YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – When Mike Iberis moved into the position of executive director of Second Harvest Food Bank of the Mahoning Valley 25 years ago, the center was located in a small building on the city’s South Side and served 80 agencies.
Today, the operation has expanded to a 60,000-square-foot office and warehouse complex along Salt Springs Road and supplies 160 partners. These organizations in turn provide food to those most in need across Mahoning, Trumbull and Columbiana counties.
“It’s been quite a voyage over the last 25 years,” Iberis said. “We have tremendous support in this community, and that’s done a great deal for us.”
To commemorate Iberis’ 25th year as executive director, Second Harvest has dedicated its building and distribution center in his name.
“It’s a great honor,” Iberis said. “I’ve been very fortunate to have a great board of directors, great co-workers. Just as important is this community. This community is incredible.”
Dominic Mararri, president of Second Harvest’s board of directors, said naming the distribution center for Iberis is a small gesture when it comes to recognizing the immense contribution the executive director has made to the organization and the Mahoning Valley.
“Naming this building after Mike is a small way to honor the enormous difference he has made,” Mararri said. “It stands as a lasting symbol of his commitment to serving others and ensuring that no one in our community goes hungry.”
Mararri added that under Iberis’ leadership, Second Harvest has expanded its reach and mission, providing assistance to the most vulnerable in the community. “Second Harvest has grown stronger, expanded its reach and deepened its impact across our communities,” he said. “His work has not only filled shelves and plates – it has filled hearts with hope.”
Second Harvest today distributes 30,000 pounds of food per day. “When I took over, we were distributing 3 million pounds of food a year,” he said. In 2024, the center distributed 10.6 million pounds, and is likely to surpass 11 million pounds in 2025. “We’ve come a long, long way in 25 years,” he said.
Iberis said that of the 160 pantries served by Second Harvest, 25 are school pantries. “They’re providing food to kids that at the end of the day think they’ll be struggling at home and may not have a meal,” he said.
Moreover, Iberis emphasized that despite fears over food shortages reported in other parts of the country, Second Harvest’s shelves in its warehouse remain stocked. “There’s no shortage here,” he said. “We have more than 1.5 million pounds of food in our warehouse. So we’ve prepared.”
The distribution center has maintained strong relationships with area food retailers, wholesalers and donors, Iberis said. “Our motto is to ‘Keep it Simple,’” he noted. “We’ve got to get food for those who need food to make sure those coming to them have enough. That’s what we do.”
Renee Fuller, Second Harvest assistant director, said the organization operates by a basic three-word creed: anticipate, plan and execute.
Fuller said major food retailers such as Walmart, Meijer, Sam’s Club, Aldi, Sparkle, as well as other area grocers, provide either excess products or perhaps items that haven’t sold as quickly to Second Harvest. In some cases, Second Harvest will purchase specific brand-name products for pennies on the dollar through relationships with Feeding America.
Funding for Second Harvest comes mostly through donations, Fuller said, but the operation also depends on other sources. “We do get a lot of grant opportunities from foundations, so we take big advantage of that,” she said. These grants are not relegated to just food purchases, but at times are targeted for infrastructure and transportation equipment.
“We have not paid for any of our trucks,” she said. “All of that has been paid for through foundation money.”
Last year, Second Harvest added another 10,000 square feet to its building, enough to hold 300 additional pallets of food products, Fuller said. “We now have more space to store,” she said, noting the food bank is receiving more foods with longer shelf life that can be packed and distributed in case of emergencies such as floods, fires, pandemic or disasters such as the devastating train derailment in East Palestine.
Second Harvest also relies on its volunteers to help with its operations, Fuller said. “We have an average of about 100 each month that come in throughout the year,” she said.
None of this would be possible without the support of the people of the Mahoning Valley, Iberis said.
Iberis recalls that in 2012, retail giant Walmart – in partnership with Second Harvest’s parent company, Feeding America – set aside $3 million to support 200 food banks across the country. The program consisted of a contest in which the food bank with the most online votes would receive the top prize of $1 million.
“It went on for a month, and the Second Harvest Food Bank of Mahoning Valley came in first,” Iberis said, beating out major metropolitan centers in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and Boston. “What’s that say about the people in this community?”
Pictured at top: Mike Iberis, executive director of Second Harvest Food Bank of the Mahoning Valley, and Renee Fuller, associate director.