Tony Woodell has returned to his hometown of Casper in his new role as executive director of the statewide Wyoming Food Bank of the Rockies. Woodell has more than 30 years in nonprofit management, most recently in Cheyenne. We chatted with him about his new position.
What is your background? My dad was in the oilfield so we lived in Snyder, Texas, Vernal, Utah, and then in Casper, but whenever anybody asks me where I’m from, I always say Casper, Wyoming. I’ve been in Cheyenne for five years as director of the Wyoming Wildlife Foundation and before that I was with several international nonprofits in Arkansas, including an international hunger relief organization and one that assisted blind people all over the world. My background is nonprofit management.
What attracted you to Wyoming Food Bank of the Rockies? I’m a firm believer that we can make a dent in hunger and food insecurity and I felt as if there’s no better place to do it than in your hometown. So I was attracted by both the mission and the chance to do it in my hometown.
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Looking ahead, what are some short-term and longer-term focuses you’re likely to emphasize? The only way we can do what we do is through our partner agencies statewide. They are the front line who are actually distributing the food to those in need. We bring it in, to one central location, then distribute it out to the agencies who get it to those who need it. Our program partners are the only way we can make a dent in this issue of food insecurity. So one of my goals is to take care of the ones we have, find other partners and building their capacity. The other part is one of the big things we have to do is raise money. We have to have dollars to actually do this work. Ninety-six cents out of every dollar goes to food procurement and distribution. There is very little overhead inside the building.
Are there major changes you expect to make or is it more fine-tuning? It’s mostly just moving forward with what’s been established. I can bring a fresh set of eyes, a different perspective. I want to work with partner organizations more, I want to build their capacity, they are doing great work but they need support and help to do the work they’re doing. I want to strengthen the partners we already have, and reach out to groups who want to become partners. If they don’t have the capacity, we can’t distribute the food.
After the mine layoffs, WFBR held two mobile pantries in Gillette to distribute food. Tell us about your ability to respond to unexpected crises. We can be very responsive. We can provide mobile pantries to those areas in need. We can be there to assist those people as much as we possibly can. Because we are the only food bank in the state, we can be that central location to meet the needs of every county without worrying about stepping on toes.
How can the community support your work? Look at their budgets and see if there’s a way they can financially support us, but also learn about us and our mission. This is two-fold. The first one is asking for money, the second one is raising awareness, when people know about the awareness, people will give to it, so it’s not just dollars, but knowing about us — the awareness as well.
(Wyoming Food Bank of the Rockies distributes food to all 23 counties with the support of 178 partner agencies. For more information about Wyoming Food Bank of the Rockies and its programs and partners, please visit wyomingfoodbank.org or call 265-2172.)