A Yellowstone National Park ranger is seen standing near a road wiped out by flooding along the Gardner River the week before, near Gardiner, Mont., June 19, 2022. Park officials said they hope to open most of the park within two weeks after it was shuttered in the wake of the floods. (The Center Square) – Yellowstone National Park is getting $50 million in emergency funds from the National Park Service (NPS) to "kick-start" efforts to fix damage and reopen parts of the park that were devastated by historic flooding last week.

Most members of the Food Tank community will not know who I am or why I am writing an op-ed for the Food Tank blog. I grew up on a farm in Miami County, Ohio (just north of Dayton), worked in a small family-run tomato canning factory for many years, and then left to become an economist. I obtained a PhD from Harvard, specializing in economic history.