Uncategorized

Thank you to everyone who came out to our 20th annual Feed the Hungry Gala on Friday night! It was truly a spectacular evening. We were able to raise nearly $385,000 to support Interfaith’s programs, including the food pantry, New Directions Counseling Center and HomeSafe.

Scroll down for lots and lots of pictures from the event!

We kicked things off months ago (February, in fact!) as our gala committee worked tirelessly to plan the event, secure sponsorships and organize the auctions.

We were thrilled to learn in October that Walmart, an annual gala donor since 2014, would be raising their donation amount to $70,000 for our 70th anniversary! (Read more about this wonderful contribution here at massnonprofitnews.) Walmart joined Arbella Insurance Foundation and JetBlue Vacations as the lead sponsors of the event.

Our morning kicked off bright and early Dec. 8, as the venue, Granite Links Golf Club, began to transform into a red and white, winter-themed wonderland. Our friends at Fruit Center Marketplace once again set up their spectacular produce display in the rotunda. Best of all, the gorgeous fruit and veggies in the display were later sent back to Interfaith to distribute to our food pantry clients!

A group of wonderful corporate volunteers from Arbella spent the morning hauling supplies to the venue, constructing Arbella/JetBlue swag bags and jumping in wherever needed. Thank you, Team Arbella!

Our silent auction table, with nearly 40 fabulous packages, was assembled. From Disney vacations to sports tickets to foodie getaways, the packages this year were even more impressive than in years past.

Later in the evening guests used mobile bidding to try to win packages. Congratulations to all our package winners!

Meanwhile, chefs from The Quarry, The Townshend, Alma Nove, The Corner Stop, The Range, Island Creek Oysters, JP Fuji Group and Granite Links began setting up for the chef dine around.

Joined by beverages from Bin Ends Wine, Boston Harbor Distillery, Bradford Distillery, Mayflower Brewing, Simpson Springs, Samuel Adams and Bully Boy Distillers, there was quite a variety of tasty food and drinks for our guests to enjoy!

Montilio’s wheeled in their six-tiered vanilla and chocolate cake, later to be joined by desserts from Fratelli’s, Sadie Mae’s Cupcakes and beverages from Coffee Break Cafe.

As the evening began, guests entered to see decorated trees from Kennedy’s Country Gardens before they approached check in.

They enjoyed a Winter Cosmo welcome cocktail from Bradford Distillery before moving on to try their hand at the Wheel of Chance.

As guests roamed about the room, they had opportunities to play games, including wine ring toss, the snowball toss, putting for a hole-in-one and our new addition, Plinko.

As the program began, guests took their seats and were welcomed by our gracious emcee, Latoyia Edwards from NBC Boston. Our gala committee chairs, Ally Donnelly of NBC Boston and Donna Mavromates of MavroCreative, briefly spoke, followed by our main sponsors: Beverly Tangvik of Arbella and Chis Buchanan of Walmart.

“We continually seek organizations that will utilize the financial support we give them in thoughtful, responsible and impactful ways,” Arbella’s Beverly Tangvik said. “With Interfaith, we can be confident in knowing that our funds will be used in this spirit. Interfaith also supports one of Arbella’s core values – citizenship. It is the volunteer organization of choice by many Arbella employees and after a day of service, volunteers truly feel like they have made a difference.”

Then our live auction kicked off! Packages this year included a backyard makeover, trip to Universal Studios Florida, a JetBlue Turks & Caicos vacation, premium Patriots tickets and a farm-to-table dinner for 20.

Our Executive Director, Rick Doane, spoke about Interfaith’s missions and played a video recorded by Jill, one of Interfaith’s clients.

Meet Jill: Jill works full time as a Certified Nurse’s Assistant. She lives here on the South Shore. She is a loving mom and daughter. Her mother is retired and lives with Jill to help provide child-care for two year-old Anaiya. Recently, Jill and her husband filed for divorce. Her husband moved out of Massachusetts and is not providing any child support. Struggling to provide for her daughter, her mother and herself, Jill turned to Interfaith Social Services for help.

