Northwest Harvest, a Seattle-based non-profit organization, was founded in 1967 by The Ecumenical Metropolitan Ministry (EMM), an interfaith organization committed to identifying and addressing the primary problems of the poor and disadvantaged. The organization created Neighbors in Need and opened 34 food banks in what was initially conceived of as a short-term solution to an employment crisis in Seattle. As widespread need for food assistance continued, the organization grew and became a separate, secular entity named Northwest Second Harvest. Today, Northwest Harvest secures approximately 32 million pounds of food each year for distribution through a network of 375 partner food banks, meal programs, and high-need schools.

Here, Northwest Harvest volunteer Henry Seaman, left, distributes food with an employee at the Northwest Harvest food bank on Cherry Street in downtown Seattle.

Caption information source: Caption information source: https://www.northwestharvest.org/history
Caption information source: "NW Harvest Helps to Soften Hunger Pangs" by Scott Sunde, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, December 18, 1996, p. A1.