Jennifer Sammons

Congratulations to Leighann Zemp, our February Volunteer of the Month

Leigh Ann

Leighann is a volunteer in the Bureau Drawer, where she helps out in the sorting room and assists in the shop. She’s been a wonderful addition to the shop since 2009 (nearly a decade!). You’ll recognize her by her distinctive laugh and her tiny Chihuahua, Chewy, who she brings to Interfaith once a month to have his nails trimmed by a fellow volunteer.

Cindy says:
“Leighann has been volunteering in the shop two days a week for 10 years. She’s hardworking and dedicated to our fundraising mission.

When she comes in the atmosphere totally changes. She’s friendly, busy and very outspoken. Customers, donors and volunteers love her so much and it’s noticed if she happens to be out on one of her days. They all ask where she is.

Leighann always has animated stories to tell and she helps everyone have a great experience when they shop. She helps them find the perfect outfit or anything else they never knew they needed! She puts her magic touch in the shop whether it’s a special display, dressing a mannequin or cleaning and making the shop shine. It’s always something.

Leighann has a big heart and we’re very grateful she’s a volunteer at Interfaith.”

Chewy celebrates his birthday with a doggie cupcake.

We asked Leighann 4 Questions:

  1. Why did you choose to volunteer at Interfaith?

A former volunteer, Chickie, asked me to volunteer with her. I did and I got hooked from there.

  1. What do you enjoy most about volunteering here?

I think all the friendships I’ve made. It’s like a sisterhood to me. I just love what Interfaith stands for.

  1. What’s the most memorable item you’ve seen come through the Thrift Shop?

There are several. I always remember that gorgeous plate we got. A crystal cake plate. We just loved it. And then it broke.

I got the most beautiful Christmas tree (from the Shop) two years ago. It was a 9 1/2 foot Christmas tree somebody donated. I walked in the shop and it was sitting there and it wasn’t even half up. I already had a Christmas tree at home. But I just loved that tree. This was on a Tuesday. And then Friday I come in and the tree was still there. I said, “Oh the tree is still here. I have to get it. I have to get it.” So I bought it. It’s gorgeous, and now I put it in my kitchen.

Also the unique people. There was a belly dancing girl. She’d belly dance in the shop in her bra and we’d all sit around and watch the show.

  1. Tell us something interesting about yourself that the other staff and volunteers may not know.

I really wanted to be an airline stewardess. Back when they were popular with the little outfits and everything. I even went to school for it down in Miami. But it didn’t work out.

I’ve also been married for 36 years. I’ve been with my husband since we were in junior high. He was my first boyfriend and I was his first girlfriend. I was a cheerleader and I used to cheer for him. He was a football player. He drove me home on his little Mongoose bike. We’re still together.

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Know someone who may be interested in volunteering? Have them reach out to volunteer coordinator Paula Daniels at 617-773-6203 ext. 28 or pdaniels@interfaithsocialservices.org.

Interfaith’s Drop-In Days: Try out a food pantry volunteer shift!

We are hosting a week of Volunteer Drop-In Days!

For those looking to lend a hand in their community, now has never been a better time. We’ve seen a dramatic increase in the number of individuals served in the food pantry. More than 800 individuals received food from the pantry in the first two weeks of 2019, compared with 510 during the same time period last year.

“We’ve seen quite an increase this month in the number of clients requesting food from our pantry,” said our Executive Director Rick Doane. “Clients are anxious about the government shutdown and how it may affect their benefits. They are worried about how to feed their families. Our pantry waiting room has been full every day this month.”

We’re able to serve clients through a volunteer force of more than 100 individuals, and we need additional help as demand from the community increases. During the Volunteer Drop-In Days, YOU – members of our community – are invited to try out a volunteer shift in the food pantry.

Those interested in volunteering should arrive at Interfaith, 105 Adams St., Quincy, at either 9:30am or noon for a three-hour volunteer shift any day, Monday, Jan, 28 – Friday, Feb. 1.

