Ship of Fools: AS: Ship Social Action: Support local foodbanks July 1st-7th

Thread: AS: Ship Social Action: Support local foodbanks July 1st-7th Board: Limbo / Ship of Fools.

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Posted by Paul W. (# 1450) on :

The first action proposed as a result of the Social Action and Shipmeets thread is to donate to a local foodbank/soup kitchen during the week of 1st-7th July.

This thread is here to discuss this. Maybe you know of local organisations that run foodbanks, and you can post their contact info. Maybe you want to discuss getting together with others from your city and volunteering at a foodbank for a few hours that week. Maybe you just want to add your name to show that you'll be supporting the idea.

Paul W

[ 05. October 2007, 22:40: Message edited by: Campbellite ]

Posted by sabine (# 3861) on :

I will be donating during the week of July 1-7.

I'm also going to see what the local food banks, food pantries, and soup kitchens need in terms of volunteers. It might be possible at some future time to invite some Shipmates from the region where I live to come and devote half a day to the food bank and then have social time for ourselves.

sabine

Posted by Meg the Red (# 11838) on :

Count me in - and, as per Olivia G's suggestion on the Social Action thread, I'll make a monetary contribution to the food bank. No chance of a service shipmeet here, unfortunately, but I'll check out volunteer opportunities.

Posted by sabine (# 3861) on :

Those of you who are going to give non-monetary donations, keep in mind that many food banks also distribute diapers, soap, and other baby or personal hygeine items.

sabine

Posted by daisydaisy (# 12167) on :

Count me in on this. At lunchtime I visited Sainsburys and noticed they had a foodbank tolley by the exit. It reminded me that at the vets where I take my moggies there is also one - for animal food. I think I'll stick to the human one this time though.

Posted by OliviaG (# 9881) on :

I have e-mailed the Greater Vancouver Food Bank to ask if there are any benefit events in Vancouver or short-term volunteer opportunities during that week. Cheers, OliviaG

Posted by Lady A (# 3126) on :

I hope also to be a part of this. Our church started a homeless bagged lunch idea. One of our members walked by a homeless man during his lunch one day, and just handed him his lunch. The next day, he brought two and handed both of those out. Pretty soon he was walking and putting out lunches in the less than savory places in the city. If the people were asleep, or not responding, he'd just leave the lunch there. I think we're up to about 500 lunches a day now. So, I will see if I can help out that week to prepare some.

Are we also to check in when done and report on what we did?

Posted by Auntie Doris (# 9433) on :

The church I go to in St Albans has a project called Feed. If anyone wants any information please PM me.

Auntie Doris x

Posted by Jenn R (# 5239) on :

I know of a larder in farnborough, hampshire if anyone wants to donate. I will be!

Posted by Doublethink (# 1984) on :

I've found my local food bank, I will ring them tomorrow. I we meant to be saying we're with SoF, or just going forth to love and serve the Lord ?

Posted by rugasaw (# 7315) on :

quote:
Originally posted by Lady A:
Are we also to check in when done and report on what we did?

Sure I for one would like to hear any interesting stories that come out of this.

quote:
Originally posted by Doublethink:
Are we meant to be saying we're with SoF, or just going forth to love and serve the Lord?

Good question. On one hand I really hate self promotion. On the other hand you could be introducing some good people to the ship. I think that I will just drop off the food and if asked I will say it is from the SoF on-line community.

[ 21. June 2007, 18:46: Message edited by: rugasaw ]

Posted by Doublethink (# 1984) on :

Sounds like a plan [Big Grin]

Posted by Campbellite (# 1202) on :

Hmm... I wonder if we could work up a "Mystery Worshipper" type card to include with the box of canned goods, etc.

"From your friends at Ship-of-Fools.com"

Give it some thought.

Posted by Curiosity killed ... (# 11770) on :

I have volunteered at The Manna Centre near London Bridge in the past - we donate as a church at Harvest Festival too.

The latest donation list is here and they are saying that stocks run short around this time of year, so good thinking Batman (whoever it was).

Posted by Matrix (# 3452) on :

If people are struggling to find a place to give / serve then a call to the local Salvation Army ought to yield the information you'll need.

We may well be in France that week, so will get creative in finding a way to be involved.

M

Posted by Pigwidgeon (# 10192) on :

My parish collects on the third Sunday of every month (and donates the food to a food bank at another Episcopal church) -- but I'll hand in my donation on the 1st of July.

Posted by Kelly Alves (# 2522) on :

Second Harvest has a lot of ties with churches in my area-- if the bank itself is hard to get to, a local church may have a drop box.

Posted by Janine (# 3337) on :

Does my own church's food bank count?

