From our President and CEO
Dear Friends,
Lately, when I write one of these letters, I’m reminded of the many challenges we’ve faced and overcome during the past few years. And although we’re still struggling with supply chain issues and rising prices, the team at Community Table hasn’t let challenges and obstacles derail their focus on helping the growing number of neighbors in need in our community. However, this “growing need” may be the one challenge our hardworking and innovating staff and volunteers cannot overcome on their own.
Hunger is an enormous challenge, and we need your support. We need you to donate food and money. We need you to volunteer your time. Most importantly, we need you to spread awareness about hunger, especially now that many of the added governmental pandemic assistance programs are ending.
In this newsletter, we’re putting a face to hunger and highlighting how you can make a difference by supporting hunger relief efforts, volunteering your time and advocating for the most vulnerable in our community, such as children and older adults.
As we look ahead, we know the challenges are real. But we will continue to work hard, innovate and advocate to help everyone in our community have access to the food and assistance they need to thrive.
I’ll close by sharing a quote from Mr. Rogers. His words speak to our mission and the difference we can all make when we work together:
“All of us, at some time or other, need help. Whether we’re giving or receiving help, each one of us has something valuable to bring to this world. That’s one of the things that connects us as neighbors—in our own way, each one of us is a giver and a receiver.”
Thank you for being our neighbor.
With gratitude,
Sandy Martin Chief Executive Officer
The volunteers are so nice here. Gave my family quite a lot of food. My wife has been out of work for over a year—arthritis and surgeries keeping her at home. If you need a helping hand, go here. — Karl
TABLE TALK
The Faces of Hunger
When you think of hunger, who do you picture? The answer may surprise you. It could be your next-door neighbor who skips meals to pay utility bills. It could be a single dad working overtime to ensure there is food on the table for his kids. It could be an older adult eating less to save money for prescription medicines. Maybe it’s the high school student wondering where and when they’ll have their next meal or the first grader with limited weekend food options.
According to a recent Hunger Free Colorado survey, 20% of adults reported being food insecure—having to regularly cut back or skip meals because there wasn’t enough money to buy food.
Food insecurity is defined as limited or uncertain access to adequate food. There are four levels of food security:
• High Food Security: Households had no problems or anxiety about consistently accessing adequate food.
• Marginal Food Security: Households sometimes had problems or anxiety about accessing adequate food, but the food’s quality, variety and quantity were not substantially reduced.
• Low Food Security: Households reduced their diet quality,
Doing Good
The surprising benefits of volunteering.
Many think of volunteering as a way to help others and their communities. While true, it’s also a great way to improve your well-being. Both health experts and social scientists agree that volunteering gives a boost to the body and mind.
Here are some of the ways you can help yourself by helping others.
Volunteering connects you with new friends. Research shows that building new friendships becomes more critical as we grow older, and volunteering is a good way of doing that. A study in the journal Innovation in Aging found that older adults who volunteer have more friends, and they spend time with them more often.
Volunteering makes you happier.
Volunteering boosts a feeling of well-being. Research shows that when we do something for others that brings them comfort
variety and desirability, but the quantity of food intake and normal eating patterns were not substantially disrupted.
• Very Low Food Security: At times, the eating patterns of one or more household members were disrupted, and food intake was reduced because the household lacked money or other resources for food.
The impacts of food insecurity go beyond hunger. There are serious health complications resulting from not having enough food to eat. For instance, a study by the USDA Economic Research Service found that children who didn’t always get enough to eat were more likely to exhibit:
• Iron deficiency anemia
• Lower physical function
• Poorer social function and development
• More anxiety and depression
• Higher numbers of chronic health conditions
• Lower math scores
• Higher likelihood of repeating a grade
Hunger can affect people you know and see every day, but there are three easy things you can do today to help those who are experiencing food insecurity:
1.Volunteer. Share your time helping hungry families. We always need volunteers, from drivers to sorters, stockers and more. Conduct a food drive in your neighborhood, business, school or church.
2.Advocate. Spread awareness and information about hunger in our community. Contact your lawmakers to help keep essential hunger relief programs in place.
3.Donate food. We always need non-perishable and perishable foods and personal care products.
4.Donate money. For every $10 you donate, we can provide 30 nutritious and satisfying meals.
and support, our brains produce more “happiness” hormones such as serotonin, dopamine and endorphins. There’s even a term for this feeling—helper’s high.
Volunteering can help you live longer.
Research conducted by the Harvard School of Public Health indicates that people who regularly volunteer spend 38% fewer nights in the hospital than non-volunteers. Other studies show
that volunteers of all ages enjoy better health, more stamina and lower stress levels. Further, the journal of Psychology and Aging shows that volunteering reduced mortality risk by 47% in people over 55. There are several theories on why volunteering can help you live longer. The leading explanation is that the moodboosting benefits of volunteering help lower stress, decreasing the risk of heart disease and even cancer.
