People on the Move

AnnoUnCeMenT People on the Move

Francine Foley is the new Executive Director of Golden Valley Health Centers Foundation. She will lead fundraising, donor and resource development, donor relations, and overall foundation operations. Francine brings over 20 years of experience in non-profit organizations, in addition to 20 years of experience in the medical field. She is a member of Modesto Metro Rotary and serves on the Board of Enrich and Employ. She has been involved with many committees and collaborations throughout Stanislaus County. Francine loves non-profit work and thrives on helping improve the lives of those in our community.

Francine Foley

ARE YOU TURNING 65 OR NEW TO MEDICARE? Turn to me, your local licensed sales agent, for a free consultation*

I’ll help you find a Humana Medicare plan that fits your needs and your budget

A Humana Medicare Advantage plan gives you everything you get with Original Medicare, and may include additional benefits and services that matter to you.

Call a licensed Humana sales agent

Liz Donegan CA License #0M46405

209-281-1442 (TTY: 711)

Monday – Friday, 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. ldonegan@humana.com

BY JESSICA VAUGHAN

What if you didn’t know where your next meal was coming from, let alone how you would provide a traditional holiday meal for your family? For more than 6,000 families last year, that was a stark reality, and this year the need will be even higher as inflation continues to impact food costs. For these families, the holiday help that Second Harvest of the Greater Valley (SHGV) and their food pantry partners provide is much more than a holiday meal.

It’s a chance at normalcy, proof they are not alone, and hope during a dark and difficult time. Thanksgiving at the food bank is a perfect depiction of the good that can be done when the community comes together to meet a specific need.

For more than 30 years, SHGV, in collaboration with local real estate offices, has hosted “Turkeys R Us,” a fundraiser geared at collecting and purchasing more than 6,000 turkeys that are distributed in the community.

This year with rising costs, less disposable income, and an impending turkey shortage, the concern is that SHGV will not be able to continue meeting needs of those families that rely on SHGV services during the holiday season. “Said, SHGV Director of Development and Communications, Jessica Vaughan, we have been incredibly fortunate over the past decade to have incredible corporate partners like Foster Farms, Walmart, and Raleys come alongside us and start the process of donations. Our community then steps in and helps us close the gap.

Our fear this year is that rising costs will make donations difficult to come by and lessen our buying power as we look to purchase the amounts we need.” CEO, Keenon Krick, explains that since March of this year, we have seen an increase of 40% more people accessing food bank services, which is on top of the 180% increase throughout the last two you years of the pandemic. The need continues to rise as we head into the winter months, and these holiday meals will be necessary well beyond Thanksgiving and Christmas.”

Thanksgiving is a symbolic time for families to reflect on what they are grateful for; for many families, the help they receive during the holidays and beyond from our agency partners and programs is at the top of that list. If you would like to help SHGV continue providing for our neighbors in need, please consider donating to our Turkeys R Us program at www.localfoodbank.org or by dropping off a fresh or frozen turkey, or grocery store gift card at one of our many drives, make sure to follow us on social media for updated information.

For businesses that are looking to sponsor Turkeys R Us, please call Dalia Hernandez-Fernandez at 209-490-5183.