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Interfaith Food Pantry
of the Oranges
We are an all-volunteer, supplemental food pantry helping to meet essential human needs
of food-insecure residents of Orange and East
Orange, NJ with dignity and respect.
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A proud member of the MEND network of food pantries
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* Diaper Angel Needed
* Celebrating One Year of Client Choice
* New IFPO Video
* Farmers Market Pilot Program
* Cookbook benefits IFPO
* Fabulous Socks from Bombas
* Support from NCJW Period.Project and Good People's Fund
* Sonny's Bagels, IFPO Honored, Preschool Visits, Books and Art Supplies, Medical and Nutrition Education, and Much More
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We're Looking for an August Diaper Angel
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GROWTH OF OUR DIAPER PROGRAM REQUIRES AN INFUSION OF FUNDS
IFPO needs financial help to maintain our Diaper Program, which keeps babies clean, dry and healthy by distributing diapers, wipes and diaper cream once a month to registered babies. Currently there are 238 babies registered in the program and we receive more than a dozen new registrations every month.
The Community FoodBank, our usual source of inexpensive diapers through the
National Diaper Bank Network
, has not had diapers available for months. This has increased IFPO's diaper program costs immensely. If IFPO stopped providing diapers to our clients, their health would be impacted, as would their
parents' ability to leave their children in daycare to go to work and school.
The IFPO Diaper Program is a tremendous help to low income families, as diapers and baby care products are not covered under SNAP (food stamps) or WIC (supplemental nutrition program for women, infants and children) assistance programs. We are grateful for the historical support of IFPO's Diaper program by
funds from the
Bass Foundation
and the Susan Sommer Fund for Social Justice, and for the July Diaper sponsorship by Rabbi Dan Cohen of Temple Sharey Tefilo-Israel.
Other ways you can help: IFPO purchases discounted diapers online through Jet.com's
Jet Cares "Give a Pack" program
; online donations to IFPO's program can be made there. You can also make a direct donation to IFPO with "Diaper Program" in the memo line. We happily accept opened packs of clean diapers and pullups (great when your child or grandchild changes sizes or is potty-trained). And, we love when organizations or individuals do a diaper drive for us!
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One Year Since Client Choice Began
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Celebrating a year of client choice
Client Choice, begun last July at IFPO, is clearly a rousing success. We are very proud to be one of the few New Jersey pantries able to provide this
dignified, empowering shopping experience where clients are treated with respect. Clients love
the opportunity to select their own foods instead of receiving a pre-packed bag of groceries.* With client choice, our clients do not receive food they have already, do not like, or cannot eat for health or personal reasons. Our card system allows them to select foods within food groups for the size of their household so they can make well-balanced meals at home. Our volunteer escorts as well as our "shopkeepers" now get to interact and know our clients, and both clients and volunteers comment on how meaningful this experience has become to all.
*We do still pre-pack groceries for clients who need to "grab and go", for emergency guests from outside our catchment area, for certain qualifying workers and parents utilizing the Day Care Center at the Church, and for first time clients. Having some clients take these grab and go bags actually allows everyone else to get through the choice shopping system faster.
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Our new IFPO video tells a great story
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An amazing video created by Julie Mayer of Lifetime Tales Productions shows how important the presence of the IFPO is to our clients and gives an overview of the services we provide. As one client said "I cried. I wasn't expecting the kindness and support here". Please take a few minutes to watch this important message at
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A Summer Bounty of Fresh Produce as CFB Farmers Market Pilot Program Begins; Farm & Fork shares, Walton home-grown veggies and fresh SFPP veggies arrive!
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Fabulous Farmers Market Food Distribution
Program Brings More Produce to Our Clients
IFPO jumped when nominated by the Community FoodBank (CFB) to receive free pallets of produce on a monthly basis as part of a CFB pilot program from May through the mid-Fall.
The program's goal is to provide more healthy options to people in food insecure communities, like Orange and East Orange. We are extremely grateful that the produce at our site is now sponsored by our fabulous partner
Summit Medical Group Foundation
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If cost and storage were not an issue, most people say they prefer the taste and texture of fresh vegetables and fruits to canned. Canned produce often has more sodium than fresh,
and canned fruits are often packed in sugar.
On May 31, when we received four full pallets of vegetables, over 260 IFPO clients received generous amounts of onions, potatoes, cabbages and apples. They also could choose fresh pressed green juices and teas, as well as other commodities we received that day from CFB including apple sauce and sauces.
We shared the produce bounty with the Church of the Epiphany Thursday Soup Kitchen as well as their Saturday Food Pantry. Orange Police Officer Lop brought produce to an Orange Senior Center, and Worldwide Orphans distributed apples at the Orange Library after school program.
