City Reformed Food Drive

Written by: Kate Snyder, Development and Donor Communications Coordinator

Hats off today to our friends at City Reformed Presbyterian Church. Thanks to EECM's Super-Admin (who just happens to be a member of City Reformed) the congregation hosted a month-long food drive benefiting EECM's Have a Heart for Hunger campaign.

The response was terrific. They collected more than 100 food items as well as some baby necessities like diapers and baby shampoo. Here's a partial list:

9 boxes of cereal
13 boxes of Mac and Cheese
16 cans of soup
6 cans of fruit
17 cans of veggies
8 jars of pasta sauce
2 jars of peanut butter
2 jars of jelly
4 boxes of pasta
6 boxes of raisins
3 cans of salmon
2 cans of chicken
3 packages of rice
4 cans of tuna
3 jars of applesauce
2 cans of pasta
3 boxes of Jello/pudding
2 boxes of stuffing

What's particularly great about this food drive is that it targeted "food of the month" items -- those foods that we use (and need) all the time at the Pantry. Everything in red above is a food of the month item. Each of the more than 400 families that comes through the Pantry each month receives these items, so food drives focusing on these much-needed things are extra helpful!*

*Of course, we happily accept and use donations of all types of non-perishable food items. Click here for more information on donating food to the Pantry.

Bank Buddy

Written by: Kate Snyder, Development and Donor Communications Coordinator

Back in July, I blogged about a terrific urban gardening project being organized by Allegheny Valley Bank. Well, they're back (although minus the gardening shears this time)! Our friends at AVB are once again partnering with EECM, this time for our Have a Heart for Hunger campaign.

These guys are terrific. They are hosting a six-week long food drive at all six of their Pittsburgh branches, collecting non-perishable food items for our Food Pantry.

It's particularly great to see the company-wide support of this project. Pictured in the snapshot below you'll see Andrew W. Hasley, President & CEO of Allegheny Valley Bank, and Gregory J. Saxon, Chairman of the Board. Both donated personally to the drive and were big promoters of the effort.

So far, the employees and patrons of AVB have collected well over a hundred pounds of food and $237 in cash donations. Thank You!!

Sixburgh

Written by: Kate Snyder, Development and Donor Communications Coordinator

Here's another cool Have a Heart for Hunger fundraising idea -- The Sixburgh Challenge.* This bit of creativity comes compliments of one of EECM's terrific Board members. The basic premise is simple: she sent out an email with information about the campaign to her friends, challenging them to donate $6 and forward the email on to 6 people.

Yup, it's a pyramid scheme -- but with a higher purpose.

The Sixburgh Challenge has the benefit of being both quick and easy. The email comes in, you click on the "donate now" link, you forward the message on. You're done! You've fed the hungry and made a difference in the community and it only took two minutes. Not too shabby.

So far, The Sixburgh Challenge has raised more than $600 for the Have a Heart for Hunger campaign. Woo hoo!

*In honor of the Steelers six Superbowl wins. And if you didn't know that, you're clearly not from around here...

Pancakes in the P.M.

Written by: Kate Snyder, Development and Donor Communications Coordinator

Who knew that eating pancakes could make the world a better place? I think that deep down inside, many of us always suspected this was true, but now we have empirical proof. I give you the first annual Pancakes in the P.M. benefit dinner with East End Cooperative Ministry's Young Professionals!

Last night, approximately eighty friends of EECM gathered at P&G Pamela's Diner in the Strip to mingle, chat, feverishly devour caramel French toast casserole, and support EECM's Have a Heart for Hunger campaign.

I'd like to say first (and then repeatedly and loudly) that this event was only possible thanks to the incredible generosity of the good people of Pamela's who donated the food, space and even staff for the evening.

When guests were able to tear themselves away from the homefries and "build your own pancake" bar, they browsed pamphlets of information about EECM and had a chance to sign up to volunteer in a variety of EECM programs, from serving dinner in the homeless shelter to keeping score at an upcoming youth basketball tournament.

It was a terrific evening, supporting a terrific cause: EECM's Hunger Programs (soup kitchen, meals on wheels, and food pantry). The event raised nearly $2,500 for these important programs and, thanks to the campaign's matching gift challenge, that amount will also be donated by an anonymous friend of EECM.

