Report submitted:

The West Ohio Food Bank, along with all of the other food banks in Ohio, were represented at “Friends of the Foodbanks Day” at the Ohio Statehouse on Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025.

CEO Tommie Harner, COO Wayne Steed, Programs Manager Dena Hedrick, Comm & PR Manager Jason Aldrich, as well as WOFB Board of Directors President Linda Hamilton met with area lawmakers from the Ohio House of Representatives and the Ohio Senate, in order to make the case for the need for help with food Ohioans are experiencing, and why our public-private partnership with the state, food banks, and hunger relief providers, along with Ohio farmers, is a win-win solution in the fight to work to end hunger in our communities.

All of the food banks around Ohio are lobbying for money to be allocated to the Ohio Association of Food Banks, through the state’s 2-year budget, which will soon be up for discussion and a vote, which would then be signed into law by Governor Mike DeWine.

Listen here to West Ohio Food Bank CEO Tommie Harner, as she gives a recap of the day: