As Funding Shrinks, Local Partnerships Expand Food Security

Maury Harris

Senior Communications Officer
Community Foundation for Southwest Washington

After welcoming her second child into the world, Emily Straw felt ready to tackle any challenge when she returned to work as president of Clark County Food Bank in April 2025. And the challenges didn’t hold back.

Over the last year, many nonprofits have felt increasing strain as the federal government imposed new restrictions on grants and social service programs. By June, Clark County Food Bank lost $900,000 in grants, nine AmeriCorps staff positions and more than 100,000 pounds of free protein. Then, a freeze on Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits brought a surge of requests to food pantries. But thanks to its strong financial reserves and leadership, Clark County Food Bank anticipated the need and ordered additional truckloads of food in advance.

Like people, food security is complex

Dr. Michele Cruse also felt the SNAP stress at Ashby Family LEAD & Engagement Services, where she serves as co-executive director. This grassroots organization champions disability justice by giving people the skills, support and experiences needed to build independence.

“I’m a vessel for folks who have visible and invisible disabilities,” Cruse said. “They teach me a lot about their needs — which can shift based on a variety of factors — and my job is to advocate for them.”

Food security is one of the factors Cruse alluded to. Her participants are among the 25 percent of SNAP recipients who reported living with a disability in a 2025 analysis by the Center for Economic and Policy Research. Any cuts would force Ashby Family participants to choose between putting food on the table and paying the bills.

Cruse jumped into action. She called her trusted thought partner, Esra Khalil, senior program officer at the Community Foundation for Southwest Washington. Part of Khalil’s job is advising and connecting nonprofits for greater impact. In this case, Khalil knew Clark County Food Bank was seeking partners to help expand food access. Ashby Family felt like the perfect fit.

The ingredients for a lasting partnership

The two organizations quickly found complementary strengths. Clark County Food Bank brought the logistics and infrastructure to distribute large quantities of food. Ashby Family holds years of trusted relationships in the African American and disability communities. These populations are less likely to seek support from traditional systems like food pantries due to stigma, lack of access, historical harm and systemic distrust of institutions.

Working together, Straw and Cruse dismantled some of these barriers. They also accomplished something neither organization could do alone: delivering 10,000 pounds of food to previously unreached households across Clark County.

“We could have stopped there,” Straw said. “But we're working to embed our services for the long term, so people don't know one organization from the other. They just know we’re here for them.”

Growing partnership creates unexpected impact

Cruse has also looped in Lester Griffin, executive director of The Foundation WA. His organization works with youth and families who have been impacted by incarceration, helping them pursue brighter futures and access dedicated reentry support.

The partnership was again built on mutual strengths. In this case, Cruse had access to donated food and a stable of volunteers. The Foundation WA brought deep connections with another hard-to-reach community: justice-involved families. Additionally, Griffin had recently signed a lease to operate the Bridgeview Resource Center, giving them the space needed to repackage food.

The day elders from Ashby Family showed up at the center to make food boxes, something unexpected began happening. The youth got curious. Conversations started bubbling up. And, before long, everyone was pitching in — divvying up food, sharing life stories and telling a few jokes.

Now, more than food boxes are being filled every week. This cross-generational service project provides valuable social interaction and improved mental health for the older adults, while the youth gain mentorship and deeper community ties.

Why partnerships matter more than ever

Cruse and Griffin are amazed by the impact that has grown organically from their partnership, and they’re nurturing new ideas. This year, their organizations will launch The People’s Market at Bridgeview Resource Center, so the Black community has a familiar place to access food with choice and dignity.

Collaboration has always helped strengthen community infrastructure. In this case, it has allowed organizations to bring nutritious food within reach for underserved communities.

At a time when many nonprofits are scrambling to fill funding gaps, partnerships like these have become even more critical. For Clark County Food Bank, working with other nonprofits helps alleviate hunger in cost-effective ways. For organizations like Ashby Family and The Foundation WA, it means offering additional wraparound services to people experiencing the brunt of rising costs and a dwindling social safety net.

A recent Community Foundation report shows that 60 percent of local nonprofit leaders feel insecure or worse about the sector’s fate due to ongoing federal funding and policy changes. As a result, organizations are forming new coalitions and deepening existing collaborations to help reduce costs and maintain essential community services.

“What we’re seeing is that no single organization can meet this moment alone,” Khalil said. “Nonprofits are finding new ways to collaborate, which is laying the groundwork for a more resilient sector that can better serve our communities.”