I walked to the food bank today. It's in the back of the church. I took 2 bags home...pot holders, oven mitt, nice greeting cards and food... Cupcakes too.

Nice!

If you don't know where a food bank is located, call 211.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/22/2023 12:17AM by HonnyBrown.

I got helluva good cheese, fresh potato, fresh carrots, 2 package frozen veggies, 2 cans tuna, 2 boxes angel hair, 32 glass jar of spaghetti sauce, 2 bananas, tomato put,2 cans kidney beans,, Barilla rotini and Barilla bowtie pasta.

Thanks for the breakdown! You got food that you can make meals with.

I visited the food bank today. I got fresh produce, fresh (chicken) and frozen (chicken and sausage) meat, whole wheat pasta, canned veggies and soups, guacamole, cereal, half a bundt cake, a lot of bread, and, of course, rice and beans.

@HonnyBrown wrote:

That sounds like the Federal program. They require that information.

@KathyG wrote:

The food bank I donate (cash) to on a regular basis requires an interview and submitting of financial information in order to receive food.

Where I live you can only go to a food bank if you live in that town. They require PHYSICAL social security card, ID, wage and pay statements or tax returns and proof of residency for you and everyone in your house (mail, utilities, etc.).

And it's supplied by Second Harvest.

Something's fishy there.

Food hoarders are real. They go from one food bank to another stocking up. This sounds like your town's answer to that problem. Call 211 to see if there are others in your zip code.

211 has no clue. They work from a list that has not been updated in about 15 years. They give locations that just don't exist anymore. Even then, they had nothing in my county. All they can give is defunct phone numbers and addresses. It's a real mess over here!

Oh, wow! That's awful! What are people who need help supposed to do? Assuming it's like that across all the 211 sectors.

Use Google. Search for "food banks near me"

@HonnyBrown wrote:

Oh, wow! That's awful! What are people who need help supposed to do? Assuming it's like that across all the 211 sectors.

I got stuff from a food bank during the pandemic. The Jewish Community Center did a few distribution events, and twice I went and got a box of food. Then a local church started, and they did distributions once a week which we got for about 2 months. The church box was a gallon of milk, a pound of cheese, a pack of hot dogs, a package of chicken, a bag of oranges, a bag of apples, a vegetable, and a bag of rice.
I was not destitute, but we was on furlough and it was nice to get food when the Publix shops were on hiatus.

I volunteered at the food bank yesterday. One of the volunteers is retiring from her day job and moving out of the area. She asked me to take over her portion of the food bank. She runs the federal program.

no good deed goes unpunished

Food banks are for everyone, not just for the destitute. Please continue to use the food banks!

@FrugalCat wrote:

I got stuff from a food bank during the pandemic. The Jewish Community Center did a few distribution events, and twice I went and got a box of food. Then a local church started, and they did distributions once a week which we got for about 2 months. The church box was a gallon of milk, a pound of cheese, a pack of hot dogs, a package of chicken, a bag of oranges, a bag of apples, a vegetable, and a bag of rice.
I was not destitute, but we was on furlough and it was nice to get food when the Publix shops were on hiatus.

Where I live there is a wonderful county-wide organization that calls itself an interfaith outreach. Their main focus is food assistance, but they also provide energy assistance (helping people pay their utility bills), diaper assistance, and weekend meals during the school year for school-age children. They have a food pantry that is open three days a week, and they also partner with at least 12 community food pantries across the county, as well as provide food to other organizations that reach out to them. One of those other organizations is my local library, which has dedicated an entire bookshelf near the exit for food donations that anyone who needs food can take from without having to sign in. I have used it on occasion.

The food pantries in my county are either based in churches or community centers. In my town, the pantry is open one morning weekly, at the municipal building where our town offices are, on the other side of the building with its own entrance. Another pantry in the next town over from me is at the Salvation Army, five days a week. I've gotten groceries there, too. Neither one asks for any financial info other than having people sign in with their name, what town they're in, and the number of people in the household. I believe one is allowed to shop each pantry once a month.

The outreach also participates in a summer meals program for children, which is supported by or somehow associated with the USDA. It provides free, healthy meals for every kid 18 and younger all summer long. My local library gets involved with that, too, along with their summer reading programs.