(Watch Jill’s video.)

Jill’s story is one of thousands. Thousands of children and families, like Jill and Anaiya’s, need a hand up during difficult times in their lives. Thanks to the assistance that they received from Interfaith, Jill’s family has food, diapers, Christmas gifts, counseling services and much more. And this assistance comes from the support we receive from events like the gala. It was moving to see the generosity of our attendees as they pledged their hard-earned money to support our missions during the Fund the Need.

The program ended as we honored Bob Taylor, former director of Interfaith and this year’s Community Hero. Bob was the Executive Director of Interfaith Social Services from 1967–1994. Then he retired….Until 2001 when he came back again and was director for another three years. He then continued to see clients for more than a decade.

The Community Hero of the Year award is presented to someone each year who inspires others through selfless service and Bob definitely meets that criteria!

The evening ended with more music, dessert and dancing. We would love to see you at the gala next year! Get your tickets early!

Take a look at more photos below and browse our gallery on Facebook.

The months of November and December are the busiest months for our 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 Interfaith will provide Thanksgiving meal packages to more than 800 households over the coming weeks, this particular food drive is necessary to keep our shelves stocked with the essentials.

On Sunday, Nov. 19, from 11:30am–2:30pm, we will be hosting a special ingathering 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. 19 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 very welcome: bit.ly/iss_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
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

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

 

Happy Halloween! There will be hundreds of little princesses, ninjas and witches happily trick-or-treating on the South Shore this evening thanks to the generosity of Interfaith’s donors and volunteers. Our annual Halloween costume drive wrapped up last weekend with a very busy distribution day here at 105 Adams St.

I’ve almost got Halloween fatigue after all the costume craziness we’ve been handling here for the past six weeks! This is my first Halloween as an employee here at Interfaith and I was just floored by the outpouring of support from individuals and community groups. More than 600 new or gently-used costumes were dropped off here during the drive. Corporate groups brought bags and bags of them, schools set up costume drives (thank you Inly School!) and Kennedy’s Country Gardens even had a special movie night benefiting the drive. Not to mention the dozens of individuals that stopped by with armfuls of costume donations. We so appreciate the support!!

Our crack team of volunteers – Therese Fleming, Robin Anderson and Judy Kiley, spent weeks inventorying, packaging and sorting costumes. The basement was a wonderland of fairy wings, furry paws and superhero capes. They rounded out princess dresses with wands, ninja outfits with swords and goofy get-ups with wigs so that all children would get a complete package. They spent hours and hours prepping and we couldn’t have done it without them. Thank you!

Come distribution day, clients arrived to find a team of 24 volunteers ready to match them up with their dream costume. After some Halloween snacks and cartoons, they were able to try on their costumes and take a photo against the “spooky wall” in the Bureau Drawer Thrift Shop before heading out with smiles on their faces and treat bags in hand. A quick two hours and nearly 200 costumes later, a worn out team of volunteers celebrated another successful drive.

Thanks much to the Boston Herald for the nice news coverage of the event. Check out more photos from the event below and happy haunting!

 

 

 

 

 

We were excited to receive a Four Star Rating from Charity Navigator this week! This is the highest honor bestowed by the organization, which assesses more than 8,000 American charities. The nonprofit evaluator examines financial documents and rates charities based on their financial health, accountability and transparency.

Interfaith has received four consecutive four-star ratings from Charity Navigator, since 2014.

This rating, and our programs, couldn’t have been achieved without you. Our generous donors, tireless volunteers and community supporters keep our organization alive. Thank you!

View the full rating and breakdown here – https://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=search.summary&orgid=13218.

