Manzanita Outreach started out as an organization in 2011 as a mission of the Verde Valley Christian Church. The nonprofit initially focused on large scale, meal-packing events and sent food down to Haiti following the 2010 earthquake. Sometime in 2017, the organization shifted its goals and started trying to help alleviate local hunger. “Our main function is sharing food with the community,” says Ben Burke, the executive director of Manzanita Outreach. We strive “to share the abundance of resources within our communities with dignity and joy.”
Manzanita Outreach collects donations of nine to 10 semitrucks of food from Phoenix-based St. Mary’s Food Bank. Food is distributed via community food sharing events. These include drive-thru events and home delivery. Manzanita also distributes senior and kid-focused foods. The nonprofit also sends MO Packs for Teachers – 100 individually wrapped snacks for kids – to almost all of the schools in the Verde Valley. The group also provides schools with common classroom supplies along with books. Manzanita Outreach maintains a website, mohelp.org, that lists food assistance that is available county-wide. What’s new for the group? The organization is working with the Yavapai County Community Health Services to help provide those in need with supplies beyond just food. This is slated to launch sometime in July. Manzanita frequently collaborates with other organizations to create a better community for all. “If communities don’t figure out a way to work together, we’re all screwed,” says Ben. “An organization that wants to achieve big things, or crucial things and basic needs, that the only way to do it – and certainly the only way to do it sustainably – is to work with other organizations.” Ben started out his career as a residential contractor, before working for a tech startup and then at a nonprofit. After he visited Sedona, he decided to move his family out here. He started volunteering with Manzanita Outreach in 2019, gradually took on more responsibility and became the executive director in early 2022.
Ben realizes there is a stigma associated with food sharing that Manzanita is trying to change. “We have access to a lot of food we’re sharing with our neighbors,” says Ben. “We have big goals and things that we want to accomplish that I think are important in the community. But we’re not a food bank. We’re not a food pantry.” Ben says one of the most rewarding parts of his job is connecting with others. “We’re not judging you. We are all in this together,” he says. “Many of our volunteers have come to us as clients. We all sit at the same table.” – By Teresa K. Traverse
