March 2015 - Hoosier Hills Food Bank

Hungry for
Change
March 2015
News from the Hoosier Hills Food Bank
2333 W Industrial Park Dr / P.O. Box 697 / Bloomington, IN 47402 / 812-334-8374 / www.hhfoodbank.org
2014 – Wow!
HHFB will release our 2014 Annual Report later this month, and we had to add four pages to describe
the remarkable year that it was. We hope you’ll read it online or request a hard copy when we announce
publication.
We distributed a record 4,076,800 pounds of food – 10% more than in 2013 and an average of 8 tons a
day and 39 tons a week. Significantly, we distributed 1,074,590 pounds of fresh produce – 26% of our
total and up 42% over 2013.
Our Families First Mobile Pantry program served a record number of clients and so did our CSFP Senior
Food Box program. Our garden fresh food initiatives (Garden, Gleaning, Plant a Row, Farmer’s Market)
posted record donations; and our volunteer hours were up 3%. In its first six months, the Garden Route
on Wheels resulted in a 582% increase in fresh produce deliveries to 16 participating agencies.
As always, these reports are a mixed blessing for us – the fact that food insecurity rates remain high and
many people are still in need is disheartening. But, the fact that community support helped us achieve
important nutritional and distribution goals is encouraging.
Distribution trends have continued into January 2015, when we
distributed 304,351 pounds of food – up 20% over January 2014!
This was only possible because of holiday donations that have since
dissipated, causing a real shortage in our food supply. Please consider
a gift today that will help us restock the shelves. Thank you!
In This Issue:
Soup Bowl Benefit 2015
Indiana State House
Martin Luther King Day
March Against Hunger
Pi(e) Run
GIVE ONLINE AT www.hhfoodbank.org
Hungry for Change
“A Day On - Not a Day Off” MLK DAY 2015
To honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and all of his great
work, Hoosier Hills Food Bank participated in the City
of Bloomington’s MLK Day “A Day On! Not a Day Off”
on Monday, January 19th. The food bank set a personal
goal to recruit 250+ volunteers for our own event, and
spread them out over four shifts happening throughout
the day.
We offered the following shifts to our volunteers:
9:30-11:30, 12:30-2:30, 3:00-5:00 and 5:30-7:00.
Participants assisted with several different food bank
programs, including:
Commodity Supplemental Food Program: These
volunteers helped pack boxes full of staple food items
for senior citizens in five counties of our service area.
Altogether, Hoosier Hills Food Bank CSFP volunteers
successfully packed and checked 30 pallets, or 1,200
boxes!
Warehouse Assistants: This program required the most volunteers. We had 40,000
pounds of loose apples delivered. Participants were responsible for bagging the apples in
to five pound increments. This process took some time, but with the great turnout we had,
the apples were finished during the 2nd shift!
NALC Food Drive Preparation: Each year, Hoosier
Hills Food Bank partners with the National
Association of Letter Carriers to host an annual
food drive. To get prepared for that event, we
received several plastic grocery sacks from Kroger
and volunteers were prepping the bags for mail
distribution.
Meal Share Repack: For the 5:30-7:00pm shift,
volunteers repackaged prepared food rescued
from local restaurants, school cafeterias, and other
establishments in the area. The food is repackaged
into family-sized portions for member agencies to
distribute.
It was a busy but exciting day at HHFB, and across
all four shifts we had 308 volunteers total 609.5
hours. Thank you to everyone for their support on
this wonderful day!
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Hungry for Change
HHFB at the State House
Celebrating 10 years of FISH (Feeding Indiana’s Hungry) at the Indiana State House! Hoosier Hills Food
Bank met with several represenatives and senators, including Senator Mark Stoops as seen below. We
also shared our program information and current distribution models with visitors, other food banks,
and members of local feeding agencies.