 

Over 23,000 hours of service – that is how much time that hundreds of South Shore volunteers contributed via Interfaith Social Services’ various programs this past year. Interfaith recognized this herculean accomplishment at our Volunteer Appreciation Dinner on Thursday June 15^th.

The evening featured food, fun and recognition for some very deserving individuals. Twenty local volunteers were inducted into Interfaith Social Services’ Volunteer Hall of Fame.

The Quarry Room at Quincy’s Elks Lodge hosted this year’s annual event. Guests enjoyed a dinner catered by Smokey Stax BBQ followed by an array of desserts prepared by Interfaith’s staff and board members. Interfaith operates one of Greater Boston’s largest emergency food pantries, a mental health counseling center, Thrift Shop, homelessness prevention program and other emergency assistance services. Since 1947 Interfaith Social Services has been a safety net for thousands of children and families from the South Shore who are struggling to make ends meet.

This year Interfaith is celebrating our 70^th anniversary. “For seven decades the principle of neighbors helping neighbors has guided our efforts, volunteers are the heart and soul of that outreach” said Interfaith’s Executive Director Rick Doane.

Interfaith’s Director of Development Paula Daniels further emphasized this point. “Whether they bag groceries for our food pantry clients or assist in planning our fundraising events, all of our volunteers are absolutely essential to Interfaith being able to deliver our programs. We would simply not be able to serve our clients without these caring individuals. Our annual Volunteer Appreciation Event is a celebration to recognize and honor each and every one of our incredible volunteers.”

This year twenty volunteers were inducted into The Matti Lang Volunteer Hall of Fame. The 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 those volunteers who have been serving within the organization regularly for at least one year. Their names are inscribed on a plaque which hangs in Interfaith’s foyer.

This year’s inductees are: Braintree resident Michelle Goldthwaite; Cohasset resident Jennifer Chu; Dorchester resident Allison Idris; Hingham residents Barbara Caron and Kim Johnson; Quincy residents Nancy Kearns, Linda Blais, Sarah Fong, Diane Leason, Fay Lee, Jack Patts, David DeBastos, Skip MacKinnon, Jean and Len Plante, Ned Pride and Kassie Purcell; Rockland resident Rhonda Lynch; Weymouth residents Wendy Cullivan and Sheryl Murphy.

Thank you to all of our volunteers who contribute so much to helping their neighbors in need!

 

Here are so photos from the event taken by professional photographer, and Tuesday morning food pantry volunteer, Christine Hurley.  

Last week Carrie MacLean was recognized as a nominee at Blue Cross Blue Shield of MA’s 2017 Excellence in Service Awards ceremony. Interfaith’s Executive Director Rick Doane was honored to highlight her contributions to our organization.

Carrie’s involvement with Interfaith Social Services goes back decades. She has been volunteering with our organization and participating in our annual walkathon since she was a teenager.

In 2014 Carrie spearheaded the launch of a volunteer initiative between Blue Cross employees and Interfaith’s Food Pantry. Interfaith Social Services operates one of the largest emergency food programs in Greater Boston, distributing over 500,000 meals to hungry clients every year. Over the past three years hundreds of Blue Crew members have served in the pantry. They have distributed groceries for our clients, they have handed our Halloween costumes and Easter Baskets to kids in need. They have worked in our food pantry garden growing fresh vegetables for our clients. They have become part of our team.

In 2015 alone Blue Crew members assembled and donated 57 backpacks full of school supplies so that the kids served by our food pantry could start the school year off right.

Each month Carrie coordinates a team of Blue Crew members who volunteer serving in our food pantry. Not only does she make sure that each team has all of the information they need before they arrive, she follows up with them afterward. She sends us feedback about their experience. This is invaluable in helping to give future volunteers the best experience possible.

Carrie personally organizes a holiday food drive at BCBSMA’s Quincy office each year and transports the donations to our food pantry. She has been doing this each year this since 2014.

She is currently coordinating a clothing drive at BCBSMA for our Thrift Shop and Career Clothing programs. In addition to collecting pajamas for Room to Grow and other items needed by Cradles to Crayons.

