Food Programs – Assistance League

Northern Virginia – Final School Year Food Distribution

Veronika — Mon, 06 Jun 2022 17:39:17 +0000

Assistance League of Northern Virginia recently held its final Weekend Food for Kids food packing event for the current school year. Chapter members along with Dominion Energy – Virginia employees packed 1660 bags of assorted nonperishable food that were distributed to six elementary schools in Fairfax and Prince William counties. A seventh school was provided with 70 grocery store gift cards that will be made available to families needing food assistance. This important program will continue during the three summer months providing grocery store gift cards instead of the food bags to the families at all seven schools.

Assistance League of Northern Virginia is extremely grateful for Dominion Energy’s continued partnership in the food program throughout the past ten plus years. Their valuable involvement makes it possible for the food bags to be delivered to the schools the same day as the packing event. In addition, we are thankful for Dominion providing everyone with a pizza lunch following the final packing, and for the generous contributions by their employees to Northern Virginia’s “Got Sneakers” campaign and “Toiletries for students” campaign.

Northern Virginia – Prepares 1660 April Food Bags

tempadmin — Mon, 02 May 2022 17:24:37 +0000

Assistance League of Northern Virginia held another successful food packing recently and assembled 1660 bags that contained an assortment of nonperishable food to sustain elementary school students over the weekend when school-supplied meals are not available. We first launched a food program in 2010 and since then we’ve named the program Weekend Food for Kids and expanded the program by packing more bags and delivering them to more schools. The program’s expansion was helped significantly during the 2013-14 school year when Dominion Energy-Virginia invited Assistance League to hold the events at its facility and also provided drivers and trucks to deliver the food bags.

This month’s packing went smoothly, as it always does, because of the well-organized system developed by the coordinators for this program, and we finished in about 75 minutes. Employees of Dominion Energy not only helped with the packing but also delivered the bags to 6 elementary schools in Fairfax and Prince William counties immediately afterwards. In addition to the food bags, we delivered 70 grocery gift cards to a school whose families are still struggling with the impact of the pandemic. Since resuming our Weekend Food for Kids program in February, we have provided that school with 70 gift cards each month.

We were honored that TV Station ABC/WJLA featured a report on our program on its evening news segment [ALNV_Dominion-WFFK ]. We are pleased that WJLA highlighted the great work that Assistance League and Dominion do each month for food-insecure students throughout our community.

Northern Virginia – Food Packing Event

tempadmin — Tue, 12 Apr 2022 03:53:18 +0000

This month’s Food Packing event was even more memorable because our two organizations joined in recognizing a Dominion employee who had been a tireless helper at our food packings. Ron (center) not only arrived early to help open the cartons of items to be packed and place the cartons at the correct packing station on the assembly lines, he also loaded up his truck and delivered more than 700 bags to two area schools. Because Ron had retired during the pandemic, we were very pleased that he joined us for our March food packing so that we could recognize his dedication to our weekend food program. As a token of our gratitude for his dedicated service, our chapter presented him with a Certificate of Appreciation and a gift card for a restaurant that he liked.

North Coast – Feeding Hope

tempadmin — Fri, 11 Mar 2022 03:12:42 +0000

Judy Stevens, Jane Valentine and Lory Sheldon, volunteers of the Assistance League of North Coast, organized their membership in supporting the North County Food Bank of San Diego’s “Food 4 Kids Backpack Program.” In a little more than one month $4,100.00 was raised which will provide food to fill 687 backpacks for the rest of the school year for children who are deemed “chronically hungry”. The children stop by their schools’ office on Friday afternoon and pick-up kid-friendly food to ensure that they will have nutritious food to eat on weekends. Vanessa Ruiz, VP of Operations for the San Diego County Food Bank, said, “We are so appreciative of the generous support we have received from the Assistance League of North Coast to help the Food Bank sustain this critical program and feed hope in the North County community.”

Northern Virginia – Keeping Children Warm and Fed

tempadmin — Fri, 11 Mar 2022 02:28:25 +0000

As winter’s grip tightened in January, Assistance League of Northern Virginia delivered warm clothing to seven local elementary schools. We provided 32 winter jackets and more than 100 hand-made hats, scarves, and headbands to five schools. A counselor at one school reported that students were crowding the table where the hats were arranged, because they were so eager to select their own colorful and unique item. In addition, we filled the special requests of two other schools. One requested children’s clothing (tops, bottoms, underwear, and sneakers) and the other requested gloves only, so we delivered the requested items, including 42 pairs of gloves to the two schools. One school also received sweat pants, besides coats and hats. Knowing how essential these winter clothing items are for students, our dedicated members made sure that each school’s request was promptly fulfilled.

We are very grateful for the talent and dedication of the members of the Crafts Group of Nativity Church in Burke and the Dunbarton Hugs Team in Bristow, who crocheted and knitted the beautiful items that the children so treasured.

In addition to the outerwear and clothing delivered in January, we also provided another 400 grocery gift cards to six schools to help still-struggling families cope with food insecurity. We have delivered about 3150 cards this school year and, since June 2020, we have provided more than 9000 cards, with a total value of more than $170,000. The cards are in lieu of the weekend food bags that we have not been able to deliver since the start of the pandemic.

