We are so excited to introduce you to Danica Sveda — the new executive director of Food Bank of Wyoming!
To help you get to know Danica a little more, we asked her a few questions about her new role and what Wyoming means to her.
Question: What makes Food Bank of Wyoming so special to you and to the larger Wyoming community?
Answer: I love working at Food Bank of Wyoming. It is hard work, but I am surrounded by a team that cares deeply about our mission and serving our community. As a child growing up in Wyoming, my family fell on hard times, and it was our community that helped lift us up. I love being able to do the same for others who are facing challenging circumstances.
Question: What are you most looking forward to as executive director?
Answer: I’m excited to help shape a future that embraces innovation and addresses the complexities of our rural environment. We are just one piece of the support-network puzzle here in Wyoming, and I’m looking forward to strengthening partnerships with like-minded organizations committed to serving others.
Question: How do donations made to Food Bank of Wyoming make a difference for all Wyomingites?
Answer: We are always grateful for donations from caring individuals. Community support truly makes our mission happen. We use donations of time from volunteers, dollars from donors, and food from stores, manufacturers, and local producers to help families in crisis get back on their feet, nourish children so they are prepared to focus at school, and help alleviate the stress of hunger so people can focus on all the other things life entails. Wyomingites take care of one another, and each donation is used to lift others up.
Question: What are some of Food Bank of Wyoming’s biggest needs and challenges as an organization, and how do you hope to address them in your role?
Answer: Wyoming ranks ninth in the nation in food insecurity rates; as the least populous state, that’s extremely discouraging. Recent and upcoming reductions to the support we need to address and reduce food insecurity further fuel this large challenge. Food Bank of Wyoming needs support to help fill these gaps to make sure that families, children, older adults, and individuals at all stages of life aren’t left behind. I am looking forward to creating awareness about the subject of food insecurity and its lasting impacts. Food is the foundation for well-being for everyone. Without access to nourishing food, people struggle to work, grow, learn, and improve their situation. By addressing food insecurity, we can create the space and opportunity for people to thrive.
Question: What is something that makes you proud of your community in Wyoming?
Answer: I am a strong-willed, independent, proud Wyomingite who believes that no one should go hungry. I am incredibly proud of our state, the people who live here, and the good I see all around me through Food Bank of Wyoming. I am lucky to meet the helpers, the givers, and the doers who show up for others — it’s what we do!
Question: Is there a particular story that really sticks out to you from your time at Food Bank of Wyoming?
Answer: We had the honor to join the Wyoming Hunger Initiative in Saratoga to pick up a load of potatoes and hear the First Lady speak to the students at Saratoga High School. It should have been a lovely fall day, but the snow started falling in big, fat flakes. We had to drive through a foot of slush on the way home, but the opportunity to work with kids from town, the Wyoming Hunger Initiative, Cent$ible Nutrition, and Silver Spur Ranch to bag potatoes that would help families across Wyoming made the long, slow drive home worth it.
Question: What would you say is one of the Food Bank’s most impactful programs?
Answer: One of the most powerful programs we used to have was funded at the federal level through the Local Food Purchasing Agreement (LFPA), which was recently terminated. The funds we received through LFPA enabled us to partner with ranchers and farmers across Wyoming to purchase quality food at market prices and feed neighbors home-grown products. It was a pleasure to meet the hard-working Wyoming producers and invest in their efforts while neighbors in need got to benefit from the great food. I hope that we will find ways to continue this work; everyone was able to win.
Question: If you could use one word or phrase to sum up Wyoming, what would it be and why?
Answer: Our old welcome sign read, “Like No Place on Earth”— and it’s true. Wyoming is unlike anywhere else, with its vast landscapes, strong communities, and resilient people. We’re known for our grit and our generosity. Life in Wyoming isn’t for everyone — and for many of us, we wouldn’t have it any other way.
