CCS Northern Utah Food Bank has new leadership

Friday, Feb. 05, 2016

OGDEN — Randy Chappell is now the director of Catholic Community Services Northern Utah; he previously was the operations manager of CCS Refugee Resettlement Immigration.

Chappell started his career at Catholic Community Services three years ago in Refugee Resettlement as a medical interpreter supervisor. A year later he became the refugee youth coordinator, and the following year he moved into Refugee Resettlement Immigration.

“It has been wonderful as the director of the northern Utah food bank to see the different programs that we run,” Chappell said. “The food pantry helps about 2,300 households a month receive supplemental food. In the Bridging the Gap program, the food pantry assists about 400 to 500 kids every Friday from four different schools by providing them with about five weekend meals.” 

One of the things Chappell found hard to see and hear in his new position came during the Christmas break; he recalled that as a student he and his classmates were excited to be out of school, but the children in the Bridge the Gap program are not. 

“They didn’t know where their meals were going to come from,” he said. “What we do in northern Utah is tremendous and it’s a great opportunity for us to be able to provide extra food for the kids and their families in the community.” 

Chappell also works with the Northern Utah Saint Martha’s Baby Layette Project to provide about 60 to 70 mothers a month with a layette for their babies being born into poverty. 

“The layettes have items in them such as a blanket or quilt, new clothing, shampoo, soap and all the necessities that are needed for being a new parent,” Chappell said. 

The Northern Utah Food Bank also offers case management the clients who come for food on a regular basis. 

“One of our goals is to try to help the clients become self-sufficient; we don’t want them to rely on the food pantry every month for food,” Chappell said. “We want them to get on their feet and find a job if they need to, so we help them seek the different resources in the community to become self-sufficient.”

Chappell is getting used to his new position and “loves it,” he said. “The staff is wonderful; there are 11 of us including me, and they do tremendous work. To help 2,300 households a month through the pantry plus the school kids on Friday is a lot of work; I also consider the volunteers part of our staff and they are a tremendous help;  the many volunteers and the community are wonderful.” 

CCS is a good fit for Chappell, he said. He coached youth basketball for 12 years and is the type of person who likes to help people in need; “having that background is a wonderful thing, it’s a blessing,” he said. “I’m a loving and compassionate person; I get it from my mother.”

“CCS is lucky to have Randy on board because there is so much need in northern Utah,” said Danielle Stamos, CCS public relations and marketing director. “He has a lot of work with the clients and students,  but we are excited to see how he will continue to serve the community.”

Marcie Valdez, the previous director, “did a wonderful job with the programs, so I will continue to build on the momentum of the programs in the Ogden community,” Chappell said.