Beneficiaries
Who We Help
Loaves and Fishes
We thank you for the financial support to continue our mission at Loaves & Fishes. We feed the hungry and provide companionship and practical assistance to our less fortunate neighbors.
Loaves & Fishes is in a unique position when it comes to helping people in need. As our advocacy coordinator put it:
"Individuals will often come for food before they'll look for help anywhere else. We are often the first people that someone in need will see."
Here, there are no counselors, no appointments, and no forms to submit. Kitchen volunteers, volunteer advocates, staff and guests eat together and get to know one another on a daily basis. If help is needed, be it information, referrals, a ride, or encouragement, it flows naturally out of these daily interactions. Personal relationships are built in a community setting where people know and trust each other. Often listening and giving one's time derive the greatest impact. With this layer of trust, crises can often be averted, and people will have community support for the long haul.
Our unique service makes the meal program accessible for other agencies to do outreach for guests seeking food and support for basic needs. A Tompkins County Health nurse comes weekly, and staff visits from different agencies are scheduled during the month.
An average of 120 guests, comprising families and people of all ages and walks of life, continues to come each weekday for a warm nourishing meal. We are aware that many cannot afford to purchase basic nutritious foods and others do not have the equipment or ability to cook their own meals. Most guests seek social interaction and many have ongoing crises and life struggles. The Loaves & Fishes community does provide a unique place, welcoming all who come, and our guests have been very grateful.
Funds raised from Taste of the Nation will purchase food and supplies and support the staff that provides free meals, hospitality, and advocacy for those in need.
The Food Bank of the Southern Tier
www.foodbankst.orgThe Food Bank of the Southern Tier is a regional agency of Catholic Charities and a member of America's Second Harvest The Nation's Food Bank Network. The Food Bank is a charitable organization that solicits, stores, and distributes donated food and grocery products to those in need across the Southern Tier, NY.
These products are distributed to a network of charitable human-service member agencies, which in turn, provide the products directly to those in need through various programs. The Food Bank's network of over 175 member agencies include soup kitchens, food pantries, senior meal programs, and other human-services agencies serving the economically disadvantaged. The Food Bank serves six counties across the Southern Tier, NY including Broome, Chemung, Schuyler, Steuben, Tioga, and Tompkins.
The Taste of the Nation funds raised provide a terrific boost in the Food Bank's hunger-relief efforts. The funds help the Food Bank acquire and distribute food to our neighbors in need through our network of member agencies and various programs like the BackPack Program ™.
The Food Bank's BackPack Program™ distributes food to children at risk of hunger over weekend and holiday breaks when school free or reduced price meal programs are not in session. Children at risk of hunger receive a bag of nutritious, easy to prepare food each Friday during the school year. The Food Bank plans to expand the BackPack Program™ in order to meet the need of increasing child hunger right here in our own community.
For more information about the Food Bank, visit http://www.foodbankst.org or call 607-796-6061.
The Learning Web Youth Outreach Program
The Learning Web and its Youth Outreach Program provide a safety net for our community's homeless and transient youth and young adults; providing a long term independent living skills program, and an array of supportive services to help young people become able to support themselves.
"I feel so good that I can take care of myself now." -Patti, age 18
Patti was 17 years old when she became involved with The Learning Web's Youth Outreach Program. She had been living with her 4 year old son and her Dad who was a drug addict. They had been evicted from their apartment and Patti's Dad abandoned her. Patti was left behind to fend for herself and her child.
A friend told her that Youth Outreach could help. Staff assisted her in getting food and basic needs for her and her son and accompanied her through the process of applying for public assistance and searching for housing. Patti did receive benefits and was able to cover her basic needs and secured an apartment for herself and her son.
Knowing that the key to earning a living was completing her education, Patti used the Youth Outreach Computer Lab to study for her GED. Staff recognized Patti's potential for being a great employee and offered her an apprenticeship opportunity. Patti began her apprenticeship as an office assistant at a local non-profit. She got rave reviews from her mentor and took on more responsibilities. Youth Outreach was also able to provide her with work clothing through a local consignment shop.
Patti's commitment to herself paid off when she completed her apprenticeship and began her job hunt. Her social skills, professional presentation, and self-confidence led her to be offered an interview at a local business that was hiring. Patti was hired at the business and has been working there 8 months. Youth Outreach helped her locate good daycare for her son and was able to provide funds to start him off until she was earning enough to pay herself. Patti's full-time job pays a liveable wage and offers health insurance benefits. She would like to finish her Associate's degree and is talking to staff about options to go to school while working. Patti's mentor expressed it best: "It's always inspiring to see someone so young who is so motivated and responsible."
It is hard to imagine a group of people more alienated and powerless than homeless youth like Patti. Their daily struggles for securing the necessities of life such as food and shelter go largely unnoticed by most in the community. Unless they find themselves in the correctional or mental health systems, few community resources are devoted to helping them build the foundation for a self-sufficient lifestyle. Housing alone cannot meet the needs of these youth. A lack of education and employment skills prevents youth from amassing the resources to live self-sufficiently. SOS funding makes it possible for a program like The Learning Web to provide the supports and opportunities these youth need to develop into successful adults. SOS funds provide resources that go directly to our participants and support our independent living program activities. Patti and other Youth Outreach participants receive outreach services, intensive case-management, independent living skills training and paid apprenticeships through the program in order to develop the skills necessary for a self-sufficient, productive life.
Youth Outreach participants face a complex set of problems that must be addressed if they are to move to a healthier, more productive lifestyle. Despite the overwhelming picture this presents, our participants, like Patti, can and do overcome their life circumstances; breaking out of the cycle of poverty. Using the resources of Youth Outreach, these young people build healthy, productive, and self-sufficient lives.
