Amy's Story

As a mother of two battling a life-threatening blood disease, 35-year-old Amy worries about nutrition.

She and her 2-year-old son, Zachary, who was born with a colon disorder, require special diets. But providing enough healthy food for two growing children and two adults is near impossible for a family earning less than $400 a week.

“You work around those (special diets) and work around not having a lot of food in the house in the first place,” Amy says.

As an agency devoted to fighting hunger and feeding hope, Second Harvest is here to help. Second Harvest provides food to local agencies that distribute emergency provisions to families like Amy’s.

At a recent Food $ense class, offered through Washington State University Spokane County Extension and held at The Salvation Army Family Resource Center, Amy was able to get potatoes, onions, sour cream, celery, apple juice and other supplies to help her family through these difficult times. Classes focus on nutrition, food safety and stretching grocery dollars. Participants also receive helpful recipes.

Amy’s household also receives other hunger-relief services through The Salvation Army’s food bank. The food pantry, now in its new location at the Family Resource Center, is designed to give families a choice of fruits, vegetables and other foods, which allows her to hand-select items that best suit her family’s health needs.

“I have to eat lots of things with iron and take iron pills,” she says.

The family’s struggles began four years ago, when Amy was diagnosed a blood platelet disorder that requires constant health monitoring and regular transfusions. Amy, who owned and operated a Spokane Valley flower store for 14 years, was heartbroken when doctors told her she couldn’t work because even the smallest cut could cause her to bleed to death.

Two months prior to the life-changing diagnosis, her husband Kevin lost his position at a local dairy when it merged with another company. He found another job, but went from making $18 an hour with a family medical and dental plan to earning $10 an hour with medical coverage only for himself.

Although the couple found a state medical plan for their two boys, Amy has no health insurance and the bills keep mounting.

“Nobody wants to give you medical insurance if you have a pre-existing condition,” Amy explains.

Amy is hopeful that her family’s situation will improve. In the meantime, the healthy foods provided by Second Harvest serve a crucial role in helping the household survive week-to-week and stabilizing the family finances.

“We’re just very, very grateful,” Amy says. “If it weren’t for the classes and the food bank, we wouldn’t be able to make it.”

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