Volunteers will be required to fill out a CORI background check and registration form. You should be able to be on your feet for the duration of the shift and lift up to 50 pounds. Excellent customer service and communication skills are required. Volunteers must be 16 years of age or older.

The week-long Drop-In Days event will allow volunteers to get a feel for what it is like serving local residents in need by filling grocery orders for clients and restocking the food pantry shelves. Interfaith hopes that many of the volunteers who drop in will be interested in committing to an ongoing three-hour volunteer shift per week.

Those interested in volunteering at Interfaith Social Services are encouraged to contact volunteer coordinator Paula Daniels at 617-773-6203 ext. 28 or pdaniels@interfaithsocialservices.org. Or just stop by the Volunteers Drop-In Days event at 9:30am or noon between Monday, Jan., 28 and Friday, Feb. 1. See you there!

Congratulations to Cate Lane, our December Volunteer of the Month!

Cate has been volunteering at Interfaith since Sept. 2013. She works at the front desk on Tuesday mornings and runs the cash register on Monday afternoons in the Bureau Drawer Thrift Shop. She was nominated for Volunteer of the Month by her Tuesday front desk co-worker, Ellen Walsh.

Ellen Walsh, left, and Cate Lane, right, Interfaith’s Tuesday morning front desk volunteers.

Ellen says:
“Cate has volunteered for several years at Interfaith, with a smile for everyone. She covers the front desk where she is always empathetic and kind to all clients.

She goes out of her way when a client is in particular need. For example, she once worked with Charlene to help a new immigrant find a sewing machine so that she could continue to be a tailor here in the U.S.

Cate also volunteers regularly in the Thrift Shop. She will cover an additional shift even when they need help on short notice.”

We asked Cate 5 Questions:

1. Why did you choose to volunteer at Interfaith?

I chose to volunteer at Interfaith after researching nonprofit organizations in our community.  I wanted somewhere fairly close so I could still get there in bad weather. When I looked into Interfaith, which is practically around the corner from where I live, I realized this was the same organization that started as the Protestant Social Service Bureau & had been located (again) right around the corner from where I lived in Wollaston.  Although I was not that familiar with it at that time, I had known it was a respected organization which did a lot of good for the community.  So it was a matter of convenience for myself, respect for the organization & appreciation of the work done by Interfaith.

2. Is there a certain aspect of our mission that motivates you to want to volunteer here?

The fact that Interfaith treats all clients with compassion & dignity is a definite motivation for me.  And, the Food Pantry (incredible!) and the Counseling Center help fill a definite need in the community.

3. What other volunteer experience have you had?

I previously volunteered at Quincy Medical Center (2010-2014) and many, many years ago at Carney Hospital.

4. What do you enjoy most about volunteering here?

I enjoy working with the other volunteers who are always upbeat & go out of their way to treat everyone with respect & kindness.  Mostly, I enjoy working for the clients and honestly feel I benefit as much as the clients by volunteering here.  When a client is leaving the office & turns to say thank you or God bless you, you know you are truly blessed and fortunate to be a part of the Interfaith organization.

5. Tell us something interesting about yourself that the other staff and volunteers may not know.

I have become a genealogy fanatic recently  & have corresponded with new found relatives in Ireland, England & Liechtenstein.  While researching, have also discovered my son is eligible for membership in the Sons of American Revolution & the Mayflower Society (on his father’s side of course).

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Know someone who may be interested in volunteering? Have them reach out to volunteer coordinator Paula Daniels at 617-773-6203 ext. 28 or pdaniels@interfaithsocialservices.org.

Wastin’ Away

Now that we’re all stuffed full of Thanksgiving leftovers, let’s take a minute to talk about food waste. A UN study reported than nearly a third of food produced for human consumption never reached the table. That’s astonishing!

