Between July 1, 2010 and June 30, 2011, ShareNet provided food assistance 9,578 times. During the same period, 260,929 pounds of food was distributed.
We’re astonished by those numbers and the rapid growth of ShareNet since 2007-08 when our assistance numbers were closer to 2,500. Even more astonishing is the fact that we’ve managed that growth with the same number of staff (four part-timers), and in the same space. We have had some incredible help managing our growth, from a growing volunteer pool and the donations of a generous community.
These figures just measure our food distribution as reported to the Department of Agriculture and do not include the assistance we provide for eviction and power shutoff prevention — $30,000 in 2011, also funded by community donations. Also not measured in these figures is our weekend take-home food program for school children, Food to Grow On; our work clothes program, ShareWear; our Back to School Supplies event, which served 165 kids this year; or the Christmas Shop, which serves more than 100 children annually.
In October, ShareNet kicks off Neighbor Aid 2011, the annual fundraiser which keeps our services going. It’s your help which allows ShareNet to continue to meet this unprecedented demand in rough economic times with no end in sight.
When you contribute to ShareNet, you make a difference in the lives of local residents who are struggling. Your dollars reach deep into the community. You won’t know the name of the person or family you helped, but you might pass them on the street one day — someone able to smile again from the support you and ShareNet provided, someone with one less overwhelming concern that month. You won’t know their name, but that help will have reached them just the same, with incredible speed and right in your own backyard. You haven’t just made a donation, you’ve made a difference.
What is the difference? – Survival, for many of our most needy clients: You helped the senior living on $628 a month access food during a period when she couldn’t afford groceries due to medication purchases and co-pays. – Making ends meet that month for others: You helped the single dad, unemployed for 16 months, put food on the table until he found a job. – Keeping the lights and heat on: You helped the family whose power had been shut off for three days over a frigid winter weekend, after a severe medical emergency left them without enough to cover basics. – Preventing loss of home: You helped the mom on the verge of eviction who was getting the car ready to live in with her toddler and 6-year-old after her husband left them with a stack of unpaid bills.
Another way to support ShareNet this year, and an incredible opportunity to learn, is by attending the “Five Levels of Leadership” conference with leadership expert and bestselling writer Dr. John C. Maxwell on Nov. 1 at the Kitsap Convention Center. All registration fees will be donated to ShareNet. Visit our website sharenetfoodbank.org for more details.
