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Dear Friends,
Happy New Year! As we closed out 2023, we had so much for which to be grateful. With your support we helped to provide a very happy Christmas for more than 1,500 children and 750 families through our Sponsor a Family program and we welcomed record numbers of new guests. As we greet the new year, we will continue to remain optimistic about the future even in light of declining government support.
During the first six months of this year, we saw our hot meal program increase 26% and our mobile market program increased 13% over last year. Since July we have averaged more than 25 new registrations each day and if we keep this pace, we are on track to distribute more than 5 million meals in this fiscal year.
As February draws near, we are getting ready to begin the season of Lent. Here at Bread and Life, Lent is a time of personal reflection. We ask ourselves, what will we do this year to make a difference? How will we respond to the needs of our guests better? Our Lenten Appeal helps raise money and reminds us of the power of 1 meal. Imagine what it’s like to not know where your next meal is coming from or whether or not an elderly guest or child has enough to eat? We know that 1 meal can make a difference. We know that our efforts do make a difference in our community and so we invite you to join with us as we venture through another Lenten season.
In March we are holding our First Annual Mixer for Meals at Pando Park on March 14, 2024, honoring Angelo Grima. Angelo was a good friend to Bread and Life and had introduced many friends to our work. He and his business colleagues were in the planning stages of this event when he passed away suddenly and so in his honor, we will host this event in his honor. All funds raised on that night will go directly to our emergency food programs.
As we begin this new year, I am reminded of a line from a Frank Sinatra song that says, “The best is yet to come.” In that spirit, let’s practice compassion, let’s find beauty in the eyes of those who stand in front of us, let’s remember kindness overrides “rightness” and may we meet each day knowing that our actions do make a difference in the world.
With gratitude,
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