REMC Round UP
Through the generosity of REMC customers through their
ROUND UP program, Hoosier Hills Food Bank was awarded a
grant to help provide thousands of pounds of fresh produce
to the member agencies we serve. Basically, customers
round up their monthly electric bills, and
the money is made available through grant
requests to non-profit agencies. HHFB has
been distributing food at record amounts
and these types of community partners really
help provide some relief in purchasing and
distributing food, in this case fresh produce.
March Against Hunger
If you are a part of the Indiana State Bar Association please think about participating in this great
event for 2015. You can donate canned goods or donate financially; it’s a great way to compete
against other firms and help out a local cause. For the past three years the local hero of this event
for Hoosier Hills Food Bank has been Steven Douglas. He is the reigning two-time champion of the
coveted Attorney General’s Cup.
Steven Douglas has collected thousands of dollars and thousands of pounds of food which has
been a huge spring boost to HHFB. Thanks to all those who participate, and we look forward
ramping up the competition again this year. If you are interested call Jake at (812) 334-8374
or email office@hhfoodbank.org
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Hungry for Change
SOUP BOWL
Thank you to all donors, sponsors and attendees for another successful Soup Bowl! The 21st annual Soup
Bowl is Hoosier Hills Food Bank’s largest fundraising event, and we raised a record amount of money,
totalling nearly $100,000! We had a great evening, filled with over 40 delicious varieties of soup, bread
and cookies from local restaurants, and great entertainment. Soup Bowl attendees left with bowls hand
crafted by over 30 local artists, including 7 high school artists!
We are very grateful to have such supportive community members. Without the
generosity shown at the Soup Bowl, we would not be able to provide the same services
to our community. We are always moved by the community’s enthusiasm for helping
the Hoosier Hills Food Bank support our neighbors.
If you are interested in purchasing a commemorative T-Shirt with the Soup Bowl
design on it, they are still available for sale. Please contact Jake Bruner at office@
hhfoodbank.org if you are interested.
Corporate Sponsors
Special thanks to our Gold Level Sponsor!
Yvonne
Cripps
Special thanks to the Lotus Foundation and Gail Hale for decorations
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Hungry for Change
THANK YOU TO OUR VOLUNTEERS!
Girl Scouts of America, Boy Scouts of America, Bloomington 4H, Unitarian Universalist Church Youth
Group. And a big thank you to all the individuals who volunteered this year and for the past 20 years.
Soup Bowl would not be possible without all of you!
POTTERS:
Jan Arbogast, Pryde Bayliss, Scott Barton, Laurel Bender, Kris Busch, Ruth Conway, Eileen Crain, Cindy
Duffy, Adam Egenolf, Barbara Fuqua, Karen Green Stone, Libby Gwynn, Thomas Harris, Rebecca Lowrey,
Barb Lund, Kiyomi Macy, Ed McEndarfer, Marcy Neiditz, Connie Nelson Laird, Milton Nolin, Susy
O’Donnell, Walt Schmidt, Daria Smith, Susan Snyder, Larry Spears
RESTAURANTS:
Anyetsang’s Little Tibet, Bear’s Place, Bloomingfoods Market & Deli East and West, Bloomington Center
for Global Children, Brothers Bar and Grill, Butch’s Grillacatessen and Eatzeria, Community Kitchen
of Monroe County, Dats, Darn Good Soup, Function Brewing, Good Life/Runcible Spoon, Grazie Italian
Eatery, IU Health Bloomington Hospital, Laughing Planet, Le Petit Café, Lennie’s, Malibu Grill, Mandalay
Restaurant, Michael’s Uptown Café, Nick’s English Hut, No Coast Reserve, Oliver Winery Downtown,
Player’s Pub, Quaff On, Restaurant Tallent, Rush Hour Station, Sahara Mart, Salt Creek at the Depot,
Samira, Scholar’s Inn Bakehouse, Siam House, Sodexo IMU Catering, Sterling House of Bloomington,
Sweet Grass Restaurant, Taste of India, Terry’s Banquets & Catering, The Owlery, Trailhead Pizzeria, The
Trojan Horse, Truffles Restaurant, Turkuaz Café, Upland Brewery, Yogis
BREAD AND COOKIES:
Aver’s Pizza, Baked!, Bloomington Bagel Co., Bloomingfoods Market and Deli, Food Works for Middleway
House, Kroger: Clear Creek, Jackson Creek, Seminary Square, Panera Bread, Scholar’s Inn Bakehouse,
Sugar & Spice Sodexo
BEER & WINE:
Oliver Winery, Upland Brewing Co., Soma Coffee House
SPECIAL THANKS:
Kevin Atkins: Photography and Web Site
Yarns Unlimited & Bloomingfoods: Ticket Sales
Kim Ransdell: Soup Bowl Art & T-Shirts
Licia Weber: Event & Program Graphic Design
Duane Busick: Video Production
Thanks to our generous supporters!