Volunteering reduces loneliness
Volunteering is about making connections with people, and these connections can help you feel more socially connected and less lonely. Being a volunteer also helps you meet new people with similar interests. Participating in a shared activity brings people closer together.
Volunteering keeps you physically healthy.
It’s not only your mental well-being that gets a lift when you take the time to help others. Your heart can reap big benefits too. According to research from Carnegie Mellon University, older adults who volunteer for at least 200 hours per year decrease
their risk of hypertension, or high blood pressure, by as much as 40%. A study from the University of Kentucky found that volunteering can also lessen chronic pain symptoms.
Volunteering keeps your brain healthy.
Volunteering is not only good for your health and mood, but it also positively impacts your cognitive skills and risk for dementia. A five-year study published in the journal PLOS ONE found that seniors who volunteered consistently reported decreased cognitive complaints over time. In contrast, no such associations were found for the other groups. Keeping your brain active with new activities helps it stay sharp. In addition, people who regularly volunteered were nearly 2.5 times less likely to be prescribed an anti-dementia treatment than those who didn’t make the time to help others.
Want to start reaping the benefits of volunteering? Contact our volunteer coordinator today at volunteercoordinator@cotable. org or 720-437-6392. We always need drivers to pick up donated food from local stores, food sorters and stockers, client liaisons and more.
August is National Make-A-Will Month
They’re not just for the wealthy. Everyone needs a will.
An up-to-date will gives you peace of mind that your wishes are followed, and the people you care about will be looked after you’re gone. It can also give you the ability to change the world or, at the very least, your little corner of it by leaving a gift in your will to the causes you care about most.
That’s right. You can include your favorite nonprofits in your will, leaving a legacy after you have passed on. And, if you ask the charity you care about most, I’ll bet you’ll learn that your charitable bequest can make a huge impact, no matter how big or small.
It’s easier than ever to get your estate plans on track using free online tools. Make a will today for the people and causes you love.
At Community Table, we can provide three wholesome and satisfying meals for every dollar we receive!
Matching Gifts
Your gift to Community Table feeds a family. Your company’s matching gift can help feed another.
If you’ve recently donated to Community Table, please check with your employer to see if they match charitable contributions. Many employers match volunteer time, too. The process may be as simple as completing a form on a website.
We’re happy to help. If you need assistance or have any questions, please get in touch with our resource development team at 720-437-6394 or lcadman@cotable.org.
Annually, matching gifts to Community Table provides more than 54,000 nutritious meals!
What’s Happening – Events and More!
Father’s Day Classic
June 18, 2023
Help Race Away Hunger!
Community Table is the charity partner for 3W Races’ annual Father’s Day Classic. The event is open to walkers, joggers and runners and helps support us with a food drive and monetary donations. You’ll be entered into a raffle for gift cards and gear when you bring five items to donate. To register, visit 3wraces.com.
ACFB Foundation’s Ninth Annual Charity Golf Classic
Monday, August 28, 2023
Legacy Ridge Golf Course, Westminster
Tee off against hunger at the ACFB Foundation’s annual Charity Golf Classic benefiting Community Table. All proceeds help raise money for hunger relief, emergency assistance and self-sufficiency programs for struggling families in our community.
Act fast. The Charity Golf Classic sells out. To ensure your spot become a sponsor today!
To learn more about sponsorship opportunities, contact our resource development team at 720-437-6394 or lcadman@ cotable.org
Your gift to Community Table is in good hands!
For every $1 you donate, we can provide food for THREE nutritious meals. Community Table has a Platinum Seal of Transparency on Candid/ GuideStar, a 4-Star rating on Charity Navigator and we are a Better Business Bureau Accredited Charity, which means you can trust we will use your donation to help your neighbors in need.
The Five Cupcakes Feeding the Future
September 2023
Rheinlander Bakery
Throughout September, every time you buy one of the featured cupcakes—Mimosa, Peanut Butter & Jelly, Pumpkin Spice, S’Mores and Oreo Crush— Rheinlander Bakery in Olde Town Arvada will donate $1 to our Feeding the Future program! Rheinlander Bakery is also collecting donations to help feed hungry school kids. When you donate $5 or more, you’ll receive an orange Feeding the Future wristband.
September is Hunger Action Month
Volunteer • Advocate Fundraise • Donate
Go ORANGE for Hunger Action Month by volunteering, advocating, fundraising and donating to help eliminate hunger in our community.
Hundreds of thousands of Coloradans are facing hunger—many for the first time. This Hunger Action Month, join us in taking action. Together, we can achieve a hunger-free community.
Visit cotable.org and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for more ways to help support our fight against hunger all year long.
Can’t make it to our events. You can still help hungry and struggling families by making a donation today!
Find us @TheCoTableOrg on 8555 W. 57th Ave. Arvada, CO 80002 cotable.org | 303-424-6685
Donate Now!
Because of you, others will eat today.
