Letter of Thanks

The following letter was shared on April 25, 2013 with Erika Ledbetter, Food Program Assistant at Sacramento Food Bank & Family Services. Heather volunteered her time in the Food program during the spring semester.

Dear Erika,

I have truly enjoyed my Service Learning time with Sacramento Food Bank & Family Services. I had another class in community college where we had to do community service and chose to complete the hours with the local food bank. I was living in a different area then, and their program was purely food related. When I saw Sacramento Food Bank & Family Services on the list of approved sites, I immediately knew that I would complete my hours there because it was something I had a little experience doing already. When I came in for orientation, I quickly learned that my assumption that this food bank would be like the one that I already had worked for was way off. Sacramento Food Bank & Family Services is a fantastic organization that not only offers the food component but computer classes for all ages, tutoring, child care, clothing and a parent education component as well. I was surprised by how many different options were offered to the community through this organization I thought was all about food.

I knew right away that I would really enjoy the food distributions. My current job is in retail, so customer service is something that I am very familiar with. Handing out food at the food distributions reminds me a lot of customer service, where you do whatever you can to make the clients/customers happy during the short time they are choosing to spend with us. I have loved the interactions especially with the clients during the food distributions. Truthfully, I simply enjoy interacting with others. I have come to find that I really enjoy spending time with the other volunteers and the regular workers during the food distributions.

Sacramento Food Bank & Family Services is so organized and seems to have everything together, so I was slightly intimidated by the required project I had to complete for my Child Development 132 class, which was to find a way to improve the site in some way. I am glad to be able to contribute something that will hopefully really help the organization in the long run with produce information cards that have titles in different languages for non-English speakers.

Volunteering for Sacramento Food Bank & Family Services is something that I would love to continue doing after my Service Learning hours have been completed.

Sincerely,
Heather

Food Bank Club

The Food Bank Club was created to give youth in Sacramento Food Bank & Family Services' Youth Education program the opportunity to volunteer their time in other programs within the organization. During the 8 week session, youth lent a hand in the Food program to sort different food items to be given away at our local food distributions. The food bank club also helped in the Clothing program, the Parent Education's Baby Boutique and Demonstration Garden. The youth enjoyed being able to help in the different programs knowing that all their time and hard work would benefit families in need.

Food Bank Club volunteers in Parent Education

Submitted by Krystal Harrell
SFBFS' After School Academy Assistant

Preschool Garden Day

On the first Wednesday of every month, the preschool children of the Youth Education program at Sacramento Food Bank & Family Services (SFBFS') have been participating in a Garden Day. They have had the opportunity to pick, wash and taste vegetables directly from SFBFS' onsite Demonstration Garden. Last Wednesday, the youth planted vegetables in their very own garden bed.  They planted tomatoes, kale, squash and lettuce which they will be able to watch grow next to their outdoor play area until it is finally time to taste the fruits (and vegetables) of their labor.  

The children were able to get hands on experience while they learned about the process of growing their own food. They dug a hole for each vegetable start and learned about separating their roots so they will grow deep into the soil and stay healthy. They will also be able to witness a seed transforming into a full grown plant with a little sunlight and moisture from the lettuce seeds they planted.

 
By combining the Demonstration Garden with the Youth Education play area, children are given the opportunity to interact, observe, nurture and learn. Well known child development theorists such as Maria Montessori and Jean Piaget have expressed the importance of children learning to nurture plants from beginning to end. Maria Montessori said, “When the children put a seed into the ground… the children are inspired with a feeling for nature…” This helps them to not only gain confidence in their abilities, but to witness cycle of life first hand.  If that wasn’t enough, there is also evidence that when children learn to plant fruits and vegetables, they are more likely to choose to eat them when given the option.

In the future we hope to have the children tending to their garden, creating their own markers for what they have planted as well as continuing to learn from the Demonstration Garden.

Submitted by Sarah Rambo, Child Development Intern

Youth visit Deer Creek Hills

On April 2, 15 children from Sacramento Food Bank & Family Services' Youth Education program visited Deer Creek Hills and took part in the Sacramento Valley Conservancy’s free Saturday self-led hikes.

The following journal entry was submitted by Kevin, age 11.

At 8am in the morning, we drove to Deer Creek Hills. We drove in to the ranch and saw 2 horses. One of the ladies who was riding her horse let us pet it.  

Before starting on our hike, we made sure we went to the bathroom because it would be a long hike and there were no restrooms by the trail.  We did not want to go to the bathroom out in the wild by a tree.

