FEBRUARY 2023

A TCS overview  

It's been 10 months since we've sent out an update, so we've a lot to update people on.

2022 highlights

• Last year our hardworking volunteers put in more than 16,000 hours giving our more than 180,000 pounds of food and more than 150,000 items of clothing.
• People took food 15,931 times. Because we do not make people register to use the Space or restrict how many times they visit, we do not know exactly how many people came to us for food, but we can estimate that, if most visitors come once a week, we are serving about 300 individuals and families a week. We do know each person was feeding an average of two additional people at home.
• To address a shortage of volunteers and fatigue among those who volunteer with us, in September we made the decision to close TCS on Thursdays. This is part of the reason our overall numbers are a bit down from last year: we were open fewer hours. Wednesday nights and Saturday mornings have always been our most popular times, and removing the Thursday morning hours has been helpful.
• Donations were a bright spot for the year. In 2019, 2020 and 2021 our donations came within $10,000 of our expenses, in two years exceeding them and in one year falling a few thousand dollars short. In 2022, however, we received $73,748 and spent only $36,110.
• KwikTrip and Walmart continue to be a strong local partner sending us food every week.

Coming up in 2023

• Feeding America, our main food supplier, sent out this alert in January: "We wanted to alert you to changes occurring in regards to FoodShare, Wisconsin’s SNAP Benefits program. At the end of 2022, Congress put together a spending package to fund the government. As part of that package, they ended FoodShare Emergency Allotments, the extra FoodShare payments households have been receiving, in February 2023. Starting in March, FoodShare recipients of all ages will lose benefits, but the steepest cliff will be for older adults at the minimum benefit level who will potentially have their monthly FoodShare benefits fall from $281 to $23." Because of this major change, we anticipate an strong uptick in the use of our food pantry starting in March.
• At the same time, we are able to order less from Feeding America, as they are seeing increasing demand and are limiting the amount of bulk food items any one pantry can order. This has caused us to purchase more bulk items locally in order to keep the basics on the shelves and to turn to food drives to help fill up the shelves.

A big change at TCS

One of the hallmarks of TCS has been flexibility. The flexibility to adapt to a polar vortex the week we opened, the flexibility to adjust to the demands of a pandemic a year after we opened, and the flexibility to adjust what we do and when we do it based on the needs and interests of our users.

For example, the classes we envisioned would be held in our space — bike repair classes, seed starting classes — are instead ESL classes. Those classes make great use of our smaller rooms, and we are happy to host them.

When we first saw the space we occupy, we were excited to have a vestibule that was open 24/7 so that people could drop off donations when it was convenient for them and pick up food from the little free pantry at all hours. And people did use this space. For the first two years we were open, emptying the donation bin several times a day was one of the most physically demanding jobs our volunteers did. But it allowed us to reuse a great quantity of clothing and other items that otherwise might have gone to the landfill.

In 2022, however, we saw a big shift. More people were cleaning out their homes and dropping off large amounts of often poorly sorted or damaged items. And we had a small number of people who repeatedly came through in the middle of the night to open bags and sort through them to take what they wanted, leaving a big mess for volunteers to clean up, day in and day out. We tried signs, a camera — nothing helped. In the end, we decided it was time to be flexible again, closing the vestibule for the time being and providing a much smaller little free pantry — the purple cabinet pictured — out front.

The good news? We have far fewer junky things to sort through, which makes it easier on our volunteers. The bad news, of course, is that people have to come during our open hours to drop off donations, and we both know that's a burden for many and can see that it's cut down considerably on the items we receive.

We'll revisit this in the future, and for the time being appreciate your understanding when your have to donate your items during our open hours.

Can you help? WUL food drive April 1

Due the recent shift in federal food benefits, all food pantries are bracing for an increase in demand for food starting in March. Whitewater Unites Lives (WUL) is leading a food drive for us on Saturday, April 1, from 8:30-11:30 a.m. To participate, drive around to the back of TCS at 834 E. Milwaukee St. in Whitewater and volunteers will collect your food donations from your car.

All nonperishable food is welcome, but here's what we especially need:

• Peanut butter
• Canned tuna or chicken
• Dried beans (especially pinto beans)
• Bulk rice (we will re-bag into smaller portions)
• Cereal
• Pasta
• Soup

Thanks to our friends at WUL for helping us and the community out!

About the Community Space

About the Community Space

• The Community Space is open to all, without restrictions. 
• We have food, clothing, furniture and housewares.
• No appointment is necessary.
• No documentation/proof of anything is needed.
• Our address is 834 E. Milwaukee St. in Whitewater, WI. 
• Our hours are Tuesday 8:30-11 am, Wednesday 3:30-7 pm and Saturday 8:30 am-noon. 
• Yes, we accept donations during our open hours; drive around the back, and ring the bell.

Sobre El Espacio Comunitario

• El Espacio Comunitario está abierto a todos, sin restricciones.
• Contamos con alimentos, ropa, muebles y enseres domésticos.
• No es necesaria cita previa.
• No se necesita documentación / prueba de nada.
• Nuestra dirección es 834 E. Milwaukee St. en Whitewater, WI.
• Nuestro horario es martes 8:30-11 am, miércoles 3:30-7 pm y sábado 8:30 am-12 pm.
• Sí, aceptamos donaciones durante nuestro horario de atención; conduzca por la parte de atrás y toque el timbre.