JACKIE MCATEE, Meals on Wheels Center director in Battle Ground, assists low-income seniors with applications for the Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program.
Low-income senior citizens will once again be able to enjoy fresh fruits and vegetables from local farms this summer using free vouchers from the Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program (SFMNP).
Applications are available through May 23 at all Meals on Wheels sites throughout Clark County, and online at www.MealsOnWheelsPeople.org/SFMNP.
In order to be eligible for the program, seniors must be 60 years old or older, a resident of Washington state and have a household income below 185% of the Federal Poverty Level. This income would be $21,978 annual or $1,832 monthly for one person, or $29,637 annual or $2,470 monthly for two people. For larger households, add $642 for each person. More than one person in a household can qualify for a voucher.
The Meals on Wheels site at the Battle Ground Community Center, located at 912 E. Main St., in Battle Ground, is one of the locations in Clark County where seniors can apply for an SFMNP voucher, according to Jackie McAtee, the Battle Ground Center manager.
McAtee tries to be sure her clients at the Battle Ground Meals on Wheels center have access to the program.
“We get a lot of applicants,” McAtee said. “I really try to get people involved and let them know what’s going to happen.”
Flyers are available at the sign-in table for lunch, and she encourages diners to share the information with their friends and neighbors. Seniors do not need to be a customer of Meals on Wheels to apply for the voucher, but they do need to meet eligibility requirements.
Some seniors who qualify for the program don’t apply, said McAtee. Their reasons vary. Some feel they can’t consume $4 worth of produce, the amount of each voucher, before it spoils. Some feel that others need it more. Some seniors do not have transportation in order to access a farmers market or farm stand.
McAtee sees seniors enjoying a healthier and more varied diet thanks to the SFMNP vouchers. One Battle Ground client of Meals on Wheels only comes in for meals once a week when his brother can bring him, because he can’t afford to drive his car. McAtee sends him home with frozen meals for the rest of the week. He loves the vouchers because they allow him to enjoy fresh fruits and vegetables he can’t usually afford to purchase.
The vouchers are accepted statewide. A recipient of vouchers last year used them to purchase a case of apples in Yakima, said McAtee. Vouchers are distributed in a packet that also contains recipe ideas, instructions to use the vouchers, and a list of farms and produce stands that will accept them.
“It is a wonderful thing and they should really try to take advantage of it,” McAtee said, of seniors who qualify for the vouchers.
The application period for vouchers opened May 1 and the deadline to apply is May 23. Recipients will be selected using a lottery system, and those who receive a voucher will be notified the week of June 6. Those who do not receive a voucher will be placed on the waiting list.
If an applicant is not able to be at the pick-up location for any reason, they may designate a proxy to pick up their voucher for them. McAtee will act as proxy for residents of the Battle Ground Meals on Wheels service area, and the vouchers can be picked up at a later lunch or delivered along with meals.
According to Lexie Bartunek, who as program coordinator for the Area Agency on Aging and Disabilities oversees the SFMNP in southwest Washington, many of those on the waiting list are ultimately able to receive a voucher. More than 1,100 vouchers will be distributed in Clark County this year. Residents of other southwest Washington counties can call (360) 694-8144 for information about the voucher program in their location.
“It’s a great program,” said Bartunek. “Everybody is really excited when they are able to get vouchers.”
The vouchers are in the form of 10 $4 certificates, for a value of $40. Seniors can take the certificates to a participating farmers market or farm produce stand and spend them like cash, with one difference – vendors cannot issue change for the vouchers when the purchase is less than $4. Bartunek suggests taking a few dollars in cash along, so shoppers can use the full value of the voucher and pay for any extra cost.
The closest participating market to Battle Ground would be Bi-Zi Farms, said McAtee. Bi-Zi Farms is a farm market open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. through the growing season.
Bi-Zi Farms in Vancouver frequently redeems vouchers throughout the harvest season, which stretches through the end of October, according to owner Peggy Zimmerman. Staff are familiar with the voucher rules and can help shoppers select products which qualify.
One frequent misunderstanding is that the vouchers can only be used for fresh foods, so no jams, dried fruit, canned foods, sauces, etc., which is not the case. In addition to fruits and vegetables, the vouchers can be used to purchase local honey.
Zimmerman sees many customers coming from the north part of the county who can’t, or don’t want to, drive all the way into Vancouver.
“We’re really pleased we are able to help them,” she said.
Bi-Zi Farms is located at 9504 NE 119th St., Vancouver.
The SFMNP provides fresh fruits and vegetables for lower-income seniors with a goal of improving their health and nutritional status. Along the way, it supports local farmers. Many area farmers markets will have vendors who accept the vouchers.