At first, we saw piles of cow poop and then we started on our hike. We saw lots of cows.  The cows were far away from us and we kept our distance because sometimes the cows might charge after you. As we are walking on the trial, one of the Sacramento Valley Conservancy volunteers told us to stop to listen to the black birds chirping and he also showed us two different types of oak trees; Blue Oak and Valley Oak.

Fred, a Sacramento Valley Conservancy volunteer showed us how the cows scratch their backs; they rub their backs against the trees. We also saw a place where the Native American used to grind acorns.

 We saw a pile of bones; we started guessing why they died.  Joshua, one of my friends put a cow bone on his head and we all started laughing.  

For lunch, we stopped to eat by a pond and as we were heading back on the trial, we decided to stop because we saw more cows by trail. The cows immediately started running away. I think they were frightened. Before heading back home, we stopped to feed the horses.   

All of us really enjoyed going on the hike and feeding the horses

Spirit of Giving Celebration

Recently, Sacramento Food Bank & Family Services (SFBFS) hosted our annual Spirit of Giving recognition event. This gathering is meant to celebrate all of the wonderful businesses, schools, churches and neighborhood groups who raised money, food and clothing for SFBFS during the holiday season. This year, SFBFS partnered with over 250 organizations and together they collected nearly 100,000 pounds of food, over 26,500 articles of clothing and close to $34,000 dollars in cash contributions.

The cash contributions were raised through SFBFS' Virtual Food Drive, which allows SFBFS to leverage relationships with local farms and purchase healthy food directly from local farmers at a discounted rate. The organization's goal is to continue to build the Virtual Food Drive so SFBFS can increase the percentage of fresh fruits, vegetables, legumes and grains that we provide to families in need. 

Currently, a family that visits SFBFS' Food program receives a four day supply of food and more than 50% of the food  items they receive are fresh produce. The families in our Food program have been receptive to this change and show their appreciation by engaging in health and nutrition discussions, gardening classes and positive changes to their diet. All of these program changes have taken time, but the results have been significant. In 2010, SFBFS served 9,000 individuals per month. Today, with our free famers' market format, taking produce 12 different locations each month, SFBFS now serves 20,000 people per month. None of this would be possible without the generosity form all the wonderful groups that support our efforts. 

Check out great photos from this year's Spirit of Giving celebration

Is your company interested in hosting a donation drive? Visit SFBFS' Web site for more information.

Submitted by Blake Young, President/CEO

Eat to Feed the Hungry - Dine out to help a family in need

Sacramento Food Bank & Family Services (SFBFS) has partnered with The Grid Agency to host the 2nd annual Eat to Feed the Hungry. During March 10-16, members of the community are encouraged to participate in a good cause by simply checking-in via social media at participating local restaurants. Diners can enjoy breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner or dessert at one (or more) of the following restaurants to support SFBFS:
* Mulvaney's B& L
* The Red Rabbit Restaurant & Bar 
* The Firehouse Restaurant 
* Ten22  
* Lucca Restaurant & Bar
* Ella Dining Room & Bar 
* Nopolitos Southwestern Cafe  
* Miyagi Bar & Sushi
* Golden Bear 
* Hook & Ladder Manufacturing Company 
* River City Brewing Company 
* Ink Eats and Drinks 
* Hoppy Brewing Company

The goal of this fun, local event is to remind Sacramento diners that SFBFS, the local charity that operates Run to Feed the Hungry, serves thousands of families year 'round. Thanksgiving is an understandable time of year to give thanks and support families in need. But what about March? Sacramentans can keep their support going throughout the year by enjoying a meal and providing a meal for another family.

There is no purchase necessary to participate in this event, but diners can make a contribution to SFBFS to support a family in need! For every $10 donation, diners will receive one entry to win a $50 gift card to one of the participating restaurants. As a thank you for a $50 contribution, diners will receive a Run to Feed the Hungry beanie, a donation of $100 earns the diner a Run to Feed the Hungry nylon back pack and as a thank you for a donation of $250 or more, the diner will receive a Run to Feed the Hungry travel mug and gloves. Check out photos of prizes here.
                  
To increase their chances of winning a gift card, participants can snap a photo of their family enjoying a meal during Eat to Feed the Hungry wearing your favorite Run to Feed the Hungry shirt then post it to SFBFS' Facebook page. Each photo posted from a different dining experience will equal one more entry to win a gift card!

Wear your favorite Run to Feed the Hungry shirt from any year out to dinner next week. It’s an easy way to support SFBFS’ mission and help feed a family in need.