We keep a pantry stocked with a long list of staple items, foods and hygiene stuff, "hurricane food" as well. Members would be welcome to the stuff, if they needed it, but the focus is on people in the community who call for help.

That's upstairs among the classrooms by the kitchen.

Downstairs in the auditorium, we have a big box where we put similar stuff, meant for a children's home up in Arkansas. A big van comes around to pick it up quarterly.

Shall the FG and I stock up these two aspects of our church's food bank and return here to report?

Posted by basso (# 4228) on :

quote:
Originally posted by Campbellite:
Hmm... I wonder if we could work up a "Mystery Worshipper" type card to include with the box of canned goods, etc.

Masked man carrying a couple of grocery bags? I like the idea!

Posted by rugasaw (# 7315) on :

quote:
Originally posted by Janine:
Does my own church's food bank count?

I don't see why not.

Posted by Grits (# 4169) on :

You would not believe the amount of groceries our little church hands out on a weekly basis. It's not unusual to give out 6 bags a day. We're on a main road, and word gets around, you know? We give most everyone two bags, with canned goods and other staples, toiletries if we have them. The homeless or transients want stuff that doesn't have to be prepared, so we try to keep "pop-top" type food available for them. One of our regulars recently acquired some means of heating AND a hosepipe, so the last time he asked for something he could actually try and "cook".

Posted by Amazing Grace (# 95) on :

quote:
Originally posted by sabine:
Those of you who are going to give non-monetary donations, keep in mind that many food banks also distribute diapers, soap, and other baby or personal hygeine items.

And people who run food pantries or shelters or soup kitchens would frequently love to have them to give out. That and clean socks.

Those little travel sizes (like you get in a hotel) are good for transient populations. Bigger containers are good for shelters - women's shelters especially appreciate shampoo and baby items. (We have an ongoing "blankies and jammies" project with ours.)

Charlotte

Posted by Janine (# 3337) on :

quote:
Originally posted by rugasaw:

quote:
Originally posted by Janine:
Does my own church's food bank count?
I don't see why not.

Well, I wondered, because I would be doing it anyway. So I feel like I'm getting all the warm fuzzy let's-all-do-this feelings fraudulently. [Razz]

Posted by jedijudy (# 333) on :

We have a soup kitchen not too far from my church which we contribute to frequently. Our church is also doing a Christmas in July event through Share. I think I can do both in the name of SoF! How do we make arrangements for these cool cards which my friend Campbellite thought up?

Posted by sabine (# 3861) on :

quote:
Originally posted by Campbellite:
Hmm... I wonder if we could work up a "Mystery Worshipper" type card to include with the box of canned goods, etc.

"From your friends at Ship-of-Fools.com"

If we all agree on the wording, we can print them ourselves and hand them out.

sabine

Posted by Campbellite (# 1202) on :

First draft:

quote:
Ship of Fools: the Magazine of Christian Unrest
supports local foodbanks
July 1 - 7, 2007

From your friends at www.ship-of-fools.com

Copy and paste in a word processing program. Center. Print on blank business cards.

Comments?

Posted by Doublethink (# 1984) on :

Could we get the Captain's permission to use the Sof logo on them ?

Posted by Vikki Pollard (# 5548) on :

quote:
Originally posted by Campbellite:
Hmm... I wonder if we could work up a "Mystery Worshipper" type card to include with the box of canned goods, etc.

"From your friends at Ship-of-Fools.com"

Give it some thought.

Nice idea.

I don't know of any places near me and the soup kitchen closed I think... I'll do a little local research.

Posted by rugasaw (# 7315) on :

If there are no foodbanks, salvation army, etc. near, you can always go with Lady A's thought. Hand a bag lunch to a homeless person. Just make sure you take a friend with you(safety and all).

Posted by Paul W. (# 1450) on :

I like the card idea, it would be nice to put something in, even though we're not doing it for the purposes of advertising.

There's a list of loads of foodbanks in Toronto (where I am at the moment) at 211Toronto.ca. I wonder if there are similar things for other cities?

Paul W

Posted by Banner Lady (# 10505) on :

OK, I'm in! My own church runs a casserole bank, and even though I'm not much of a cook, I will happily donate a crate of disposable containers next week for those who regularly fill the freezer at church. I probably would not have even thought about it without this thread. Will that do?

Posted by Ferijen (# 4719) on :

There's a food bank in Southampton (UK) - details at Scratch. I plan to give them a ring and see what they need most and then go on a shop. If any other local Southampton people want to join me/give me something towards it, then i'm happy to do that.

Posted by Malin (# 11769) on :

You've inspired me. I've found a local homeless shelter and their list of wanted tins. I'll get some stuff together and drop it off next week.

