No
matter which team is your favorite for the upcoming Super Bowl XLVIII on
February 2, 2014, we all
win when we cheer on the Wakefield Interfaith Food
Pantry (WIFP) during the Souper Bowl of
Caring drive!
WIFP is encouraging everyone in the community to collect
monetary donations and much needed food items to stock the pantry shelves during
The Souper Bowl of Caring,a national
endeavor to use the energy of the Super Bowl to mobilize youth in a united effort
to care for people in their local communities who are in need. Super Bowl
weekend – the first Sunday in February – can be nation's largest celebration of
giving and serving – if we all participate!
To spark donations, WIFP is asking businesses to offer
special promotions to their clients and congregations and other organizations
to communicate the effort to their members. In addition, families and friends
who host Super Bowl parties are encouraged to ask their guests to make financial
donations or bring a couple of cans of food to the get-togethers on February 2,
2014, Super Bowl Sunday. Most needed
food items include shelf stable milk, brand cereal, jarred spaghetti sauce,
canned fruit, coffee, canned chicken, mayonnaise, beef stew and baked beans.
Pantry clients are our neighbors who are facing challenging
financial situations, often caused by a job layoff, low wages, a disabling
accident, the high cost of medical care or skyrocketing bills. Over 500 families, made up of approximately
900 individuals, rely on the pantry for supplemental food and household
necessities each year. Nearly 20% of
these families are elderly and close to 40% are families with children. Donations are of great importance especially
during the winter months when there tend to be fewer food drives.
Monetary donations are also greatly needed and
appreciated. At the Americal Civic
Center, the pantry has appropriate storage to utilize the extensive bulk
purchasing power of the Greater Boston Food Bank - enabling pantry volunteers to obtain
additional food at very low cost. In fact, with a one-dollar donation, the food
pantry can purchase more than four dollars worth of food for our neighbors in
need.
Food items collected can be dropped off at the WIFP Drop Off
Box located on the lower level of the Americal Civic Center during open hours
or at the Town Hall Drop Off Box. (Be sure that you don’t donate food that has
expired!) Any financial donations can be mailed to the Wakefield Interfaith
Food Pantry at P.O. Box 1624, Wakefield, MA 01880.
For more information about participating in
The Souper Bowl of Caring at the
Wakefield Interfaith Food Pantry, please email the WIFP at
fooddrive@wifoodpantry.org.
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