30+ Years of Service

The History of Southeast Alaska Food Bank

The Southeast Alaska Food bank (SEAFB) was established in the early 1990’s, originally operating in conjunction with Gastineau Human Services, and incorporated as an independent organization in 1997. 

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It Started on the Streets of Juneau

The Southeast Alaska Food Bank began with a moment of recognition — community members in Juneau seeing their neighbors searching for food in dumpsters and deciding that wasn't acceptable.


That founding image has never left the organization. It shaped the philosophy SEAFB has carried for over 30 years: food is something every person in this community deserves access to, without having to prove a need or clear unnecessary barriers to receive it.

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The Founding (Early 1990s)

SEAFB was established in the early 1990s, originally operating in conjunction with Gastineau Human Services. What began as a shared effort to get food to people who needed it grew steadily as the scale of the need became clearer — and as more community organizations looked to SEAFB as a source of supply.

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Independent Incorporation (1997)

In 1997, SEAFB incorporated as an independent nonprofit organization. That step gave the food bank its own governance, its own board, and the ability to build direct relationships with donors, grocers, and partner agencies across the region.

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A Permanent Home on Crazy Horse Drive (2001)

SEAFB has operated at 10020 Crazy Horse Drive since 2001. In that first year at the new location, the food bank processed roughly 50,000 pounds of food annually — a fraction of what would move through the building in the years ahead.

Black-and-white fruit and drink icon: apple, carton, bottle, and watermelon slice

Fifteen Years of Growth

Over the following fifteen years, the volume of food SEAFB received and distributed climbed from about 50,000 pounds annually to roughly 300,000 pounds. The growth reflected two things at once: an expanding network of member agencies relying on SEAFB for supply, and a sustained, deepening need across Southeast Alaska.

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Expanding the Building (2015-2016)

By the mid-2010s, the original facility could no longer keep pace with the volume moving through it. A major addition to the building was constructed in 2015–2016, adding the storage and cold-holding capacity required to receive, sort, and safely distribute food at the new scale.

Black-and-white fruit and drink icons: apple, juice box, bottle, and watermelon slice

Growth of the Member Agency Network

As SEAFB's capacity grew, so did its reach. A formal member agency structure allowed the food bank to distribute not only directly to individuals but through partner organizations across the region. That network now includes more than 30 nonprofit, faith-based, and Tribal organizations operating in Juneau, Kake, Hoonah, Pelican, Gustavus, Petersburg, Angoon, and Haines — transforming SEAFB from a single Juneau pantry into the region's primary food distribution infrastructure.

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The COVID-19 Demand Surge

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, SEAFB's weekly public pantry served roughly 60 to 90 individuals per distribution. Pandemic-era need more than doubled that number within the first year, and attendance has held at 200-400 neighbors per week ever since. The Thursday pantry has remained open to everyone throughout — no identification, no proof of need, no appointment.

Black-and-white outline of an apple, milk carton, bottle, and sliced watermelon

TEFAP Certification & Launch (2025)

In January 2025, SEAFB launched The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP), becoming a certified distributor of USDA-sourced, 100% American-grown food commodities. TEFAP provides free monthly food boxes to qualifying households, supplementing the public pantry and significantly expanding the volume and variety of food SEAFB can offer Southeast Alaska families.

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From One Juneau Pantry to Eight Communities

The organization began as a Juneau-focused effort, but food insecurity across Southeast Alaska made a broader response both necessary and possible. Today, SEAFB's member agency network spans communities well beyond Juneau. Kake. Hoonah. Pelican. Gustavus. Petersburg. Angoon. Haines. Each of those communities has a local organization relying on SEAFB's food supply to serve neighbors who have no other food bank to turn to. For most of these communities, SEAFB is not a supplemental resource — it is the only one.

From One Juneau Pantry to Eight Communities Across the Region

The organization began as a Juneau-focused effort, but food insecurity across Southeast Alaska made a broader response both necessary and possible.


Today, SEAFB's member agency network spans communities well beyond Juneau. Kake. Hoonah. Pelican. Gustavus. Petersburg. Angoon. Haines. Each of those communities has a local organization relying on SEAFB's food supply to serve neighbors who have no other food bank to turn to. For most of these communities, SEAFB is not a supplemental resource — it is the only one.