Teri Laney: The Steady Heart Behind Quincy’s Food Bank
Faith, family, and 300 families a week — the quiet leadership behind our community food bank.
For 13 years, she’s quietly helped feed our community
If you’ve ever picked up food at the Quincy Community Food Bank, volunteered on a Tuesday, or donated during one of their fundraisers, you’ve seen Teri Laney.
You may not have noticed her at first.
That’s kind of the point.
Teri is not someone who seeks the spotlight. She’s soft-spoken, thoughtful, and far more comfortable talking about the food bank than about herself. But after sitting down with her recently, it became clear that the food bank we see today exists in large part because of her steady leadership.
Teri has been director of the Quincy Community Food Bank for 13 years. She moved to Quincy after spending the early part of her childhood in Spokane, and at this point, she’s lived here more than half her life.
“I guess you could call me either one,” she said when I asked whether she’s a transplant or local.
Like many of us, she didn’t grow up planning to lead a nonprofit.
In fact, her path to the food bank was simple. She had left her job in Moses Lake to spend more time with her son during his last year of high school. She found herself needing something to do outside the house.
“That simple,” she said.
She applied for a waitress job. It didn’t work out. She asked Pastor Jess, who was president of the food bank at the time, if there was anything available there.
There was.
And she’s been there ever since.
The director role is technically part-time. She sets up Mondays for Tuesday distribution and Thursdays for Friday. Tuesdays are especially busy because the food bank is open twice that day.
But the impact is anything but part-time.
On a typical Tuesday alone, the Quincy Community Food Bank serves around 300 families. Families can come twice per week. Most food banks don’t operate at that frequency.
Teri doesn’t talk about that like it’s impressive. She talks about it like it’s what needs to be done.
When I asked what might surprise people about her job, she didn’t mention long days or stress or juggling logistics. She talked about provision.
“As the economy gets difficult and the need rises, God still provides well,” she said. “I think they still get a good amount of food twice a week.”
Behind the scenes, there’s paperwork, coordination, communication with donors and suppliers, and preparing food for distribution. But she’s quick to point out that volunteers carry much of the physical load.
“The volunteer base does a lot of the labor,” she said.
That includes unloading pallets by hand, stocking shelves, and helping clients through the line. With the expansion project underway and plans for a larger forklift-access freezer in the new 3,200-square-foot building, some of that strain should ease in the future.
Teri credits the community more than herself.
When I asked what makes Quincy unique, she didn’t hesitate.
“Their support,” she said. “They don’t necessarily even see what I do or know exactly how it works, but they still trust that their donations are being used wisely.”
That trust is something she doesn’t take lightly.
The families served are diverse. Many are Hispanic families, some sending money back home to relatives in Mexico. That dynamic, she says, makes Quincy a little different from other places.
But when asked what community means to her, her answer was simple.
“Being selfless and seeing outside of our own needs to the needs of others.”
That mindset shows up in how she leads.
Outside the food bank, Teri’s world centers around her husband Ron, her son and daughter-in-law, and two “pretty little” granddaughters. Spending time with her grandbabies is at the top of her list. Ron, she mentioned with a small smile, is in charge of buying ice cream every weekend — chocolate mocha something is the current favorite.
Her mornings start quietly.
“My quiet time in the morning with the Lord,” she said when I asked how she recharges.
If you’re looking for a polished leadership brand or a long résumé, that’s not what you’ll get from Teri. When I asked what she hopes people would take away about her, she didn’t talk about accomplishments.
“I’m not perfect,” she said. “But I have faith that God will take care of everything.”
That may be the most accurate description of her leadership style.
She doesn’t push herself forward. She doesn’t oversell what she does. She shows up. She trusts. She keeps things running. And she lets the work speak for itself.
In a small town like Quincy, sometimes the most important roles are filled by the quietest people.
For the last 13 years, while hundreds of families each week have relied on the Quincy Community Food Bank, Teri Laney has been there — steady, faithful, and quietly committed to taking care of our neighbors.
And if you’ve never had the chance to talk with her, now you know a little more about the person behind the doors.