All the smaller pantries take donations locally, but also get deliveries from the larger outreach organization, which has cultivated good relationships with the major grocery chains in the state, and receives truckloads of food from them. I have gotten some great stuff. The outreach also runs fundraising events. One of their yearly events is held in partnership with the local historic movie theater, which promotes it as a "fill a bag" for every seat in the theater. People making donations to that event can come in and fill one theater seat with a bag of food or sponsor a bag with a $25 donation.

I think this organization is doing a great job in this area. We don't have any public transportation here, other than jitneys in some towns that have very limited service, and the county is large, so the fact that they not only run their own pantry but also deliver to other smaller, local pantries means that people who have no car are still able to get food near where they live.
.

Edited 5 time(s). Last edit at 04/15/2023 03:04PM by shopnyc.

Federal taxes meaning us pay 120 billion a year for SNAP. and conditions some people think why work when I can get stuff for free.


quote=HonnyBrown]
Food banks are for everyone, not just for the destitute. Please continue to use the food banks!

@FrugalCat wrote:

I got stuff from a food bank during the pandemic. The Jewish Community Center did a few distribution events, and twice I went and got a box of food. Then a local church started, and they did distributions once a week which we got for about 2 months. The church box was a gallon of milk, a pound of cheese, a pack of hot dogs, a package of chicken, a bag of oranges, a bag of apples, a vegetable, and a bag of rice.
I was not destitute, but we was on furlough and it was nice to get food when the Publix shops were on hiatus.

[/quote]

@tstewart3 wrote:

Federal taxes meaning us pay 120 billion a year for SNAP. and conditions some people think why work when I can get stuff for free.

Actually, as long as you make under the allowable limit, people who work can receive SNAP, so I don't know what your problem is with that. The income limit is pretty low and there are a lot of people who don't have the skills, mental capacity, or opportunity to get better-paying jobs. Also, I have read that a high percentage of people who utilize food banks are working - and many work more than one job - but they simply are not making enough to live on and usually have exorbitant expenses, such as ridiculously high rents, taking care of a number of dependents, or dealing with medical issues. More and more people are finding they just cannot make ends meet and they must utilize services like food banks and programs like SNAP. Would you rather have them starve?

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/16/2023 06:34PM by shopnyc.

The food pantries in your area sound vast and very well run! Do you know how they get the word out to the community? Are you a volunteer?

@shopnyc wrote:

Where I live there is a wonderful county-wide organization that calls itself an interfaith outreach. Their main focus is food assistance, but they also provide energy assistance (helping people pay their utility bills), diaper assistance, and weekend meals during the school year for school-age children. They have a food pantry that is open three days a week, and they also partner with at least 12 community food pantries across the county, as well as provide food to other organizations that reach out to them. One of those other organizations is my local library, which has dedicated an entire bookshelf near the exit for food donations that anyone who needs food can take from without having to sign in. I have used it on occasion.

The food pantries in my county are either based in churches or community centers. In my town, the pantry is open one morning weekly, at the municipal building where our town offices are, on the other side of the building with its own entrance. Another pantry in the next town over from me is at the Salvation Army, five days a week. I've gotten groceries there, too. Neither one asks for any financial info other than having people sign in with their name, what town they're in, and the number of people in the household. I believe one is allowed to shop each pantry once a month.

The outreach also participates in a summer meals program for children, which is supported by or somehow associated with the USDA. It provides free, healthy meals for every kid 18 and younger all summer long. My local library gets involved with that, too, along with their summer reading programs.

All the smaller pantries take donations locally, but also get deliveries from the larger outreach organization, which has cultivated good relationships with the major grocery chains in the state, and receives truckloads of food from them. I have gotten some great stuff. The outreach also runs fundraising events. One of their yearly events is held in partnership with the local historic movie theater, which promotes it as a "fill a bag" for every seat in the theater. People making donations to that event can come in and fill one theater seat with a bag of food or sponsor a bag with a $25 donation.

