshire

16:41:37    S-101    C0130

It just enlightens you. It’s a feeling of satisfaction in helping people. It's just a feeling of accomplishment. You know? Everybody needs that in their life, you know?

Rodney Bivens

1:53:05

Well you know people are always asking us Rodney how can I help? How can my can make a difference? And I always look at them and say you know one can does make a difference. If you donate one can and a million other people donate a can that is a million pounds of food we didn't have other wise. How can my dollar make a difference well for every dollar that is donated to us that will return seven meals back to the community because of all those donations. And people that are struggling they were struggling last year and the year before are struggling even more now. And people who didn't have that struggle last year are having it for the first time in their lives.

Rodney Bivens

1:49:17

We are going from 28.5 million pounds of food last year probably to 32 to 33 million pounds this year so I would say our system is getting stretched. You know 76% of the people that we serve are all volunteers. And they are getting stretched. They only give up so many hours. They are getting older. Some time the young people are not taking their place. So they system is stretched…is it meeting all the need? The answer is no. We estimate that we are hitting about 60 to 65% of the need. And so we are not near where we should be.

Carol

Thorn II

16:48:51    S-101   C0139

(Telephone Rings) Hold on...God's Food Bank.

Carol Thorn II

16:53:13    S-101   C0139

Usually they just say "I'm needing to get a little help with food and I wondered what your hours of operation are."

Carol Thorn II

16:45:46    S-101   C0139

Normally we're not here everyday, I'll have a few, but today there was 14. Which indicates we are going to be extremely busy tomorrow, and that people are hurting for food. When you get that many messages you have to return, but one of them was from the bank that wants to give us a donation, so that was a good one. (Laughs)

Carol Thorn I

14:48:58    S-204   C0039

Some families moving together. Some, we have eight people living together in one house...because they had to give up their house, because of the economy. It's really bad right now.

Carol Thorn II

16:46:52    S-101   C0139

Yes, it will be one of our busiest years.

Bill Thorn

16:12:17    S-101   C0111

Yeah, it's really increased, and getting worse and worse every week. 

Carol Thorn I

14:54:24   S-204    C0039

In September we signed up 46 new families, in October we signed up 50 new families and we're signing up new families every time we're open. So I don't know where it’s going.

Bill Thorn

16:10:40       S-101   C0111

There's a lot of needs, and god does hear and answer prayers.

Bill Thorn

16:15:25       S-101   C0111

We just call them by name, tell god what the need is and he has literally works miracles.

Carol Thorn I

14:49:52    S-204   C0039

I told my husband last night when we were getting turkeys, "I don't know how longer we can do this, but as long as god strengthens me I will.”

Paul Hipshire

S-101    C0130      16:42:06

We don't get paid for this, but the good lord pays us... daily. You know?...daily. 

TRT

BOOTH

IN THE FINAL DAYS OF 2009, THE STATE WAS ROUNDLY CRITICISED FOR CUTTING SENIOR NUTRITION PROGRAMS.  THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT MUCH OF THE SLACK WAS TAKEN UP BY CHURCHES AND CIVIC CLUBS.  IN SOME COMMUNITIES RETAILERS AND EVEN CASINOS ARE HELPING TO FEED SOME OF THEIR NEIGHBORS WHO LIVE ON THE EDGE OF CRISIS.

TRT