Am happy to include a card if that's the general idea.

Thanks for provoking some action [Big Grin]

Posted by Janine (# 3337) on :

*sigh*

If I want to include a card I will have to slip it in somehow where it won't be noticed.

If the pewmates find out I am

a) telling people anyone but the pewmates had something to do with that food there being given out by the pewmates, and

b) telling people to go look at a website that has Foul Language on it --

Well, the Ship will hit the fan.

Tell ya what...

I will of course be adding to the food pantry stuff and the orphans' box, since that needs to be done anyway --

But I will look for another context for the Ship-o-Fools card.

There's the battered women's shelter, I bring them food sometimes. I could do that.

Posted by Paul W. (# 1450) on :

Yeah, don't worry about the card thing if it's just going to cause problems.

It seems to be more difficult than I'd expected to find foodbanks that want volunteers at fairly short notice for just a couple of days. I might have to just give them a donation if I can't find anywhere.

Anyone else thinking about doing something for this?

Paul W

Posted by Penny Lane (# 3086) on :

My church has a monthly food drive for a local pantry on the 3rd Sunday. We cook dinner at the homeless men's shelter monthly on the 4th Sunday. I could easily support either of these efforts in advance with either food or funds during the appointed week.

Posted by jedijudy (# 333) on :

[tangent]

quote:
Originally posted by Janine:

Well, the Ship will hit the fan.

Is that a new strapline? [Angel]

[/tangent]

I'm going to make up some kind of card to add to my donations to Share and the soup kitchen. This is such a great (and fun!) idea!

Posted by Nats (# 2211) on :

Our Church collects all the time for The Swindon Food Bank I will pop some extra in tomorrow if I remember - my 3 year old normally reminds me just before we leave home! No card though - no time sorry.

Posted by Vikki Pollard (# 5548) on :

I've not heard of a direct appeal for food for the flood victims but there is bound to be somewhere to give something to the good people of Sheffield...

Posted by Curiosity killed ... (# 11770) on :

There is a list of food banks in the UK > here and ways to donate to their work.

Posted by JoannaP (# 4493) on :

quote:
Originally posted by Curiosity killed ...:
There is a list of food banks in the UK > here and ways to donate to their work.

Many thanks Curiosity killed... [Overused]

I was finding the thought of doing the necessary research a tad daunting, but I can easily manage making an online donation to my local food-bank.

Posted by Landlubber (# 11055) on :

Curiosity killed ... - perfect solution, many thanks.

Posted by Jengie Jon (# 273) on :

On the Sheffield Forum this post tells people how to contact the Humanitarian Assistance Centre set up by the Council.

Spent some time seeing if I could find any other appeals on the Web but none so far. If people seriously want to give, I suggest people keep an ear to their denominational network and see what the requests are.

Jengie

Posted by Grits (# 4169) on :

I think we've picked a good project for this time of year. Our local paper ran an article yesterday which mentioned that Second Harvest Food Bank (a big operation around here) is always low on donations during the summer months.

My bag is only about 1/4 filled, so I'm off to the grocery tomorrow.

Posted by daisydaisy (# 12167) on :

quote:
Originally posted by Curiosity killed ...:
There is a list of food banks in the UK > here and ways to donate to their work.

Thank you Curiosity - I was trying to work out how to donate without making an extra journey (nearest food bank project to me is about 12 miles away) and this is the perfect answer!

Posted by Trudy Scrumptious (# 5647) on :

Here we have food bank drop-offs in all the supermarkets which makes it very easy to donate food. I just did my own grocery shopping and picked up 2 bags of non-perishables for the food bank along with the bags I got for my own family. Hope to do that at least once more this week. It's one of those "always mean to, never get around to it" things that I'm glad I had the Ship reminder to motivate me!

Posted by Golden Key (# 1468) on :

If anyone can't participate directly, for whatever reason, you might do the free click-to-donate at the Hunger Site. You can do one click each day

Posted by Campbellite (# 1202) on :

Golden Key, what a wonderful idea! I don't know why that didn't occur to me earlier.

And if you have a personal webpage, make a link to it so you can encourage others to click.

[ETA: because I can]

[ 03. July 2007, 20:22: Message edited by: Campbellite ]

Posted by OliviaG (# 9881) on :

Vancouver Shipmates, here's part of an e-mail I received from the Greater Vancouver Food Bank Society:

quote:
We could use two to 4 more volunteers this Saturday, July 7th. At Safeway Sasamat where we are doing a car wash/ BBQ with the SAfway store as our partner.