I think this organization is doing a great job in this area. We don't have any public transportation here, other than jitneys in some towns that have very limited service, and the county is large, so the fact that they not only run their own pantry but also deliver to other smaller, local pantries means that people who have no car are still able to get food near where they live.
.

My haughty heart has been shattering lately. *sounds of breaking prideful glass hitting the floor and scattering* Reading some of the posts reminds me that it might be a humbling experience when one's resources dwindle and assistance is needed. It was/is for me. When can I go back to work? When can I generate more funds? Gah. *haughty heart sheds a little more pride* How must others feel when all their admirable efforts fail to make them sufficient and able to give instead of needing to receive? How must they feel if they are denigrated for reduced circumstances that they cannot control?

Meanwhile, I found an apt quote recently and will paraphrase Robert Brault: Are we entitled or blessed?

I am not entitled to a life that is free from food pantry and other assistance. I am blessed because others provide the assistance that I need. Surely cheerful givers will be blessed. *there goes a little more pride. shatter!"

Why don't you visit the food bank in your community so you can see how wrong you are.

@tstewart3 wrote:

Federal taxes meaning us pay 120 billion a year for SNAP. and conditions some people think why work when I can get stuff for free.

@HonnyBrown wrote:

The food pantries in your area sound vast and very well run! Do you know how they get the word out to the community?

I have read about what they do in the local papers and on their website. The outreach has has been around since about 1990, I think, and has a very visible presence here. I see references to it in a lot of places, like the movie theater I mentioned, but also the museum, community centers, various businesses, and even the state prison. It's not unusual to walk into a store or gas station around here and see a basket for donations to the organization. They hold several fundraising events each year, in cooperation with different partners.

This is a tourist area, with lots of second homes owned by people who only come for the summer. A lot of the people who live here year-round are struggling. The towns in this county are small, population-wise, so everybody knows everybody (it seems), and people get involved. In addition to food pantries, there are several free clothes closets you can "shop." The one closest to me lets you take two full shopping bags of clothing once a month. I have visited the local free clinic which is open one night a week, and the doctors and nurses there are wonderful (and in the summer, they offer fresh vegetables for anyone to take as they leave from their appointments). There is even a group of people here called the Snow Angels who will come and shovel snow off your property for you, and all you need to do is call them. I have only been here about 2-1/2 years, and since I moved here at the height of Covid when so much was shut down, I am still learning what resources we have here.

That is awesome! I post my food bank activities on social media.

I work so I can pay my own way. If there comes a time I can't work, I hope food banks will be available. Until then, I was raised better than to take from people in real need just because "it's free" but we should know it's not free. Someone worked hard for the money to buy what you think is free.

quote=HonnyBrown]
Why don't you visit the food bank in your community so you can see how wrong you are.

@tstewart3 wrote:

Federal taxes meaning us pay 120 billion a year for SNAP. and conditions some people think why work when I can get stuff for free.

[/quote]

Again, food banks are for everyone; not just those in need. If food banks don't get used, their funding will dry up. If that happens, they won't be there for the poor or anyone else.

@HonnyBrown wrote:

Again, food banks are for everyone; not just those in need. If food banks don't get used, their funding will dry up. If that happens, they won't be there for the poor or anyone else.

Here is the definition of food bank:

A place where stocks of food, typically basic provisions and non-perishable items, are supplied free of charge to people in need.

If food banks don't get used, it means people are not in need which is a good thing for our country. To take anything you didn't work for or isn't offered by whoever actually paid for it, it's stealing.

I'm glad you found misinformation on the internet. Now visit a food bank in your community.

@HonnyBrown wrote:

I'm glad you found misinformation on the internet. Now visit a food bank in your community.

A definition from a dictionary is not misinformation.

Here is another definition from the Cambridge dictionary: A place where food is given to people who do not have enough money to buy it, for example by a charity.

And of course common sense and morality.

Morality is subjective. What is moral for one person can be immoral to someone else, so it is not practical nor accurate to measure or compare anything according to "morality."

@shopnyc wrote:

Morality is subjective. What is moral for one person can be immoral to someone else, so it is not practical nor accurate to measure or compare anything according to "morality."[/quote

Morality is only "subjective" when one tries to rationalize immoral behavior.