At Interfaith, one of our main goals is to rescue food from the waste stream and get it into the hands of those that need it most. We do this through our food rescue program, partnering with local retail stores such as Stop & Shop, Big Y World Class Market, BJ’s Wholesale Club, Roche Bros – Quincy, Roxie’s of Quincy, Target Braintree, Amazon and more.

Food from these stores that would otherwise be hitting Dumpsters is loaded into our rescue van on a weekly basis and sorted and shelved by volunteers at our food pantry.

With these partnerships, we rescued more than 325,000 pounds of food last year!

While we’re doing our part to minimize food waste on a larger scale, there is still much work that can be done by individuals. Here’s an interesting article from the The Boston Globe about trying to cut down on food waste at home.

What tips can you share on ways to reduce waste at home?

Host a Fall Food Drive supporting Interfaith!

The months of November and December are the busiest months for our food pantry. This time of year we struggle to keep basic necessities stocked for our clients.

Starting this week we kick off our fall food drive. This is not a drive for Thanksgiving food, but rather a time to restock our shelves and make sure that clients have meals on their tables for the entire holiday season. While we will provide Thanksgiving meal packages to more than 1,000 households over the coming weeks, this particular food drive is necessary to keep our shelves stocked with the essentials.

On Sunday, Nov. 18, from 11am–2pm, we will be hosting a special in-gathering of food at our office in Quincy.

We would sincerely appreciate it if you would organize a food drive for your church, business or organization for this drive. Our volunteers will be on hand Nov. 18 to help unload cars as they arrive here.

We depend on support from the community to feed the thousands of people who turn to us every year for assistance and we hope that you will join with us this Thanksgiving season to feed our neighbors in need. Can’t donate food? Monetary donations are also welcome: https://interfaithsocialservices.org/donate/

Food items that are needed:
Tuna
Canned meat
Cereal or oatmeal
Peanut butter & jelly
Healthy snacks for kids
Juice boxes
Shelf-stable milk
Rice
Canned soup
Mac & Cheese
Pasta & sauce
Canned fruit or vegetables
Dry or canned beans
Condiments (incl. salt & pepper)
Salad dressing
Gluten-free foods
Low-sodium canned items
Cooking oil / Olive oil
Diapers (size 4, 5 & 6), baby wipes
Personal care items: toothbrushes, toothpaste, bar soap (unscented), shampoo, body wash

All items must have ingredient labels with current expiration dates.

Print a Food Drive sign (PDF) to hang on your collection box.

Halloween Costume Drive is a wrap!

Happy Halloween! Halloween kicks off a busy holiday season here at Interfaith  – not only do we see a significant uptick in clients, but we’re preparing for distribution of Thanksgiving meals, running food drives, prepping for holiday gift distribution and planning for our big fundraiser, the Feed the Hungry Gala.

With all these things going on, it feels good to check Halloween off the list! We had an amazingly successful costume drive this year. Countless individuals and businesses donated costumes or held drives at their organizations. It is because of these folks that this program is possible and the families that benefit are so thankful.

Our Halloween costume distribution day on Oct. 20 was a blast. We set up a tent in our back parking lot (donated by DPS Insurance Group – thank you!) and had racks and racks of terrific costumes available for families to browse.

Several of our regular volunteers spent weeks sorting through all the donations and organizing them so that distribution day would go smoothly. Thank you, volunteers!

We had about a dozen volunteer families assist with distribution day, including a whole bunch of kids. Volunteers stuffed goody bags, handed out snacks, and helped clients navigate the racks of costumes. This is one of my favorite volunteer opportunities and I love that our kids are able to jump in and give back to the community along with their parents. The kids love helping clients pick out costumes.

Volunteer families helped distribution day flow smoothly.

After clients chose their perfect costumes, they headed over to a decorated wall (thank you Charlene, from the Bureau Drawer Thrift Shop, for setting up a frightening display!) to take photos and pick up goody bags. Christine Hurley of Hurley Event Photography once again captured the joy and excitement of the day in her adorable photos.