BENEFACTORS $500+
Bunger & Robertson, Fred & Beth Cate, Dan & Debi Conkle,
Grease Monkey, ISU The May Agency, IU Health Center
Staff, Meadowood Retirement Community, Monet, Rey,
Miri & Esme, South Central Indiana REMC, Stumpner
Building Services, Tim & Young Ae Tresslar, Susan & David
Williams, World Wide Automotive Service
SOUP BOWL PLANNING COMMITTEE:
Laurel Adams, Julio Alonso, Jennifer Bass, Jake Bruner,
Karen Green Stone, Gail Hale, Suzanne Halvorsen,
Michael Hamburger, Michelle Henderson, Judy Klein,
Robert Meitus, Carrie Newcomber, Carol Seaman,
Rob Stone, Dan Taylor, Marcia Veldman, Licia Weber
PATRONS $250+
Fred Aman, John & Amy Applegate,
Clendening, Johnson & Bohrer, PC, Deer Park Management
Duke Energy, The Eye Center, Ferguson & Ferguson, Tom
Gallagher, GSD Consulting, LLC, Michael Hamburger &
Jenny Bass, Hoosier Energy, Sara Jane & A. James Hughes,
Kiwanis Club of South Central Indiana, Mallor Grodner,
Mann Plumbing/MPI Solar, Sylvia McNair, Robert Meitus &
Carrie Newcomer, Old National Bank
MUSICAL GUESTS:
The Sad Sam Blues Jam, The Monks & Brad Leftwich,
Carrie Newcomer, Chris Parker and Philip Wailes
HOSTS:
Robert Meitus and Friends
DONORS $100+
Neal & Elaine Adams, Ella Bell, Bloomfield State Bank,
Comfort Keepers, Alex & Erin Crowley, David Lawler &
Jan Grant, First Insurance Group, Rob Fischman, Chris
Gaal & Beth Florini, Faith Hawkins & Glenda Schulz,
Amelia Lahn Michelle Miller, Aviva Orenstein, Jeff & Janet
Stake, Alex Tanford & Phillipa Guthrie, Marcia Veldman,
Drew & Melissa Water, Women’s Alliance of the Unitarian
Universalist Church
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Hungry for Change
Charlie Thompson
Hoosier Hills Food Bank lost an important
member of our family in December with the
passing of Charlie Thompson. Charlie was
HHFB’s longest-serving board member, having
joined in 1993. He was currently serving as
a member of our Finance Committee, but at
various times over the years he served as Board
Treasurer and Board President.
Charlie was there to provide support and
expertise to the food bank and its management
during many momentous events over 20 years including the loss of Wetterau, the
transition in leadership from Amy Robinson to Julio Alonso, the purchase and move to
a new warehouse in 2008, and the rapid growth of food bank programs and distribution
over the past several years.
Charlie will be remembered as a pivotal figure in the history of HHFB and part of his legacy
will be the Charlie Thompson Award, which for the past two years has been presented
annually at our Hunger Action Awards Reception to an outstanding volunteer. But he will
also be remembered for his friendship, support, sense of humor, and as someone who
tried to put up a gruff exterior to hide a heart of gold. He is missed and our condolences
go out to Charlie’s wife, Gina, his family and many friends.
Give us your kindness, your hungry, your books.
