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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.

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.

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.

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:

• Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts (Quincy office)
• South Shore Medical Center
• Baker, Braverman & Barbadoro P.C.
• The Woodward School
• Bay Farm Montessori Academy
• Plymouth River Elementary School
• Martignetti Companies
• TechTarget
• First Congregational Church of Braintree
• Saint Joseph Parish

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

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.

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.

Looking for an evening volunteer opportunity?

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

Michelle has been volunteering in the Bureau Drawer since Sept. 2015 and is in charge of posting high value or unusual donations to Interfaith’s eBay site.

Cindy says:
“Even though you may not see Michelle very often she is a dedicated team member in the thrift shop.  She spends a lot of her time researching, listing, monitoring, answering questions, closing out, packing and shipping select items on our eBay site.

These are donations from our community that we have decided will sell much better to a wider audience.  In the past year and a half since I started tracking sales, she has sold close to 150 of these various things to buyers across the country for about $7,500.

She comes to the shop once a week and collects things we have saved for her and takes them home and does her magic, making us money!

This also means she has made more than 150 trips to the post office – that in itself is amazing!”

We asked Michelle 4 Questions:

1. Why did you choose to volunteer at Interfaith?

I started volunteering at Interfaith a few years ago because I loved the many different aspects of the mission, and how the organization can assist clients on so many levels, from food, to emergency, to holiday assistance, and so much more. I began volunteering in the thrift shop and then started selling higher value donated items online.

2. What other volunteer experience have you had?

Before Interfaith, I had volunteered at Cradles to Crayons in Quincy for 8 years until they moved to Boston. I also worked in animal rescue, fostering, doing home visits and helping to place many dogs, as well as managing and administrating a Facebook page to promote shelter dogs.

3. What do you enjoy most about volunteering here?

I really enjoy working with the people at Interfaith, and also researching some of the many interesting items that are donated before selling them online. I have sold everything from vintage teapots to 14k gold bracelets to cowboy boots. There are always new and interesting items that are donated.

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

I have 4 kids and 4 dogs!

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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.

Wow! What an amazing day Saturday turned out to be. Record-breaking attendance, record-breaking fundraising totals, and perfect weather. A huge thank you to whoever ordered up the gorgeous sunshiny day for our Stop the Stigma 5K!

We had a crowd of more than 500 individuals, families and even some dogs at the 44th annual event. This number includes 366 race finishers and more than 70 volunteers. The race, held each spring at the Kennedy Center in North Quincy, gets families and individuals running and walking on a scenic race route as we try to break down stigmas surrounding mental health.

Participants run (or walk) in support of friends, family and neighbors living with mental illness or addiction. We raised more than $40,000 this year, funds that will go to Interfaith’s programs, including The New Directions Counseling Center. New Directions offers nonprofit counseling services on a sliding scale, ensuring that everyone is able to receive care regardless of their health insurance status or income.

We’ve heard so many moving stories in the last few weeks about how mental illness and addiction issues touch so many of our race participants, clients, friends and families. We hope that this event gets even more people talking about mental health and breaking down the stigmas surrounding it. Talk about it! Educate others! And get help for yourself and others when needed!

Saturday’s event included the race, which takes a winding route through Quincy’s Squantum neighborhood and along Boston Harbor, and a spirited post-run Family Fun Festival. Festivities included a delicious lunch, including pizza and subs donated by Balducci’s House of Pizza and Unchained Pizza, beverages from Polar Beverages and Ocean Spray and frozen treats donated by New England Ice Cream.

Following the 5K, kids took part in a Fun Run, Dave and Busters‘ Street Team had fun giveaways, WROR had out their prize wheel, and the kids exhausted their leftover energy on the bouncy house provided by Busy Bee Jumpers. Kaleidoscope Art & Entertainment decorated runners with air brush tattoos, Kids Party Productions made balloon creations and kids of all ages participated in face painting and the kids’ craft table, kindly organized by our race committee.

Big thank you’s to WROR’s Julie Devereaux for emceeing, NBC Boston’s Ally Donnelly for leading the Fun Run, and Quincy Police and Brewster Ambulance for their services.