On June 28, IFPO clients received shallots, potatoes, 5 pound bags of carrots and watermelons! W
e significantly increased the quantity of each fresh item offered that day to each client at our own pantry - though we worried how our clients would carry everything home - and were able to successfully distribute five pallets at our own site! On July 26, our 282 clients took home pallets of zucchini, tomatoes, potatoes, cabbages and watermelons, as well as lemonade. We were thrilled to have
Joe Finocchiaro, Executive Director of
SMG Foundation, join us to offer insight on how we could improve this program and brainstorm how they could support IFPO. Renee Helfenstein and Debby Scheinholtz of CFB also visited to see the Farmers Market program in action.
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| Joe Finocchiaro and Pamela Singer of SMG Foundation at Farmers Market with IFPO leaders Lisa Goldberg Ozer, Jodi Cooperman and Diane Stein. |
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We're also now receiving a limited quantity of summer bounty from
Farm & Fork Society
, a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) program. As New Jersey's summer growing season comes into full swing, our clients will have the possibility of choosing organic, locally sourced produce like swiss chard, sugarsnap peas, lettuces and fresh herbs. Thanks to Carpenter's Club super volunteer John Scott who is picking up our crop each week!
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Giant zucchini, banana peppers and client-favorite eggplant arrived in our first two deliveries of the season from the Garden Club of t
he
Edward V.
Walton
School Early Childhood Center of Springfield Public Schools.
We are so grateful for the support of both students and teachers from the Walton School, and to Lauren Fischer who spearheads this effort each year. We loved seeing the little bits of soil that clung to the banana peppers, a wonderful reminder to us all that food is actually grown, not manufactured.
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On July 19th, we were thrilled to distribute 1,512 pounds of fresh peaches and 900 pounds of fresh North Carolina yams to our clients.
We received these items as part
of
NJ's State Food Purchase Program (SFPP)
.
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F
unds for the purchase of healthy and nutritious foods to feed people affected by hunger are allocated each year in the NJ State budget.
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Cookbook proceeds benefit IFPO
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How lovely when art and philanthropy combine for a great result. On May 31, artist Debbie Livingston came to IFPO to
donate the considerable proceeds from the sale of 100 copies printed from her handmade alphabetical cookbook. The book was originally created for the
Book Arts Roundtable, a yearly group show of handmade books at the Pierro Gallery at the Baird Center of South Orange, and Debbie was encouraged to print copies. After a conversation with Dot Ganek, a fellow artist and IFPO supporter,
Debbie chose to donate the sale proceeds to IFPO! We were so delighted with her generousity, and thrilled that she was able to volunteer on our very busy morning as well.
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Fabulous socks from Bombas
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Over 250 clients received three pairs each of Bombas socks at the end of April.
We are excited to be a "giving partner" of
Bombas, an amazing company that works with shelters, non-profits, charities, and individuals dedicated to helping the homeless, in-need, or at-risk communities (including 40,000 veterans).
For every pair of socks purchased, Bombas donates socks. These especially designed donations have darker colors to show less visible wear, anti-microbial treatment to not need washing so often, and reinforced seams for greater durability and lifespan.
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NCJW Period.Project and PEO Provide Feminine Hygiene Products to IFPO Clients
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The National Council of Jewish Women, Essex County (NCJWEssex) has created The Period.Project to enable women in need to secure feminine hygiene products.
Recognizing menstrual inequality as a global issue, the long term goal of the local project is to have the Community FoodBank stock these products to make them available to partner agencies. In the short term, NCJWEssex is running a pilot program at IFPO and St. James Social Services in Newark to document the need for these products.
Volunteers from NCJW (including participants in their "Mitzvah in a Minute" program) came to IFPO each of the last three months to distribute pads to our clients, and helped us escort as well. We're delighted to have had these volunteers on a monthly basis during the current 4 month trial, and our clients are thrilled to receive these costly and necessary supplies.
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We were also grateful for products provided by P.E.O. International, a
philanthropic organization focused on providing educational opportunities for women, rooted in the philosophy and institutions of the Methodist Church that started promoting womens' rights and education in the 1800's. IFPO leader Peggy Baggaley spoke about IFPO recently to a local PEO chapter. In August
, our clients will receive a year's supply of products from our fabulous partner
Girls Helping Girls. Period.
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Good People's Fund Continues Toiletries Support
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Putting food on the table is hard for our clients; purchasing the personal care products they need is often a choice they have to forego. We are grateful for the continued support of the
Good People's Fund
, which
allows us to offer toiletries to clients on a monthly basis. Soap and deoderants are big hits in the summer!
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We're toasting Sonny's Bagels
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Our new donor Sonny's Bagels is freezing bagels for us each week to be able to distribute to clients on pantry Wednesdays. Stop by at 123 South Orange Ave., South Orange and thank new owner Jason Miller for his generousity!