Planning is well underway for the “1st and 32nd Annual Bloomington Community Book
Fair” which will take place October 8-13th at the Monroe County Fairgrounds.
While our goal is for the book fair to be a successful fundraiser for HHFB, it is also a symbolic
perfect fit for us. For 32 years, we’ve promoted a message of sustainability – that too much
food is wasted and should instead be channeled to people at risk of hunger. In many ways,
the same is true of used books. We can’t afford to be a throwaway society – not with food,
not with books and certainly not with people.
Please consider donating your gently used books to HHFB for the book fair. We can also
accept CDs, DVDs, Records, Games and Puzzles. Donations are accepted M-F, 9-5 at 2333
West Industrial Park Drive.
And of course, we also desperately need your food donations. Those can be
dropped off during the same hours, or we’d be happy to talk to you about
setting up a food drive at your business, school, church or organization.
Ultimately, the more food and books we rescue, the more people can be
helped. Hunger is a terribly detrimental obstacle. If we can remove it from
the equation, people have a greater chance of living healthy, productive
lives.
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Hungry for Change
Help Stamp Out Hunger in May!
HHFB will again partner with the National Association
of Letter Carriers Branch 828 for the Stamp Out Hunger
Food Drive this May. Always the second Saturday, this
year’s NALC falls on Saturday, May 9th. Please mark your
calendar to leave your food donation at your mailbox, and
help us spread the word!
Volunteers are needed to help pick up food on heavy routes
where carriers are on foot. A vehicle is required.
If you can help, please contact Ryan at
volunteer@hhfoodbank.org or 812-334-8374.
Pi(E) Run 2015
Do you like running? How about pie? Well, if you answered yes
to one or both, we have the event for you. For the past couple
of years there has been an event going on called the Pi(e) run
where patrons run along a pre-marked course and eat pie at
the conclusion. This is a cool event for many reasons. One is
that it’s a great pun as the event typically takes place on or
very close to March 14th or “Pi” day, in fact this year the 2014
Pi(e) run will be held on Saturday March 14th, so mark your
calendar!
This event also benefits the Hoosier Hills Food Bank, as the
entry fee is either a cash or canned donation that benefits
HHFB. What a cool way to spend a Saturday; eating pie,
exercising, and benefiting a local social service.
The event will be held on March 14th at Karst Farm Park.
Registration and pie drop-off will be between 2-3pm. The
run will begin at 9:26 am.
For more information about volunteering or registration
email pirunbloomington@gmail.com or visit
http://www.pirunbloomington.com/.
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NON-PROFIT ORG.
U.S. POSTAGE PAID
BLOOMINGTON, IN
PERMIT NO. 338
Hoosier Hills Food Bank
P.O. Box 697
Bloomington, IN 47402
Email: hhfb@hhfoodbank.org
Phone: 812.334.8374
Fax: 812.334.8377
www.hhfoodbank.org
Return Service Requested
Our Mission:
Hoosier Hills Food Bank collects, stores,
and distributes nutritious food products
to nonprofit organizations, which provide
free feeding programs that serve both ill
and needy families and individuals.
Taking the Hunger out of Poverty
After a record breaking year, our January
distribution has already increased by 20%
from the previous year.
Although we are pleased with the progress,
we need your help to ensure that we can keep
those numbers high! Please donate today!
Board of Directors:
Chuck Cooksey, Maurice Garnier, Chris Gray, Nita Horrar, Nancy Kaster, George Huntington,
Trina Mescher, Jeremy O’Leary, Adrian Reid, Margie Rice, Kevin Robling, Tom Ruemler, Scott Shackleford,
Everett Southern
Staff:
Julio Alonso, Ashylnn Andrews, Brandon Bartley, Dan Baucco, Angeline Bickner, Bobbi Boos,Willis
Bruce, Jake Bruner, Leslie Burns, Kelly Fraser, Deke Hager, Erin Hollinden, Ryan Jochim, Ben Mescher,
Donn Middleton, Hunter Roberts, Casey Steury, Dan Taylor, Brad Williams, Marina Young
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