Calvary's Lenten Food Drive Challenge

Written by: Kate Snyder, Development and Donor Communications Coordinator

"This is a serious need, but we don't have to solemn about it -- even in Lent!"

That's the tag line for Calvary Episcopal Church's highly competitive Lenten Food Drive to benefit East End Cooperative Ministry's Have a Heart for Hunger campaign. The three clergy leaders of the congregation have divided their parishioners into teams by last name.

The teams -- Harold's Helping Hands, Leslie's Lifelines, and Nate's Natural Givers -- will compete to see which group can bring in the most bags of non-perishable food items during the six week drive.

To provide direction to the participants, each week focuses on different food items:

Week 1 -- peanut butter, jelly and jam, pancake mix and syrup

Week 2 -- canned tuna, spaghetti sauce, soup

Week 3 -- canned fruit, canned vegetables

Week 4 -- rice, dried beans and peas, coffee

Week 5 -- pasta, hamburger helper, instant mashed potatoes

Week 6 -- dry cereal, powdered milk, instant pudding

All the food pictured here was collected during week one! Wow. I'll keep you posted as to the results of the Food Drive. No matter which team comes out ahead in the competition, the clear winners are the clients of EECM's Food Pantry.

Baby Shower at the Food Pantry

Written by: Kate Snyder, Development and Donor Communications Coordinator

At East End Cooperative Ministry's Food Pantry, we are seeing an increasing number of families with young children coming to us for help. And, as any parent knows, the cost of providing for a baby is high -- diapers, wipes, formula, clothes -- it adds up to a whole lot really fast. When you're struggling to get by, $25 a week for a can of baby formula takes a gigantic bite out of your household budget. And these expenses aren't optional.

In response to this growing need among our Food Pantry clients, EECM hosted a Baby Shower on Saturday. We publicized a list of much-needed baby basics, then invited our supporting congregations to come by with donations and enjoy a slice of cake when they dropped them off.

The results were terrific! We've received literally thousands of items to date and the donations are still coming in. Here's a partial list:

3,355 diapers

31 large cans of formula

63 packages of wipes

141 bottles

20 tubes of baby butt products

11 bottles of baby wash

42 jars of baby food

14 baby blankets

More than 150 items of baby apparel (onesies, sleepers, hats, booties, etc.)

3 laundry baskets

A host of baby accessories, from binkies to bottle brushes to a bouncy chair

(...and a partridge in a pair tree!)

Thanks to everyone who participated in the Food Pantry Baby Shower.

A Non-Violent Dining Experience

“Ugh. It tastes like cardboard!” That was Cheyenne’s reaction to her first taste of a Costa Rican red banana. Her sentiments were echoed by most of the other elementary school students in the room. The humble tropical fruit was met with near-universal disgust.

The pomegranate fared much better. “This is 100% good,” announced one boy, his surprise at this discovery clear on his face.

And so it continued. Cajun jambalaya, egg rolls, enchiladas, Asian pears, mangoes, coconuts, star fruit, pluots, and a host of other exotic produce each made an appearance and were duly sampled by the twenty elementary students assembled for East End Cooperative Ministry’s Cultural Food Day.

Before each taste test, EECM staff spoke for a minute or two about the food about to be eaten – its origins, special qualities, and preparation requirements. There were also guest speakers who explained some of the cultural aspects of the foods being sampled. Mr. and Mrs. Brown, who originally hailed from New Orleans, brought the jambalaya. They talked about the history of Mardis Gras food and the difference between Cajun and Creole. A bit later, an Italian-American teacher from the students’ school shared her culture while everyone enjoyed lasagna.

Cultural Food Day isn’t just about good eating; it’s an important and carefully planned component of EECM’s violence prevention curriculum, funded by The Pittsburgh Foundation. The take-away message is simple and subtle: different doesn’t mean bad. Trying new and unfamiliar things is a positive experience, even if you don’t end up loving that new thing.

Lack of respect for the “other” is often at the root of human violence and the misunderstandings begin early. EECM seeks to combat violence at its root, by promoting acceptance of difference among our youngest students.

After all, if food from other people's cultures turns out to be delicious, maybe the people aren’t so bad themselves.