From Hungry to Healthy Brochure

FROM HUNGRY TO

Transforming communities...

one plate at a time.

A critical component to a healthy life is nutrition. From birth, the intake of vital nutrients is essential to the growth and development of a healthy individual. Good nutrition is important in establishing and maintaining the foundation that has implications for a child’s future physical and mental health, academic achievement, and economic productivity. Food insecurity is an obstacle that threatens that critical foundation.

grow

THE NEED CONTINUES TO

together WORKING

TO KEEP FOOD ON THE TABLE

The Commission on Economic Opportunity (CEO) was incorporated in 1966

building was renovated to allow the relocation of the main CEO Office from South Main Street, Wilkes-Barre, and the renovation of a 13,500 square foot warehouse for the establishment of the Harry & Jeanette Northeast Regional Food Bank.

as a non-profit community action agency to alleviate poverty.

The objective of all CEO programs is to assist vulnerable individuals and families in their movement toward stability and self-sufficiency.

Since its dedication in March, 1996, CEO has operated the Harry and Jeannette Weinberg Northeast Regional Food Bank, serving four counties in northeast PA: Luzerne, Lackawanna, Susquehanna and Wyoming. In 1999, the Food Bank became a Certified Affiliate of Second Harvest, now Feeding America.

The mission of the CEO/Weinberg Food Bank is to reduce hunger and promote healthy nutrition among poor and vulnerable people, especially children and the elderly.

In April 1994, Governor Robert P. Casey announced a State grant to the Commission on Economic Opportunity for the establishment of a Regional Food Bank to serve Northeastern Pennsylvania. Along with a grant from the Harry & Jeanette Weinberg Foundation, CEO was able to purchase a vacant grocery store in the Heights section of Wilkes-Barre. The

Partner Organizations spanning 4 Counties in NEPA

8,700 individuals served

WYOMING

each week

• One of our pantries serves 15-25 families a week, averaging 60 to 80 families per month.

SUSQUEHANNA Susquehanna

• Our member agencies work to improve the quality and availability of early care and education by implementing planning strategies, supporting growth and development.

Wyoming

Lackawanna

• Volunteers from a local church and community distribute over 10,000 pounds to approximately 300 families each month.

• A cafe serves a free meal to people in our surrounding area the fourth Saturday of each month from 4 PM-6 PM. • Agencies distribute over 200 senior food boxes to individuals in both the Montrose and Susquehanna areas.

2,000+ volunteers help feed their neighbors

Luzerne

LACKAWANNA • A member agency operates multiple food pantries, serves holiday dinners, and manages children’s after school programs.

LUZERNE • An Emergency shelter for homeless women in Luzerne County that has provided shelter and services for over 1,200 homeless women since 2003.

• Emergency pantry serves around 130 families per month.

• Pilot programs for Produce to People distribution • A partner organization provides services for children in After-School and Summer Programs.

• Located in downtown Scranton, the Kitchen serves over 225 hot nutritious meals each and every day of the week.

• A partner organization services individuals every Thursday from 12-1 PM • Nutritious noon time meals are served daily to seniors.

For a complete listing of all Weinberg Food Bank member agencies, please visit hungrytohealthy.org.

s s e n Well THE COMMITMENT TO

AND HOPE

s

FIGHTING HUNGER in our Community Food security, is defined as access by all people at all times to enough nutritious food for an active, healthy life.

Healthy foods tend to be more expensive, and refrigeration is needed for nutrient-dense foods, like fresh produce. Low income families opt for more convenient and cheaper foods, or food that doesn’t require refrigeration or preparation.

The effects of hunger and malnutrition have the greatest impact on our region’s children, and it is a problem we can work together to solve. It is noted that children from food insecure families receive less than 70% of the recommended daily intake of major nutrients. This affects their overall health, including cognitive development. It diminishes a child’s ability to concentrate and develop language and math skills. These children are also known to miss school days more frequently due to illness, and many of them are anemic. Children suffering from food insecurity may have stunted growth. Food insecurity may affect a child’s social behavior in school; they may have anxiety, emotional problems and may not fit in with other students if they are suffering from hunger.

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Meet Kate, listen to her story and find out how you can help provide healthy meals at hungrytohealthy.org

Population under 18 years old

124,402 22.0%

Child food insecurity rate

Estimated number food insecure children

27,340 Average cost of a meal nationally is

$2.52 Food Insecurity: Luzerne: 44,760 people Lackawanna: 29,590 Wyoming: 3,550 Susquehanna: 4,840

Health related statistics: Only 14% of the NEPA population meets the recommendation for consuming at least 5 servings of fruits & vegetables daily.

5% of Households with incomes less than $25,000/year consumed the daily recommendation of vegetables – while more than twice that number of higher income households meet the recommendation.

Building ON OUR STRENGTHS

As the need has increased, A NEW VISION HAS EMERGED. The Food Bank has outgrown its 13,500 sq. ft. Wilkes-Barre warehouse, as well as 15,000 sq. ft. of rented space. The use of this second warehouse negatively affects efficiency of the Food Bank, and even with two warehouses, we must often pass up donations for quality food product due to insufficient storage and freezer space. These missed opportunities are passed on to our many member agencies, resulting in shortages of healthy food on the shelves throughout our hunger action network.

In addition to space limits resulting from growing needs, the Weinberg Food Bank is also carefully addressing how we can help alleviate the impact of poverty and hunger on our community’s individuals. With growing research that demonstrates the effects of poor nutrition on low income residents (primarily children), the Food Bank has recognized the need to make fresh produce a priority- something that was not possible with the existing warehouse space.

Growing our impact.