Charlene sets up the photo wall and pumpkin patch with items from out Bureau Drawer Thrift Shop.

Stop & Shop’s Marketing department was also kind enough to donate 50 large pumpkins, which we displayed in a pumpkin patch. Client families were able to select one to take home for jack-o-lantern carving!

We want to thank everyone who participated in this year’s event, especially the following groups who help costume drives:

Carol Trombetta of South Shore Medical Center drops off one of several carloads of costumes from a drive she held.

And thank you to the Patriot Ledger, who did a fantastic article on the event with great photos!















 

Congratulations, Angela Ryan, our October Volunteer of the Month!

Angela Ryan, a morning food pantry volunteer and seasonal program helper, was nominated for her consistent willingness to go the extra mile.

Alongside preparing grocery orders for clients, Angela has also volunteered with several of our seasonal programs. This summer, she organized and separated supplies for Interfaith’s Backpack Program, which this year distributed backpacks and school supplies to more than 600 local children. She is also currently part of the team sorting and preparing costumes for our Halloween Costume Program, which will provide costumes to hundreds of children in need later this month.

Eileen had this to say about Angela:

“Angela has just been a delight to work with and is more than a valuable addition to our wonderful team of volunteers. She arrives every day with a generous smile, upbeat attitude, ready joke, a willingness to do whatever task needs to be done and that charming Scottish brogue is a winner.

We have had some staffing challenges over the course of Angela’s time with us – what with vacations, work, school and family commitments. Every time we have put out a call for help with staffing Angela has been there. Thank you Angela!”

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Know someone who may be interested in volunteering? Have them reach out to volunteer coordinator Paula Daniels at 617-773-6203 ext. 28 or pdaniels@interfaithsocialservices.org.

Congratulations to Sarah Fong, our August Volunteer of the Month!

Sarah, left, with fellow Friday volunteer, Kathy.

Sarah Fong, a morning food pantry volunteer since April 2016, was nominated by her fellow Friday volunteers for going above and beyond assisting our Chinese-speaking clients.

Volunteers Jean and Len had this to say about Sarah:

“As with all volunteer groups, there is always one who stands out demonstrating kindness, generosity, humor and a strong willingness to help others. This is Sarah Fong.

Her unselfish attitude is most evident when the Chinese clients of Interfaith, who don’t speak fluent English, come in to be helped.  All of the Friday crew rely on Sarah.   While we’re happy to fill the clients’ orders,  Sarah is the one who tells us what they want and don’t want.  On Friday morning, it’s not unusual to hear ‘Sarah,  I need your help.’  She will stop whatever she’s doing to help us and, most important, the Chinese clients of Interfaith.  She’s very good at juggling us!

Sarah’s unselfish contribution, along with the appreciation of the Chinese clients she helps, makes Sarah an outstanding Interfaith volunteer.  Simply put, Sarah is a joy to work with.”

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Know someone who may be interested in volunteering? Have them reach out to volunteer coordinator Paula Daniels at 617-773-6203 ext. 28 or pdaniels@interfaithsocialservices.org.

New Volunteer Opportunity

Looking for an evening volunteer opportunity?

We are extending our food pantry hours to include Wednesday evenings and are in need of volunteers.

General Job Description: Provide quality customer service to those needing our assistance and those donating to us; pack groceries for distribution to clients according to the individual need of each household; organize, sort and stock donated food items, including loading and unloading of vans, freezers and shelves.
Skills Needed: Excellent customer service and communication skills; the ability to handle the stress of a labor intensive job – our food pantry can serve up to 50 households in one food pantry shift; the ability to stand, walk, bend and lift for the duration of the 3-hour shift; the ability to uphold our standards of client confidentiality; prior experience working in a grocery store and knowledge of food pantry operations helpful, but not required; ability to translate Mandarin or Cantonese very helpful.
Hours: Wednesdays 4:30-7:30 pm
How to apply: Call or email Paula Daniels to schedule an interview (617-773-6203 x28 or pdaniels@interfaithsocialservices.org). All interested candidates must go through an interview process prior to volunteering with us.

