September 2017 THE BEACON Page 5
Getting Involved can Spark a Change for a Brighter Future
Ways to Help Hoosier Neighbors
Take Advantage of Free : Whether it ’ s a once a week freebie from the local grocery store , a coupon offering a free tarp or flashlight from a national tool company , or a BOGO sale ( buy one , get one free ) – pick up a complimentary or an extra item and donate it to your local food pantry . It costs the donor nothing and can make a big difference .
Gift Those Gift Cards : There can be perks to buying gift cards – anything from bonus fuel points to more free stuff – so buy an extra $ 5.00 or $ 10.00 card for a sandwich , coffee , or fast food place and give it to the local food pantry . Everybody likes to go out for a cup of coffee or a quick bite sometimes .
Travel Perks : Most travelers travel with their favorite shampoos and lotions , making the little hotel sized bottles unnecessary . Pack the unopened bottles and soaps , facial cleaner and toothpaste into your luggage and drop it off at your local food pantry when running errands upon
Roger Boncutter regularly volunteers at the Batesville Food Pantry . Without the community ' s help , these shelves - and neighbors ' plates -would be empty .
Continued from Page 4 a contract with the bakeries , and he brings bread and donuts to a lot of the nonprofits … Right now I don ’ t have any because another pantry came in and I furnished them with some bread and donuts ... The Clearinghouse is privately funded and this is truly what your community does for you .”
Each community pantry puts in place different criteria for the clients it serves . In the case of the Batesville Food Pantry , Mrs . Baran says , “ They need to live in the Batesville school district and meet income eligibility determined by Gleaners . When they come in here for the first time , let the person at the desk know this is their first time , your return .
Grab a Bag , a Duck , a Coupon : Food banks and the food pantries they supply put a lot of effort into making giving fun and easy . Take full advantage of those chances to win a great prize by buying a ticket or two , or simply reach for an already filled paper bag at the grocery store before checking out , or tear off one of the brightly colored paper donation coupons when standing at the register .
Dinner or Lunch Date : Instead of going out for a meal with friends and family , consider eating at home and then donating the cost of a restaurant meal to a local food pantry . If looking for a different kind of family night or Girls Night Out , consider volunteering at a community soup kitchen together .
The Benefits of Bulk Buying : Some of the warehouse stores offer great per-item pricing for things like toilet paper and breakfast cereals . Consider giving an annual or quarterly gift of one of these mega-packages to your community food pantry .
how many people are in their family , and we ’ ll get them signed up .”
Like many pantries across the country , clients come in for food once a month using a color card system . If there are one to two people in their family , they might receive an orange card . At each station within the food pantry , larger cards are posted , specifying how many cans of vegetables or protein products , or dairy items each orange , or blue or yellow card is allowed . This is a relatively simple system , but one that works well . “ That way someone with nine in their family is going home with more than someone with one in their family - which makes perfect sense ,” says Mrs . Baran .
The Clearinghouse once served a larger geographic area than what is reached now , but the organization had to scale back . Ms . Hollan says , “ We only serve Dearborn and Ohio counties because we were just overwhelmed . We couldn ’ t do it .”
Throughout the year , the Clearinghouse has many opportunities for volunteers . There is a need for people to stock shelves , shop for items , pick up donations and to share their skills and experience with clients . Ms . Hollan explains , “ We have a partnership with Purdue Extension office ; Marcia Purcell comes in and teaches cooking classes once a month based on what we have on the shelf . I had CareSource and the Dearborn County Hospital come in to help people sign up for health insurance . Some wonderful board members are organizing some financial classes for the clients , another volunteer and board member organized some coupon classes for them , so I ’ m all about educating the clients and partnership .”
In addition to providing hungry neighbors with foods to take home and prepare , the Clearinghouse , local churches , and organizations offer free lunches to clients . These meals might include an individual pizza , a chicken sandwich , or other items provided by area restaurants , hospitals , businesses , and organizations . Ms . Hollan says , “ That ’ s what we use for cold lunches , but we really need some more restaurants to start donating because we really don ’ t have enough right now . We ’ re serving so many people that when we don ’ t have enough we make bologna or ham sandwiches or something like that just to give them something .”
Hunger isn ’ t always obvious but it is frightening and stressful and lonely for adults and children too familiar with not having quite enough to eat . Fortunately , compassionate and generous volunteers , organizations and businesses throughout Southeastern Indiana offer these neighbors hope year round .
For more information about getting food for yourself and your family through local food pantries in your area , or to learn more about the ways in which you can help someone facing hunger , please
contact :
The Batesville Food Pantry - http :// www . batesvillefoodpantry . org / contact
Dearborn County Clearinghouse - http :// www . dearbornclearinghouse . com / contact-us . html
Southeastern Indiana Economic Opportunity Corporation - http :// www . sieoc . org / contact-us . htm The Freestore Food Bank - https :// freestorefoodbank . org / Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana - https :// www . gleaners . org /
The United Way - dial 2-1-1 or visit 211 . org
Food Pantries Search - http :// www . foodpantries . org / st / indiana
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