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Ashland, Oregon HOME Valley & State Sports Opinion/Editorial Classifieds Business Columnists Obituaries Weather Archive Revels Etcetera Backpage O-Zone Real Estate Guide Menu Guide Shakespeare Subscribe Contact Us Rate Card Place an Ad May 13, 2006 Free meals struggle to stay afloat By Robert Plain Ashland Daily Tidings Pamela Joy, one of Ashland’s most prominent advocates for feeding people in need, resigned as overseer of one of the city’s free community meals. Citing a lack of volunteer and community support, Joy said she had to choose between running Uncle Food’s Diner, a free meal run by Peace House on Tuesdays, at the United Methodist Church on North Main Street, and Food for People, her own effort that gathers good food otherwise headed for the garbage can from local groceries and distributes it to various outlets around Ashland. “I wasn’t able to do both as well as I wanted,” she said, noting that the meal needed more volunteer support. “I was literally going seven days a week. The choice was clear for me to stay with Food for People.” But Joy isn’t leaving Peace House and Uncle Food’s Diner without a going away present. On Sunday, from 3 to 7 p.m. at the same church that hosts the meal on Tuesdays, she is throwing what amounts to a going away fundraiser for both food programs. A mother’s day ice cream and dessert social, the fundraiser includes free entertainment and a silent auction. Proceeds from the desserts will go to both Uncle Food’s Diner and Food For People. Proceeds from the silent auction will go to Food For People, as those items were donated specifically for that organization. “You don’t have to pay to get in the door,” she said. “It’s a fun thing for a family to do together.” “Every once in a while we have to do something to help us pay for gas and utilities,” Joy, who has been running Food For People for 13 years, said. “Food For People is all out of my own house and out of my own pocket.” Food For People collects food from Shop-n-Kart, Market of Choice and the Ashland Food Co-op, as well as several organic farms in the area, and delivers it to various social service organizations, such as Head Start, Northwest Seasonal Workers in Medford and the Pennell House group home in Ashland for developmentally disabled adults. “I believe people deserve to eat,” Joy said. “There is enough food in this supposedly abundant country to feed everyone.” Free meal politics Joy’s resignation from Peace House and Uncle Food’s Diner comes at a precarious time for free meals in Ashland. Some have identified these meals as being an attraction for homeless people who bother tourists and residents downtown. Recent meetings ­— which included Mayor John Morrison, representatives of the Ashland Chamber of Commerce, Oregon Shakespeare Festiva, Ashland School District and the Ashland Police Department, along with members of the free meal community — were organized to deal with aggressive panhandling and potentially dangerous people on Ashland’s streets. “What we’ve seen is a change in the make-up of people who panhandle downtown,” said Paul Nicholson, executive director of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. “We understand a number of them are carrying weapons. Many of them are on drugs during the day. They are not people to be confronted.” He said this information was provided by Ashland police officers. Police officer Teresa Selby showed pictures at one of these meetings of “30 to 36 people,” who allegedly committed crimes or were otherwise problematic in Ashland, according to Joy, who attended the meeting. “Only six of the people from the pictures come to the meals,” Joy said. “Closing the meals would not solve anything.” APD denied requests from the Ashland Daily Tidings to release these photos. No explanation for the refusal was given. Sandra Slattery, executive director of the chamber, said her organization and local business owners are “very concerned about this issue. Our biggest concern is that we have a safe, welcoming downtown for residents, visitors and business owners.” Joy said this group discussed shutting down the free meals for a spell to drive out of town “people identified as aggressive panhandlers.” Instead, the group decided to have cards printed which will instruct tourists how to handle people who aggressively ask them for a hand-out, or otherwise disturb them. Graham Lewis, president of the chamber, said these cards will be ready for distribution soon. Another group in town, which downtown merchant Ron Hansen identified as a “vigilant committee” is also planning on printing cards. Lewis said the two are not related. “I don’t know anything about a vigilant committee.” The Caring Friends meal, which was held on Wednesday afternoons at Pioneer Hall, decided to take a six-month sabbatical recently. Marty Bryant, a volunteer at this meal, said the reason for the respite was because of a bad element that has started to attend these meals. “We’re feeding a different breed than in the past,” he said. “They are kind of rude and violent. Our volunteers are afraid of them” However, Cory Couch, chair of the Caring Friends Board of Directors, said the reason was a lack of people willing to serve on the Board of Directors. She said poor behavior is “definitely not the reason why the meal is ceasing. For about a year now we’ve been trying to recruit new board members but we’ve had no luck.” Couch said she did not know why Bryant blamed the closure on problematic customers but said, “It has nothing to do with it.” Staff writer Robert Plain can be reached at 482-3456 x. 226 or [email protected] . Leave a Comment: --> Copyright © 2006 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers. All Rights Reserved.