Building relationships and partnerships extend to all aspects of Midwest Food Bank, including the behind-the-scenes vendors. One of our partnerships is the online giving platform iDonate. "It's evident that iDonate is consistent with the MFB culture," says Jada Hoerr, MFB Chief Resource Officer. "We are a growing organization, and as iDonate c...
At McGregor Food Pantry in Fort Myers, Food is only one of the services they offer. Counseling sessions and access to additional resources are available at the pantry. "When someone walks in these doors they are often in need of more than just food," says Bob Fain of McGregor Food Pantry. "We are blessed to be able to offer leads to other...
MFB Georgia is pleased and thankful to announce the addition of two new advisory board members. They are Benita Chinn and Efram Clark. Benita was the 2019 woman of the Year as one of Atlanta's 100 Most Powerful and Influential Women. She has a bachelor's degree from Virginia Tech in Engineering Technology and Education and an MBA from the Univ...
Kapu Africa (Midwest Food Bank East Africa) primarily distributes Tender Mercies and Unimix to our nonprofit partners. We also have donors who provide produce, yogurt, and other food. Kapu Africa recently received our largest donation of yogurt from Brookside Dairy. Kenyan-based Brookside Dairy is a long-time corporate donor to Kapu Africa. School ...
In 2007, Chipo Makaya started to go to Mji Wa Huruma to teach the Bible to children at a nursery school Tumaini Nursery. At that time, she realized that the children were not comprehending as much as her own daughter, who was the same age. The Makayas visited friends and supporters in the US and shared the vision to start a library for Mj...
The pandemic created uncertainty in so many ways. Food pantries across the United States saw an increase in people utilizing their services. Pantry 279 in rural, southern Indiana went from serving about 3,500 people each month to 6,000-8,000 people each month. "Midwest Food Bank stepped up and allowed us to come to their warehouse extra times ...
Matt McKaig has been the Operations Manager at MFB Indiana for just over a year. He grew up on a dairy farm and has a younger sister and twin brother. Matt received a degree in agriculture from Purdue University and has worked for a veterinarian and cattle broker after college and then in the seed corn business. He is married to Mich...
Are you looking for a family-bonding activity? Consider volunteering together at MFB. Charlie Thomas is a regular at MFB Peoria. He is most likely to be found at our distribution events loading a cart. Recently, Charlie took the opportunity to share his volunteerism with his son, Steve. Steve joined Charlie for a distribution day. Their time t...
About 40 years ago, Ken Wise decided to follow Jesus. That decision not only changed his life but the lives of many others in Greene County, Illinois. Ken and his wife, Carla, use their voices and talents as singers to minister to people. Their ministry - Saved by Grace - reaches people through song, but also with food. "One night, I had a vision t...
What a difference two months makes. We spotlighted Brent Reddish as a volunteer in the last eNewsletter. Now, Brent has joined the staff of MFB Morton as Operations Manager. Brent will oversee and facilitate warehouse activities and manage the purchasing and inventory for Tender Mercies - an MFB meal program. His experience in sales...
One way people volunteer at Midwest Food Bank is by signing up as a group. The Phoenix Peace Corps group volunteers at least quarterly at MFB Arizona. Here is what a few of them had to say about volunteering at MFB Arizona: "I enjoy working alongside many other heart-centered people who want to be of service and help to others. The collaboration an...
At Midwest Food Bank, we often say our volunteers are the "secret sauce." That's why we like to tell you about these special people. Brandon Letner is one of them. Brandon volunteers at MFB Arizona as a semi-truck driver. He started volunteering in 2018 and is also currently leading the Holiday Turkey Challenge Food Drive. Mile...
Board members are one of the many volunteer roles at Midwest Food Bank. Board members share their time, hearts, and expertise. MFB Haiti would like to introduce three people that have joined their board recently. Katie Magwire - Katie went on a mission trip to Haiti in 2018 and witnessed not only the poverty but the joy that Haitian people have for...
A news story, an internet search, and an email led to a donation to Midwest Food Bank Haiti. When Evelyn Veliz saw the news story about the 7.2 magnitude earthquake in Haiti in August, she wanted to help. But how? As a medical student at Southern Illinois University, she knew medical supplies would be needed as well as food. Evelyn found Midwest Fo...
Volunteer Synethia Walker is comfortable in the kitchen cooking for other volunteers or driving a forklift in the warehouse. Her willingness to do whatever is needed is appreciated by Midwest Food Bank Texas. "When she volunteers at MFB she makes sure we all have a wonderful meal for lunch and she is an amazing cook," says Rhonda Revels, Commu...
MFB New England has been a blur of activity as we continue to get up and running. The past four weeks of activity have transformed our facility into a food bank. After significant electrical work to prepare for our indoor cold storage, three 40 ft sea containers were maneuvered into place with only a few inches of clearance. One will be used a...
There was joy in the air at the first MFB New England food distribution (load-out) on Tuesday, November 16. After the time spent securing and preparing the facility, it was a blessing to be giving the food to agency partners. At 8 a.m., Executive Director Jan Young welcomed the group, and operations Manager Brent Carl explained the proce...
Erin Joy Graziani always said when she retired she would like to do mission work, spreading the love of Jesus Christ and helping others. She received an email in December of 2020 from a board member for Midwest Food Bank, New England, fitting that description. For 34 years Erin was the Senior Center Director for the town of Ellington. In 2020 she f...
As Midwest Food Bank grows in size, we also want to grow in understanding. Understanding the stories of our food recipients helps us fulfill our mission. With every food recipient we meet, we grow in compassion and humility. We appreciate their willingness to partner with us and are honored to learn their stories and share them with you. We w...
Rolland "Rollie" Reed isn't new to Midwest Food Bank, but he is taking on a new role. He will serve as the Warehouse Manager for the Bloomington-Normal location, beginning December 6. In 2010 Rollie came to MFB after 20 years working in warehousing and logistics. He was looking for a change when a job opened at MFB Peoria. He was the Warehouse Mana...
