A Grateful Tribute & A Call to Action

As we approach the final days of our Feeding Futures Campaign, we are filled with deep gratitude and a renewed sense of purpose. With your help, we are making critical improvements to the Flagstaff Family Food Center warehouse and kitchen, expanding and increasing our ability to better serve those facing food insecurity and hunger.

As of today, we have raised approximately $1.25 million towards our $1.5 million goal – but we still need your support to make this vision a reality.

One of the most inspiring contributions to this campaign has come from our Lead Donors Jim and Carol Dykes, who have donated an incredible $100,000 to support the FFFC’s mission.

Jim and Carol (pictured here with their dog, JoJo), are long-time volunteers at FFFC and you can still see them most months volunteering here. “We invite anyone who’s visiting us from out of town to join us when we help out,” Jim said. “It’s always remarkable for them to see see the impact FFFC has on people like Carol, who retired two years ago as President & CEO of United Way of Northern Arizona, currently serves on our Board of Directors Secretary. Jim, who was the Counsel for W.L. Gore & Associates for 35 years before retiring, is a past President of our Board and was instrumental in the FFFC’s merger with the Northern Arizona Food Bank in 2013.

Their gift to FFFC came out a profound feeling of gratitude for blessings they had in both their lives and careers. One night the couple decided they wanted to “do something big” for one of the causes close to their hearts.

“So the questions became ‘how big?’ and ‘what?’ and it took us about 10 seconds to settle on the amount and the Food Center,” Jim said.

“This was when FFFC was just starting to plan the Feeding Futures campaign,” added Carol. “The timing was great – it just fell into our laps.”

This transformative gift honors the memory of Jim’s late mother, Edith Dykes, whose life was marked by service and compassion. She raised six children and then went to nursing school, ultimately working in a neonatal ICU. Although she lived on the east coast, she kept tabs on FFFC over the years and regularly sent donations from her home in Delaware.

“She was just a remarkable force in my life in setting me on my course in education, professionally, and giving back to the community,” Jim said. In honor of her, FFFC is pleased to announce our remodeled cooking area will be known as “Edith’s Kitchen.”

But their gift is not just about honoring Edith; it’s also about leading the way for others to follow. As Carol so thoughtfully put it, “We hope this donation will serve as a message to others – if you can, give what you can. Together, we can make a difference.”

The Dykes’ contribution also sets a powerful example, encouraging other generous individuals to join the cause and help us close the gap to meet our $1.5 million goal.

We are incredibly grateful to Jim and Carol for their leadership, not only through this donation but also their years of volunteer and leadership as members of our Board. As we near the campaign’s end on April 15th, we ask you to consider joining them in making a lasting impact on the lives of so many in our community.

The needs are great, but with your help, we can meet them. Your donation, large or small, will help support our mission of Neighbors Feeding Neighbors, Every Day.

The Feeding Futures Campaign is helping transform how we meet our mission of Neighbors Feeding Neighbors Every Day. Your donation will help us complete improvements to our warehouse and expand our kitchen, so that we can provide more hot meals, more sack lunches, and more food boxes to those experiencing food insecurity in northern Arizona.