Bill and Rod’s Helps our Agencies!

Livonia’s appliance experts, Bill and Rod’s, came to the aid of two of Forgotten Harvest’s hard working agencies last month with the donation of two refrigerators, a chest freezer and 300 lbs. of food!  “I feel like it is the responsibility of business owners to invest in their community. Many of us have been here a long time, and are able to care for our neighbors. Being able to give these appliances and food is just one of the ways we have an opportunity to support our community,” said Joe Legato, General Manager, Bill and Rod’s Appliance.

Forgotten Harvest partner agencies, Nienas Elementary School in Southwest Detroit and Zion Community Outreach Center in Royal Oak Twp. have not been able to accept all of the perishable food donations that they would like because of the lack of refrigeration and freezer space.  Despite the issues with storage, Zion still opened their doors recently to more families who are in need from the Ferndale community. Now, because of Bill and Rod’s, neither agency will have to worry about turning away food and helping the community because of space.

 

“We have already used it! We were able to store extra meat for parents who could not come to the normal food distribution on Friday. No one went home without something thanks to this new refrigerator.  We are so thankful for this grand gift,” said Dalia Churches, Nienas Elementary School.

Stop by Busch’s and Grab a Gallon of Milk for Forgotten Harvest!

This week, Busch’s Fresh Food Markets in partnership with The United Dairy Industry of Michigan (UDIM) are hosting a milk drive to benefit Forgotten Harvest and you can help! Starting today, March 6 – 12, guests can donate a gallon of milk when they check out at the register. Any Busch’s My Way Guest who donates two or more gallons of milk in the same transaction will be automatically entered to win one of three prizes, including Detroit Pistons gear autographed by Andre Drummond. Through UDIM, Michigan’s dairy farmers will match each donation made during the dairy drive, making your donation go farther!

Receiving milk is such an important donation to families, especially growing children. Milk is a great source of protein and contains three of the top nutrients most likely to be missing in the American diet – calcium, vitamin D and potassium.

Teams from local high schools are volunteering to make the dairy drive a success. Each team will receive a chocolate milk grant from UDIM for being chosen by their schools for the dairy drive. The grants provide funds for low-fat chocolate milk so the team can replenish after practices and games for the entire season.

Volunteers at each Busch’s location are:

• Ann Arbor, Main St – Pioneer High School Track
• Ann Arbor, Green Rd. – Whitmore Lake High School Baseball
• Carleton – Carleton Football Team
• Clinton – Clinton High School Track
• Dexter – Dexter High School Swim
• Pinckney – Pinckney High School Football
• Plymouth – Plymouth High School Track
• Rochester – Adams High School Softball
• Saline – Saline High School Girls Lacrosse
• Tecumseh – Tecumseh High School Boys Golf
• West Bloomfield – West Bloomfield High School Girls Soccer

To find a Busch’s Fresh Food Market near you, visit: http://www.buschs.com/

 

 

Coins that Count

Burton Elementary School in Huntington Woods, MI recently completed Forgotten Harvest’s newly launched program, Coins that Count. Coins that Count, which is conducted in partnership with Vibe Credit Union, is a school-based fundraising program that encourages students to bring in spare change (and dollars, of course!). The grade who collects the most money by the end of the program period wins! All money collected during Coins that Count is donated to Forgotten Harvest. Because for every $1 donated we can provide 4 meals, Coins that Count provides a concrete way by which students can support food insecure metro Detroiters.

During a kick-off assembly on January 12^th, Burton students learned about food waste, food insecurity, and Forgotten Harvest’s food rescue efforts. This spurred the energetic students into action, as they conceived of creative ways to raise funds for Forgotten Harvest. For example, a group of 5^th grade students held a bake sale in an effort to raise money. The students baked cookies and sold each cookie for $1. In total, they raised $141! As a school, Burton raised $3,402.08, which equates to 13,608 meals. In addition to counting the coins on our behalf, Vibe Credit Union generously provided a $250 matching gift, or 1,000 meals, bringing the total amount raised to $3,652.02 or 14,608 meals.