Northern Virginia – Assistance League continues to serve with their ‘HUGS’

tech11 — Fri, 16 Jul 2021 22:39:28 +0000

Despite the challenges posed by the pandemic, our chapter was able to have a banner year and touched the lives of thousands of local children and their families.

With schools closed, we suspended our Weekend Food for Kids program, and instead provided a total of 4,834 $20 grocery gift cards to needy families at 6 area schools. In addition, we expanded the program to include distribution during the summer months. For our New Clothing for Kids efforts, we provided children with 1095 new clothing items and shoes. We also distributed 690 toiletry kits and numerous other items such as face masks and essential paper products, along with 86 child-sized, handmade quilts and blankets, most of which were packaged with a new book. In addition, because we could not provide two partner schools with our usual tutoring services for at-risk first graders, as part of our Literacy for Kids program, we distributed 2917 books to students at each of our 11 partner schools. Two of the schools received a new book for every student, 6 received books for their summer reading programs, and the other schools received books at various points during the school year. The accompanying photos show the appreciation of students who received the books and their teachers. Through our Hugs Pillow Program, rather than providing pillows to help comfort children treated at a local Inova medical clinic that serves low-income families, we distributed 914 pillows to several community agencies and many of our partner schools. We added books to the pillows going to schools where teachers used them in classes for grades 2 and below to help the young children deal constructively with stress and build self-esteem. As seen in the photo, the Hugs were a hit with kindergartners,

We are extremely proud of our dedicated members who ensured we could continue to make a difference in our community during a challenging year and to our many supporters whose generosity makes our philanthropic programs possible.

tech11 — Sat, 24 Apr 2021 18:11:12 +0000

Chef Sean Whittaker is leading a virtual cooking event to benefit children via Assistance League of the Columbia Pacific. Pictured with Whittaker are league board members Jane Cartwright, left, Shelby Mogenson and some stand-in young beneficiaries.

This month, a night full of cooking lessons from a local chef will mean helping clothe and provide services for local children.

Assistance League of the Columbia Pacific is hosting “Globe Trotting with Chef Sean” on Sunday. The event, which will take place online, offers participants the chance to join a Zoom cooking class where they will learn how to make multiple dishes from around the world.

Chef Sean Whittaker, chef at Finn’s Fish House and a former Iron Chef Goes Coastal winner, will lead the classes. All proceeds for the event will go toward programs directly benefiting children of Clatsop County.

Amador Valley – Assistance League Continues Work During Pandemic

tech11 — Sat, 27 Feb 2021 06:47:12 +0000

One might think that Assistance League of Amador Valley has not been doing much with the COVID-19 restrictions.

Assistance League, however, has been busy. While some of the programs have been put on hold, others continue. In times of such great need it is vital to continue the work of helping those in need.

Donations of milk, eggs, flour, sugar, and oil to the Food Pantry in Livermore on Junction Avenue are now weekly, thanks to donations and grants. Currently, the pantry is serving more than 1200 families each month. The need is great, and can-do workers are helping to fill a need.

The Birthday Bag program this year has provided birthday bags to 22 children in local shelters. The bags contain age-appropriate gifts and items to celebrate their birthday. In Livermore alone, the chapter helps children in three different shelters – one for homeless and two for victims of domestic abuse. Children in shelters may not have any other acknowledgment of their birthday, and this is one way for these children to feel special during a very challenging time in their lives. Birthday bags let the children know people care.

As a nonprofit, Assistance League of Amador Valley relies on fundraising to support their programs. The annual Poinsettia Sale, Crab Feast and Mad Hatter’s Tea are on hold due to Covid-19, but they hope to resume both activities next year. In the meantime, volunteers are busy working to plan a virtual fundraiser this spring, which will provide some much-needed revenue to continue the programs.

Albuquerque – Assistance League holds ‘drive-by’ food donation event

tech11 — Mon, 15 Feb 2021 19:43:00 +0000

Albuquerque Assistance League’s volunteers help children and adults through community programs. They help the community by raising funds through their thrift shop, Shop on the Corner (furniture and higher-end clothing), and generous donations from individuals and businesses. Albuquerque Assistance League also holds fundraising events during the year to help do this.

On February 28, Albuquerque Assistance League will hold a “drive-by” food donation event as part of their Action Week to celebrate one of their Assistance League founders. This event will be for Whittier Elementary School students and parents who will be provided bags of non-perishable food for drive-by pickup at the Assistance League parking lot on Lomas and Truman.

Inland North County – Assistance League donates $20,000 for food to Interfaith Community Services

tech11 — Mon, 15 Feb 2021 19:38:30 +0000

From left, Veronica Blea, Interfaith’s director of Supportive Services, Diana Chambers, Assistance League of Inland North County’s president and Melinda Jarrell, the League’s VP of Resource Development.

The nonprofit Escondido-based Assistance League of Inland North County donated $20,000 to Interfaith Community Services Food Pantry to help area families in need of food during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

The food was ordered and delivered through Walmart over a period of several months.