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IFPO Honored by Church of the Epiphany and Chirst Church of Orange
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IFPO was honored when The Church of Epiphany and Christ Church of Orange celebrated their new consolidated ministry. We are so grateful for the support of this Church, our fifth partner in providing food and support services to the Orange and East Orange communities. Click here to read the lovely tribute to IFPO from the Church.
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Girls Empowerment, Beth El Preschool Visits; Books and Art Supplies; Medical and Nutrition Education
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Girls Empowerment Can Change the World
Fourth and fifth grade girls from The Girls Empowerment Club of the Louverture School in East Orange came to IFPO in May. The Club is underwritten by the Bass Foundation, which also brought 240 heads of lettuce and 400 apples for our clients that day. IFPO leader Janet Schwamm told the girls about the workings of the IFPO, and then they acted as escorts for our lucky clients as they went through the choice pantry.
Preschoolers from Congregation Beth El came to IFPO in May, and learned about helping their neighbors. Under the direction of IFPO leader Shayna Schmidt, and supported by Rabbi Jesse Olitsky, these adorable youngsters packed 12 "grab and go" bags for day care workers and IFPO clients who pick up their children at the day care center at the Church. We so appreciate all the bags of food Beth El also donated that day (we gave out a lot of Passover matzahs for use as crackers at our grain table)!
Our partner
Summit Medical Group Foundation, continues to provides health screenings, including blood pressure readings, to our clients each month. Their impact on this medically underserved population is amazing, including successful positive changes as SMG has identified individuals with immediate medical need.
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Book Distribution Boosts
Summer Reading
Summer reading is known to help children keep up their skills, encourage reading as a lifelong habit, and provide an imaginative enriching activity when children have more leisure time. As this can be particularly true for low-income children, we jumped at the chance to provide books for our clients to take home this summer. Our thanks to Elise Grebe and friends who organized a drive to collect this wonderful bounty, and to BookBGone who donated childrens' books and cookbooks several times this summer.
Creativity Abounds with Art Supplies
Nicole Ruffo and the Gregory Service Committee of Gregory Elementary School, West Orange held an Art Supply Drive that gave clients incredible products for perfect summer inspiration, distributed in lovingly colored bags. Thanks also to
Girls on the Run for their contributions.
Increasing Healthy Choices Nutritionists from
NJ SNAP-Ed, a program aimed at improving nutrition and increasing physical activity among SNAP-eligible audiences, are once again coming to IFPO. Clients received food thermometers when they attended the June lesson on grilling.
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Programs to Increase Breakfast and Food Options this Summer
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For families struggling with hunger, summer can be particularly difficult. Forty percent of IFPO's clients are children who receive free breakfast and lunch while in school but not during the summer months.
During the summer, only 19% of the 44,000 children in Essex County who depend on school breakfast and lunch programs are able to access feeding sites.
We've instituted a small Breakfast Bar program this summer to provide extra support to our families with children. We brainstormed this idea during the First Annual CFB Women Fighting Hunger Luncheon! Thanks to
Clarity Refractive Services for their support of of our summer feeding efforts, including this program in July.
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As a member pantry of
MEND, we received supplies for Summer Hunger Buster Bags to provide 130 families with extra cereal, milk and raisins.
We also receive groceries from MEND's Summer Food Drives, being conducted at 22 Essex County Libraries through Sept. 1. And our clients will love the GOYA products (including dried beans, nectars, and Adobo seasoning) recently received through MEND.
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We're So Grateful for the Volunteer Groups
Working at IFPO this Summer
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TSTI Women's Connection, with Rabbi Daniel Cohen
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St. Rose of Lima Youth, and
Christ Church Boy Scouts
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Freewalkers (see more
here).
And special thanks to Freewalkers Risa and Ben Olinsky who've been such great regular volunteers for us this spring and summer!
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Volunteer Boot Camp of
Jewish Federation of Greater Metrowest
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Our Worldwide Orphans Crew is the Best!
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The presence of WWO each week makes our task so much easier, and is especially great in summer when many kids come to our pantry with their parents.
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New Tech, Food and Clothing Donations
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Our tech is so much better now! Thanks to Michael Schawmm and Duane Morris LLP, and to Barry Rosenthal, father of IFPO Board member Shayna Schmidt, we
are now the owners of several beautiful, like-new PCs. We now have maximum flexibility to handle check in, electronic signature capture, recertifications, and registrations for 250 plus clients in a two hour window!
We received 30 bags of groceries in May from the 25th Annual Letter Carriers' Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive, thanks to the letter carriers of Short Hills. Read more here.
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Saba Khan, Sam Marin and Cyndy Wyatt picking up clothing, baby blankets and more recently offered to diaper agencies at CFB.
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