Coins that Count is a wonderful opportunity to engage young people in efforts to eliminate food waste and food insecurity, and allows them to make a meaningful impact. If you are interested in bringing Coins that Count to your child’s school, contact Jessica Ayoub, jayoub@forgottenharvest.org, 248.268.7522.

Honor Someone Special with a Tribute Gift

Throughout the year, Forgotten Harvest receives hundreds of gifts, intended to celebrate the milestones of friends, colleagues and loved ones. If you aren’t quite sure what to give someone for a special occasion, consider a donation to Forgotten Harvest. People are often so honored to learn that a charitable gift had been made in their name. Sometimes, individuals request that friends and family consider supporting a charity instead of traditional gift giving. “One of the best things about working for Forgotten Harvest is seeing up close the generosity of people of all ages,” said Patrice Boyd, Administrative Coordinator at Forgotten Harvest.  “In 2016, a nonagenarian asked her birthday guests to send donations to Forgotten Harvest in lieu of gifts.”

Meijer Supports our Volunteers

If you have ever been to our warehouse, you know the immense role volunteers play in our organization. Over the past four years, as Forgotten Harvest has grown, so has the volunteer program. Four years ago, approximately 6,100 volunteers came through our doors to help; today, over 15,000 volunteers donate more than 71,000 hours of their time.  Forgotten Harvest depends on volunteers to repack food, assist with office tasks as well as a long list of jobs out on our farm. Without our strong volunteer program, we would not be able to provide more than 41 million meals to those in need throughout metro Detroit.

Community Partners Fuel the Fight

You have probably seen one of our 34 trucks on the road throughout metro Detroit during your daily travels but did you realize without those trucks we can’t operate?

Our trucks and drivers are the lifeline to the 280 food pantries, soup kitchens, shelters, youth programs and other emergency food providers that serve those in need in metro Detroit. Six days a week those 34 trucks stop at nearly 1,000 different grocery stores, farms, restaurants and other food suppliers to pick up perfectly good food that would have just been thrown out.  Last year, our drivers drove approximately 80,000 miles and rescued enough food to provide over 41 million meals to support the 1 in 6 who face hunger in our community.

Guardian Industries raised some major root

The Guardian Angels of Guardian Industries helped Forgotten Harvest fight hunger by getting to “The Root” of the problem! For two weeks in March, employees at Guardian Industries hosted a hearty vegetable drive and donated potatoes, carrots, parsnips, squash and turnips. The generous employees donated over 27,000 lbs. of vegetables and Guardian Industries matched every pound donated with $1 – bringing the total impact to $26,600! The donation will help provide 133,000 meals PLUS all the fresh, healthy veggies will make a huge impact to those in need.

Delta Dental Gives Another Reason to Smile

This week, Delta Dental of Michigan gave Forgotten Harvest a fantastic reason to smile with the announcement of their partnership to support The Healthy Food – Healthy Kids Programs. Delta Dental recognized the connection of hungry children who do not have healthy food options and oral health.  To support the work of Forgotten Harvest, Delta Dental made a gift of $237,000 to support Forgotten Harvest’s three children’s programs: School Pantry Project, Summer Lunch Program and Detroit Public Library Children’s Feeding Partnership.  

Corporate Employee Matching Gift Programs

What are they and how do they benefit Forgotten Harvest?

Corporate matching gift programs are charitable giving programs setup by corporations where the company matches donations or volunteer hours made by employees.  For example, if a donor works for Bank of America and donates $100 to Forgotten Harvest, Bank of America will double the donation by also writing a check for $100.

The Container Store supports Forgotten Harvest

Are your closets overflowing? Are your kitchen drawers filled to the brim? Do you have a garage that hasn’t seen a car since you first moved in? Don’t worry, because The Container Store, the nation’s originator and leading retailer of storage and organization products, is coming to Novi!  The Container Store will celebrate its Grand Opening Weekend Saturday and Sunday, June 4^th and June 5^th.  The store will be located at West Oaks (Novi Rd. & I-96).