Who they are: The Vashon-Maury Community Food Bank, a nonprofit organization located at Sunrise Ridge.

What they do: Provide food for those in need and a delivery program for homebound Islanders.

Whom to call: The food bank office is at 463-6332. The food bank is open 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 5 to 7 p.m. Wednesdays. See vashonfoodbank.org.

Last winter, lines at the food bank were the longest ever seen in the agency’s history. As temperatures grow cold and the unemployment rate remains high, the lines are lengthening again. The last week in October, the food bank served 210 Island households. The number of people in need of assistance grows throughout the month, but typically the food bank has been serving 150 to 180 families each week, according to Executive Director Yvonne Pitrof.

In an effort to offer a steady stream of nutritious, fresh food, the food bank planted a garden last spring, and an outflow of community support has made its harvest a bountiful one. Pitrof and volunteers plan to keep it going year-round, supplying fresh food when other sources are not able to provide any.

The food bank also put in a garden on Maury Island as a small pilot project, made possible through a generous Islander and a United Way grant. This garden has provided additional produce.

But gardens can provide only so much, and the shelves at the food bank are growing bare.

“We’re running really thin,” Pitrof said, noting that she just placed an emergency order of food so they would have plenty of staples this week.

To shore up its stores, the food bank will hold a food drive Nov. 14 at Thriftway, and True Value will hold one on Nov. 21.

“We’re encouraging anyone and everyone to donate canned soup, tuna, peanut butter, canned fruit and veggies — and really anything,” Pitrof said.

Donations typically dry up at the end of December, meaning the food bank needs to stock up now to carry it through the lean months of January, February and March.

Those who seek assistance at the food bank reflect a cross section of the Island, according to Pitrof. Many are employed, sometimes holding down multiple part-time jobs; some are in between jobs; others are homeless — living in cars or tents or floating among friends’ couches. Some are facing foreclosure, while others have confronted the financial drain of major medical expenses. Many have been laid off or had their hours or wages cut. In the past year, the food bank has served many Islanders who had never been to a food bank before.

Community support is vital to the food bank in carrying out its mission, Pitrof said. Food donations provide variety the food bank might not be able to offer otherwise. Monetary donations help the food bank meet its overhead, and with the food bank’s purchasing power, Pitrof can take a dollar and secure three times its value in food. Community volunteers are important, too, whether it be to help in the garden, to help with distribution or for a special project.

“We always welcome volunteers,” Pitrof said. “There are times of the year we can use all the bodies we can get.”