Our pantry coordinators recently shared, “Children may be small, but they can be mighty. The kindergarten through fifth grade students of Indian Hill Church’s Vacation Bible School proved that this August.
Molly Milligan, coordinator of the program, reached out to NEEDS to request a speaker to talk to the students about the mission and work of NEEDS. She and her team also encouraged students and their families to collect food during the week to donate to NEEDS on the program’s final day. Their efforts focused on peanut butter and boxed cereal, currently most needed items at the pantry. Every item donated helped to restock empty pantry shelves for the coming weeks.”
A big thank you to the families of Indian Hill Church! Click HERE to learn more about how you can help NEEDS serve our community.
NEEDS is holding our annual Student Assistance Drive!
In just a few weeks, students in the Deer Park, Sycamore, and Princeton districts will return to school – but many families in these districts cannot afford school supplies, or even necessities like food and clothing. NEEDS is seeking donations of gift cards and money to help purchase supplies for the beginning of the school year, and to provide students with warm winter clothing in December. You can help!
What to donate: – Gift cards from stores such as Walmart, Target, and Kroger – Visa and Mastercard gift cards – Gas cards (many families live in areas where busing is not available) – Check (marked for Student Assistance Drive)
Please mail your gift card or check to: NEEDS c/o Kenwood Baptist Church 8341 Kenwood Rd Cincinnati OH 45236
Personal Care: Deodorant (men’s and women’s) Toothpaste Shampoo Pump hand soap
Donations can be dropped off at Kenwood Baptist Church during our open hours (Tuesday and Thursday 9:00-1:00). You can also donate via our Amazon Wish List, and your donation will be shipped directly to the pantry!
Many parents struggle to feed their children during the summer when school assistance is unavailable. In the last month, more than 30 new families came to NEEDS for food and emergency financial aid.
Here are the latest totals:
During the month of July, the NEEDS pantry provided food to 224 families – for a total of 746 people!
NEEDS also provided emergency financial assistance to 19 families, distributing $6996.00 to cover housing and utilities.
Click HERE to learn more about how you can help our neighbors in need!
The NEEDS pantry serves hundreds of people each month. You can help by donating some of our most-needed items!
This month’s top needs are boxed cereal(we are about to run out!); packaged side dishes, such as stuffing, pasta and rice mixes, and potato dishes; and canned green beans.
Personal Care: Deodorant (men’s and women’s) Toothpaste
Donations can be dropped off at Kenwood Baptist Church during our open hours (Tuesday and Thursday 9:00-1:00). You can also donate via our Amazon Wish List, and your donation will be shipped directly to the pantry!
Summer is a challenging season for families who rely on school assistance to feed their children. More than 20 new families visited NEEDS for aid in June, and requests for both food and emergency financial assistance remained high.
Here are the latest totals:
During the month of June, the NEEDS pantry provided food to 175 families – for a total of 605 people!
NEEDS also provided emergency financial assistance to 16 families, distributing $5534.00 to cover housing and utilities.
Click HERE to learn more about how you can help our neighbors in need!
Pantry coordinator Maureen shared this story of generosity during NEEDS’ most challenging season:
“How much can you expect from very young kids? It turns out to be a LOT!
When Madeira Silverwood Presbyterian Church’s Vacation Bible School program offered to hold a food drive for the NEEDS pantry, we didn’t expect a big donation. But the kids and their families were overwhelmingly generous. For a relatively small congregation, their donations filled an SUV to the max with items that will keep our pantry stocked for the weeks ahead.
Summer is the most demanding season for the NEEDS pantry. All the usual organizations that hold drives for us are closed and church members are on vacation. Our shelves empty quickly as more children are at home and doing without their subsidized school breakfasts and lunches.”
Want to follow these kids’ example? Click HERE to learn more about how you can support NEEDS this summer!
On June 15, Evergreen Presbyterian Church hosted a festival to celebrate the earth and share information about how we can all be better stewards of our planet — and NEEDS was invited to participate! We shared a booth with the Society of St. Andrew, a national group that “gleans” or gathers donated food and produce from farmers’ markets or fields and provides it to food pantries and agencies that work with those in need. The NEEDS pantry receives gleaned items from the Montgomery Farmers’ Market every Saturday from May through October, enabling us to offer fresh fruit, vegetables, and bakery items to those seeking our help. The Earth Care Festival was a great opportunity to show our community how food that would otherwise go to waste can be used to feed our neighbors.
Festival attendees offered food and financial donations to NEEDS, and several provided their contact information in order to volunteer at the pantry. Thank you to Evergreen for including us!
Summer is the most challenging season for the NEEDS pantry. The schools that hold large food drives for us are closed, and many other supporters are away on vacation. You can help by donating some of our most-needed items!
This month’s top needs are canned chicken soups; packaged side dishes, such as stuffing, pasta and rice mixes, and potato dishes; and laundry detergent.
Personal Care: Deodorant (men’s and women’s) Toothpaste Shampoo
Donations can be dropped off at Kenwood Baptist Church during our open hours (Tuesday and Thursday 9:00-1:00). You can also donate via our Amazon Wish List, and your donation will be shipped directly to the pantry!