This year we offered several ticketed games, with chances to win fun prizes such as toys and gift cards. And the always popular raffle sent winners away with restaurant gift cards, overnight hotel stays, sports memorabilia and much more.

We’re so grateful for support from the local businesses and individuals that help make the event possible, including backing from platinum-level sponsors Arbella Insurance Foundation, Boston Medical Center HealthNet Plan and DST Systems, Inc., and gold-level sponsors Bay State Federal Savings Charitable Foundation, Bank of Canton and Quincy College.

Our fantastic photographer, Christine Hurley of Hurley Event Photography, captured so many incredible images from the day. You’ll see several here and even more over on our Facebook page. Thank you, Christine!

Save the date for next year’s Stop the Stigma 5K: Saturday, April 27, 2019.

It’s never too late to support this cause! Donate Now.

More photos on our facebook gallery.

Robert began volunteering with us in August 2017 as an afternoon food pantry helper and has quickly become one of our go-to guys – filling in when others are out, helping Geoff with food rescue runs and throwing in a hand wherever needed.

He’s a communications professional currently seeking new employment (Got a job lead? He’s into transportation and urban planning communications!).

Eileen says:

“Ever since Robert started with us he has consistently gone the extra mile – he is always pleasant, cheerful, ready to do whatever needs to be done. He has great organizing skills and repeatedly has been available in a pinch when we have needed extra help. Robert always stays till the job is finished.  The Food Pantry can look like a storm hit after the morning pantry shift, but after Robert has been working our shelves are clean, organized, rotated and restocked.  Robert’s great attention to detail gives me confidence that we are providing our neighbors with quality food from our pantry shelves.  An extra bonus of having Robert at the Food Pantry is his wicked dry sense of humor – you know you are going to laugh when he is here.”

We asked Robert 5 Questions:

1. Why did you choose to volunteer at Interfaith?

Food insecurity is a huge problem in this country, even though it has the world’s largest economy. I wanted to help with that. I have a fair amount of time while I search for employment and it doesn’t hurt that Interfaith is 20 feet from my home.

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

Definitely the fact that you offer mental health care. As a cancer survivor, I know the importance of mental health in life and think it is an important part of recovery.

3. What other volunteer experience have you had?

I’ve volunteered a lot in public radio, dressing up as children’s characters and manning phones.

4. What do you enjoy most about volunteering here?

Rescuing the amazing amount of food that would otherwise go to waste. It doesn’t hurt that the staff always have smiles on their faces and the volunteers are having fun.

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

I did not waste my youth playing video games. I’ve gone sky diving, bungee jumping, SCUBA diving, and have even flown an airplane. Alone.

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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.

Preparations are already in full swing for Interfaith Social Service’s annual Stop the Stigma 5K! Mark your calendars now for April 28 as we take to the streets of Squantum (in North Quincy) and walk and run in support of our friends, family and neighbors fighting mental illness and addiction.

What’s new this year?

• Our name! We’ve modified the name from the South Shore Walk and 5K Race to the Stop the Stigma 5K. We feel this puts more emphasis on the purpose behind the race, which is to draw attention to the importance of mental health counseling and addiction recovery treatment, ending social stigmas attached to mental illness and supporting those suffering.
• The course! We’ve made slight adjustments to try to avoid some of the hillier sections of Squantum. Check out the new route:
  
• Bibs and T-shirts. All participants who register by April 13 will receive an awesome Stop the Stigma 5K cotton T-shirt. This year, for an extra $5, anyone can upgrade to a dry-fit performance tee (previously these were reserved for runners only). And…this year everyone will receive a numbered bib from RaceWire. This will allow all participants to be timed as well as tagged in race-action photos!

Besides a scenic, challenging race route and the chance to support an amazing cause, this event also includes a post-race Family Fun Celebration with lunch, snacks, drinks, a kids Fun Run, games, raffles, a bouncy house, face painting and so much more. So bring your friends, your baby, your mom, your dog, whomever! and come run or walk with us on April 28. Register now.

All funds from this event support Interfaith’s various programs, including The New Directions Counseling Center. New Directions has been offering compassionate and skilled counseling to the South Shore since 1947. Our nonprofit counseling services provide a safety-net ensuring that everyone is able to receive care regardless of their health insurance status or income.