LiftUp asks Garfield County for support, outlines plan as food demand rises and donations fall

LiftUp told Garfield County commissioners that demand for charitable food assistance has risen while donations and one-time COVID-era funding have fallen, and staff asked the board to consider financial support and a path to operational sustainability.

During a detailed presentation, LiftUp leaders and partners described the organization’s programs — six brick-and-mortar pantries, a mobile pantry, extended-table meal service, emergency 72-hour bags and a farm-to-food pantry that purchases local produce. LiftUp said the number of household "guests" served annually (counting household members) had climbed and that donations have not kept pace, leaving strain on operations and on a recently acquired central warehouse in Glenwood Springs.

Elise Hoggle, LiftUp director of operations (serving in an interim executive role), said the group recently acquired a larger warehouse to centralize distribution and regionalize purchasing but that mortgage costs and upfront program payments (for the farm-to-food program) have increased financial stress. "If we don't meet our budget, that will be taken off — we could close Parachute and thrift store locations," Hoggle said. Board and staff discussion clarified that the warehouse purchase and program expansion created a near-term capital and cash-flow challenge: LiftUp asked the county to consider funding options, including partial mortgage payoff or bridge support, to free more money for food purchases and mobile-pantry operations.

Klaus Kolker and other LiftUp speakers described program adjustments to reduce waste and improve equity: eliminating pre-bagged drive-through distributions after COVID in favor of user-choice pantries, implementing a shared electronic inventory and client-registration system that limits visits to one pantry per week per household, and acquiring a mobile pantry (a trailer) to reach communities. LiftUp also described the farm-to-food program, which pays local farmers up front for produce; presenters said that program now represents roughly half of LiftUp’s food-dollar outlay and about 21% of food by weight (figures cited during the discussion and characterized as program-level estimates).

County staff and commissioners asked for operational detail and clearer numbers. Commissioners noted that federal SNAP and other benefits remain an important safety net (county staff said roughly 4,000–8,200 individuals receive SNAP in an average month in the valley). Commissioners asked LiftUp to submit a written operations plan and a funding request that shows how county funds would be used and what fiscal impact aid would achieve. Chairman Jankowski said the board supports food and housing security but asked that LiftUp present a durable plan that reduces the need to return annually for supplemental funds.

LiftUp provided the board with these approximate financials and program details during the briefing: a remaining mortgage on the Glenwood warehouse of about $1.5 million (part of roughly $2.5 million in outstanding facility/program financing across locations), forward farm-to-food contract costs that represent a substantial portion of annual food outlay, and the mobile pantry program that requires a tow vehicle and operating support. LiftUp leaders said they have instituted stricter inventory controls and weekly visit limits to reduce double-dipping and fraud.

Commissioners directed LiftUp to return with a written operations and financial plan and said the board will consider a funding request at a future meeting once staff and the commissioners can evaluate the details. No formal county appropriation was made at the work session.