They have been involved with helping us raise money(we are currently at $12,000.00) for the efforts so far this past 7months.

Let me know if you are available for this event.

The long-range forecast for Saturday, July 7 is a mix of sun and cloud, with a high of 23. Who's up for some good clean fun? OliviaG

Posted by OliviaG (# 9881) on :

Double-posting to add more info:

quote:
The event runs from 10am to 5pm.

We would like the volunteers to commit to 3 hours minimum time.

That could be 10 to 1pm or 11 to 2pm or 2 to 5pm etc.

It is pretty flexible in that regard.

OliviaG

Posted by OliviaG (# 9881) on :

(bump)

Last chance for volunteering Saturday? Anyone? (I have to help at a neighbour's open house in the afternoon, so I'm now only available in the am.) OliviaG

ETA: Argh! Top of page. Info on car wash/bbq on previous page.

[ 04. July 2007, 21:25: Message edited by: OliviaG ]

Posted by rugasaw (# 7315) on :

quote:
Grits
I turned my groceries in yesterday, and I am excited about the potential for more social action.

Grits I hope you do not mind but I noticed that had posted this else where. So I thought I would copy it over here.

I plan on donating food tommorrow.

Posted by Malin (# 11769) on :

Took some food to the local homeless drop in centre last night. They had a list on their website of what they needed (tins) and it was good to be able to take something useful.

Definitly the tiniest drop in the ocean, but with a number of shipmates involved it's a slightly bigger drop! Will watch out for the next project.

Was encouraged to see them stacking a lot of sandwiches and cakes from Pret a Manger - apparently they give them their unsold stock nightly, when they could easily resell it the next day. [Overused]

Posted by marmot (# 479) on :

Lovely idea. Thanks for the motivation. We are happy to give money to the food bank to help keep the lights on and the cooler humming.

Posted by rugasaw (# 7315) on :

Naturally waiting to the last minute. I remembered that the grocery store had a food bin. So I just bought a very expensive 1/2 gallon of milk for myself.

Posted by OliviaG (# 9881) on :

Hi, gang. Well, it doesn't look like the Vancouver crew will be getting together this week. However, if any Shipmates are interested in helping out the Greater Vancouver Food Bank in the future, there are more opportunities coming up:

quote:
We have another special event coming up on July 25th and also at the PNE
during its entirety which is August 18th to September 3.

Since I'm going grocery shopping tonight, I'll add some BC Sharing coupons to my order. Cheers, OliviaG.

Posted by Campbellite (# 1202) on :

I don't know if this is a local thing, or if other places do this also, but the Krogers stores here have pre-boxed groceries needed by the area Food Bank for (IIRC) $8.00 each. Y'all might want to check out if the stores in your area do something like this.

Posted by Mater et Magistra (# 9966) on :

We took the family over to the regional food bank's farm today and volunteered for a couple of hours. Grownups and the two oldest kids did weeding, putting up stakes for the plants, running errands for the workers, and feeding the goats. A fun time was had by everyone, and we plan on going back to give more help on the weekends whenever we're able.

I also found out there's a local food bank right in town at the Piskie Church, and now that I know their drop off hours I plan to pick up a few extra things each time I shop and head over there with them.

This was a fantastic idea. I'm looking forward to the next Ship social action "event"!

Posted by Golden Key (# 1468) on :

I totally forgot about the Food For All program, until someone mentioned grocery stores.

You find a Food For All donation card, in varying amounts, by the register. You pay for it at the register, just like anything else. The money goes to charity, and you get part of the card to verify your donation for tax purposes. Very easy, convenient, and you can pick a donation amount that works for your budget. (Smallest donation is $1.00.)

It looks like it's only in the US right now, in the lower 48 states. But maybe it could expand?

FWIW.

Posted by Meg the Red (# 11838) on :

quote:
Originally posted by OliviaG:
Since I'm going grocery shopping tonight, I'll add some BC Sharing coupons to my order. Cheers, OliviaG.

Have purchased the Alberta version of the coupons. While short-term volunteering doesn't seem to be working right now (I'll be out of town during the food bank's next big event), I'm hoping to help with the stuff-a-bus campaign in the fall. City transit buses are parked outside various supermarkets, with the objective of completely filling them with food donations. One of them will be at my next-door grocery store, which will make it that much easier to be helpful. [Smile]

Posted by Henry Troup (# 3722) on :

I did a bigger-then-usual food bank contrib. Just coincidence, I had missed this initiative. Our church has a basket that goes up with the other offering. It's getting to be a good habit with people, it's been quite a while since it last went up empty.

Posted by Auntie Doris (# 9433) on :

Delivery made yesterday [Smile]

Auntie Doris x

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