• From 18 member agencies in 1996, to 137 member agencies today • From 1,078,000 pounds of food in 1996 to 4,814,000 pounds of food today • Served 36,900 different individuals in 2006, grown to 53,800 in 2011 • In 2008– 30,072 meals were served at 26 locations for children in the summer. This grew to 99 locations providing 85,410 meals to children in summer 2012 • In 2008, 91,029 pounds of fresh produce were distributed.

This has grown to 219,643 pounds in 2013

<<<<<<<< The Solution The Monsignor Andrew J. McGowan Center for Healthy Living, a 50,222 square foot state- of- the- art food bank warehouse and distribution center located in the Center Point, with convenient access to major highways. From this hub of the region’s anti-hunger network, donated food will be transported, sorted, stored and re-distributed to a consortium of charitable organizations in four counties of Northeast Pennsylvania. The new building will be named in memory of the late Monsignor Andrew J. McGowan, whose leadership and inspiration created the Regional Food Bank, as well as decades of care, concern and support for the needy of northeast PA.

I want to tell you how deeply moved we were when we came to pick up our groceries at CEO today. It’s the first time we’ve been blessed by your services.

The first thing that struck me, as I saw the long line of people waiting to get into the warehouse, was the disheartening level of need in our area. So many people struggling! But then, as I watched the welloiled machinery of the operation, and saw the many, many volunteers hard at work, I was overwhelmed with awe and gratitude. Each helper I encountered was gracious, respectful, and seemed glad to serve.

I didn’t feel like “less than” because we’re struggling financially.

I am deeply humbled by the whole experience, and I want to thank you on behalf of my family for the holy work you’re doing. This thanksgiving, we’ll be thinking of you in our prayers.

Sara

Monsignor Andrew J. McGowan Center for Healthy Living • A 4,280 sq ft sorting and repack area for expanded use of volunteers • A 1,050 sq ft agency shopping area with dry, frozen and refrigerated storage • 5,310 sq ft of freezer space • 1,060 sq ft of refrigerated space • 1,480 sq ft of temperature controlled storage for fresh produce • 12,875 sq ft of dry storage • 8 million pound capacity • Convenience to major highways for deliveries • Ability to adequately store, transport and distribute fresh produce to 135 member agencies in four counties • A multi-purpose meeting room with cooking equipment for nutrition education training • Covered loading docks to protect from inclement weather • A volunteer orientation room with lockers

How the CEO Weinberg Food Bank carries out its mission.

5.

Monsignor Andrew J. McGowan Center for Healthy Living

1.

2.

3.

1. Solicits donations of food from food manufacturers, distributors, grocery stores and volunteer-led food drives.

The Food Bank sorts, repackages, refrigerates and redistributes wholesome, but unmarketable, food that would otherwise be thrown away.

Additionally, the Food Bank purchases nonperishable foods at bulk rate for distribution to needy residents.

In 2011, the Food Bank collected 4.9 million pounds of food.

2. Food is currently warehoused in the Wilkes-Barre location. The new Monsignor Andrew J. McGowan Center for Healthy Living will increase the capacity for storing perishable foods, particularly produce.

3. Distributes nearly five million pounds of food annually to a network of more than 137 charitable organizations. The Weinberg Food Bank also provides training and technical assistance to increase strength and capacity of the member organization network, including annual training on food safety, program operations, fundraising and volunteer management.

4.

4. Member agencies include food pantries, shelters, soup kitchens, childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s food programs and elder care facilities that span the four county service area with partners in both urban and rural areas. Some of these partners work with food as their primary mission, for others, the food they distribute is just one way they help families, children and seniors.

The Food Bank also serves families and individuals directly through Mobile Pantry distributions, the Senior Food

Boxes and holiday food distributions as well as the Food Bankâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s community kitchen that prepares and delivers nutritious meals to a variety of community- and school- based programs for children.

5. In the last quarter alone, the Weinberg Food Bank served 64,477 low- and moderate-income people representing 26,000 households via the network of food pantries that the Food Bank supports.

Additional floor plans and architectural renderings at

hungrytohealthy.org

help

WE NEED YOUR

A day without one treat can feed a family in our communities.

Think about it.

The Weinberg Northeast Regional Food Bank will work with our 137 member agencies such as churches, shelters and pantries, to bring healthier options to the underserved of our region. In order for this system to work efficiently, we must prepare our network to receive and distribute fresh food and produce on a larger scale. Increased freezer and refrigeration space, shelving and storage space; as well as updated technology is necessary to ensure our member agencies are in a solid position to accept, store and distribute fresher food, working toward our ultimate goal of feeding more people in need in the region.

Foundation funding totaling $3.03 million and government funding

totaling $1.5 million has been committed to the project. In addition to financial commitments, the land and site work are being donated at a project value of $1.2 million. With contingency funds built into the budget, we estimate an additional $2.5 million is needed to complete the project. $1 M for building construction, $500,000 building reserves, $1 M for equipment and technology to prepare our partner agencies (churches, shelters, pantries).

You have a unique opportunity to demonstrate your support for the health of Northeastern Pennsylvania with a gift to the Monsignor Andrew J. McGowan Center for Healthy Living.

To alleviate hunger ONE PLATE AT A TIME, we need the support of this communityâ&#x20AC;Ś ONE GIFT at a time. Make yours today.

Together we can make a healthier community a reality.

FROM HUNGRY TO

Transforming communities... one plate at a time.

Monsignor McGowan often referred to the miracle of caring and sharingâ&#x20AC;&#x153;your generosity is like the multiplication of five loaves and two fishes that feed the multitudes of hungryâ&#x20AC;?.

Your gift together with others will feed multitudes in Northeastern Pennsylvania.