Interfaith’s newest Hall of Famers!

We welcomed the newest slate of Hall of Fame volunteers last Thursday at Interfaith’s Volunteer Appreciation Night, while also thanking and recognizing all the hard work of our amazing volunteers.

Staff, board members, members of our event committees and many of our wonderful volunteers gathered June 14, at the Quincy Elks Lodge for an evening of food, trivia, raffles and awards. This annual event allows us to give back to those who give so generously of themselves to our organization throughout the year.

We kicked things off with a delicious catered dinner from That’s Tasty, which included Chicken Piccata, Roasted Eggplant and Marinated Sirloin Tips.

Then we moved on to the raffle, where lucky winners walked away with restaurant gift cards, Starbucks goodies, Fruit Center gift cards, movie tickets and more.

Paula inducted 25 new members into our Matti Lang Hall of Fame. The Matti Lang Volunteer Hall of Fame is named after one of Interfaith’s most dedicated volunteers who gave decades of his life selflessly serving Interfaith’s clients. The honor of being inducted into the Hall of Fame is bestowed upon volunteers who have been serving within the organization regularly for at least the last year.

Congratulations to our 2018 inductees!

  • Jean Accorsini
  • Rosalyn Baker-Greene
  • Linda Baumeister
  • Jeanne Butts
  • Casey Cameron
  • Stephen Coady
  • Terry Donovan
  • Joyce Feeney
  • Angela Fleming
  • Gillian Grossman
  • Pam Harty
  • Judy Kiley
  • Sarah Livermore
  • Peter Lung
  • Jay Marvin
  • Ariana McBride
  • Katie McEvoy
  • Susan Moorhead
  • Jean Murphy
  • Alex Prager
  • Dea Semini
  • Anita Siwy-Knight
  • Christine Swanson
  • Gail Valles
  • Ellen Walsh


In addition to the Volunteer Hall of Fame, we also honored our 2018 Community Partner of the Year, Arbella Insurance. This award is specifically for businesses or organizations that have demonstrated an exemplary commitment to volunteerism. Arbella’s efforts to instill a culture of service and community engagement among their employees have made a measurable impact on Interfaith and those we serve.

This is the first year that Interfaith has honored a business with this award and there was no question the Arbella should be the first recipient. Arbella has partnered with Interfaith for at least two decades, making them our single longest corporate partner. Last year alone, Arbella’s employees gave us close to 500 hours of their time. They helped in the food pantry, distributed Thanksgiving meals and holiday gifts to clients, set up for our Feed the Hungry Gala and our Stop the Stigma 5K, worked in our garden and processed large mailings. In addition, 22 of their employees walked or ran in our Stop the Stigma 5K. We are so grateful for the philosophy of giving and service that Arbella cultivates in their offices. Beverly Tangvik and Jennifer Reale accepted the award on behalf of Arbella.

We ended the night with a spirited round of trivia. Tables competed against each other for bragging rights and Target gift cards. Do you know the answers to these stumpers?

  1. How many James Bond films are there?
  2. Name the top three TV/streaming shows for the 2017/18 season.
  3. How many bags of clothing were donated to the Bureau Drawer Thrift Shop last year?

(Answers at the end of this post.)

Congratulations to “The Two Bills” table, this year’s trivia winners!

Volunteers left with six-packs of mini cupcakes from Sadie Mae’s Cupcake Cafe in Hingham.

A big thank you again to all our volunteers, who give tirelessly in serving their communities. Interfaith wouldn’t exist without you!

Trivia answers: 1) 25
2) Game of Thrones, Stranger Things, The Walking Dead
3) 9,441