Menominee Nation elder food box program resumes May 28 in Keshena

The Menominee Nation’s elder food box program will resume with a pickup at 1 p.m. Thursday, May 28, at the Menominee Tribal Food Distribution Center on N737 Headstart Road in Keshena, giving families a clear date and place for a service many elders depend on.

For households watching every dollar, the return matters. Food prices and transportation costs can hit older adults hard in Menominee County, especially for elders who live far from town, no longer drive, or rely on family members to make the trip. The food box program is meant to reduce that pressure by bringing nutrition closer to home and by creating a predictable distribution point in the heart of the reservation.

The Wisconsin Tribal Elder Community Food Box Program is funded at $1.5 million a year in the 2025-2027 state budget. State budget materials say the program previously received $1.8 million through 2022 with Farm Bill money, then continued with $1.5 million annually under 2023 Wisconsin Act 19. The Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection says the money supports nonprofit food assistance organizations that purchase and distribute food to Tribal elders and also support Tribal food producers and processors.

The broader goal is not just calories on a shelf. The program is designed to expand access to nutritious, culturally meaningful foods for Tribal members over 55, and Great Lakes Intertribal Food Coalition says it reaches 16 Tribal distribution sites. The Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin has been part of that network, tying the local pickup in Keshena to a larger food sovereignty effort across Wisconsin Indian Country.

At the Menominee Tribal Food Distribution Center, the food access system already runs on a regular schedule. The tribe lists the center as open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:20 p.m., closed from noon to 1 p.m., and available once per month for all Menominee County residents. That existing structure makes the May 28 elder distribution part of a standing community lifeline rather than a one-time event.

The return also comes after a difficult stretch for the program. PBS reported in 2025 that the loss of federal funding was putting serious strain on the Tribal Elder Food Box effort, underscoring how fragile food support can be when state and federal priorities shift. The Menominee announcement signals continuity, with the tribal food distribution operation anchored by staff including Marla Bellanger, the Food Distribution Program Manager, and Gary Besaw, the Agriculture & Food Systems and Food Distribution Director.

For elders who carry family knowledge, language, and tribal memory, the restart is more than a delivery date. It is another sign that Menominee County’s food safety net is still being held together, distribution by distribution, on the Menominee Indian Reservation.