She brought a team of her colleagues, friends and family to our 5K Race in April. This #StopTheStigma event shows that our community stands with those affected by mental illness or addiction.

Interfaith’s business model is structured around the principle of “neighbors helping neighbors.” We only have a few paid employees. Wherever possible volunteers staff our programs and provide services to our clients. Last year volunteers contributed over 23,000 of service through Interfaith Social Services programs. The teams of Blue Crew members that Carrie organizes make it possible for us to fulfill our mission. Our organization could not survive without this kind of support from the community.

Everyone here at Interfaith is so grateful for Carrie’s contributions. We also feel blessed to have a business like Blue Cross here on the South Shore; a business that not only supports but encourages and recognizes their employees who are invested in the community.

Depression. Addiction. Anxiety. These illnesses affect one in five adults every year. So why aren’t more people taking about these health issues? Interfaith Social Services’ hosted our 43rd Annual South Shore Walk & 5K Race on Saturday April 29, 2017. Our goal was to get people talking and to raise funding for those in need of treatment who had nowhere else to turn for help. Our community rallied – hundreds of people filled the streets of Quincy – mission accomplished!

A record setting number of walkers and runners turned out and raised over $33,000!

The phrase “Stop the Stigma” was painted on almost all available surfaces at the event. From t-shirts to signs the 5K and family fun festivities afterward all focused on supporting community members affected by mental illness and addiction.

“It shameful that there are stigmas associated with addiction, depression and other mental health issues,” said Rick Doane, executive director of Interfaith Social Services. “People talk openly about their struggles with ailments like diabetes and cancer. However, many keep mental illness under wraps. This race gives us an opportunity to proclaim that there is no shame in mental illness. We walk, run and rally with family, friends and others to show those who are suffering that they can hold their heads high, their community stands with them.”

The 5K race followed a scenic and challenging course through Quincy’s Squantum neighborhood. The Boston skyline and Dorchester Bay served as a picturesque backdrop on this sometimes hilly but well-paved course, which started and ended at The Kennedy Center in Quincy.

After the runners and walkers finished the race they enjoyed a Family Fun Celebration at The Kennedy Center. The festivities included a kids’ Fun Run, raffles, music, a bounce house provided by Busy Bee Jumpers, air brush tattoos provide by Tribal Sun Entertainment and more. The New England Revolution Battalion (the street team for Revolution Soccer), WROR 105.7 and Dave & Busters provided additional games and prizes. Local restaurants, Unchained Pizza and Balducci’s House of Pizza, provided lunch to all participants. Everyone also enjoyed frozen treats from New England Ice Cream. Runners relaxed with a neck and shoulder massage from Body Benefit Massage Therapy.

The South Shore Walk & 5K Race is supported by many local businesses, including Platinum level sponsors: Arbella Insurance, BMC HealthNet Plan, The New England Regional Council of Carpenters and Gold level sponsors: Makepeace Digital Imaging and Quincy College.

This year Interfaith is celebrating our 70th anniversary. For seven decades we have been reaching out to families in need. Our New Directions Counseling Center is our oldest program. The Center is a safety net to make sure that anyone who needs it can receive care regardless of their ability to pay. Interfaith was founded when the South Shore was facing a crisis. Thousands of people were losing their jobs as the shipyards decreased production after World War II.

Today our community is facing a different kind of crisis. Addiction has robbed our community of too many people; it has harmed too many families. At Saturday’s 5K our community stood together and said to our friends and loved ones who are suffering, ‘there is nothing wrong with reaching out for help.’

It is never too late to support this cause. Click here to donate: http://ow.ly/ms4Vq

Thank you to everyone who made the 2017 South Shore Walk  and 5K Race one of our most successful ever!

Here are more photos from the 5K on April 29, 2017. Photo credit Hurley Event Photography.