All the food that comes in and goes out the doors of Midwest Food Bank needs to be documented. That attention to detail is critical, and volunteers often make it happen. At MFB Indiana, Marla Tolle does that vital work. She tracks the food given out on distribution days and records food that enters and leaves the warehouse. Her role as as...
In Morgan County, Indiana, several food pantries work together. They share resources, like box trucks and facilities, to feed their communities. Loaves and Fishes, a food pantry at the Pentecostals of Nashville Church is one of those pantries. When they opened in 2017, about 20 families came for assistance. Now they serve ...
Brandon Lipps has joined the Midwest Food Bank National Board of Directors. His vast experience in organizational leadership aligns with the mission of MFB. Brandon grew up in the small town of Woodson, TX. He received a B.S. in agricultural economics and a law degree from Texas Tech University. His wide array of experience includes practicing law,...
The images of a natural disaster show hard-to-believe scenes - flooding up to a roof-top, a home destroyed but books still lined on a shelf, charred trees with a fire approaching an urban area, rain and high winds bending trees over. These are familiar sights following floods, tornadoes, wildfires, hurricanes. In the aftermath, there are people who...
With roles at both MFB and his family farm, Eric Hodel works in two industries associated with feeding people. This helps make Eric uniquely qualified to serve as Midwest Food Bank's CEO beginning January 1, 2022. David Kieser, MFB's current CEO, will remain the President of the MFB Board of Directors. Eric joined Midwest Food Bank in April 2017, a...
Midwest Food Bank is often the beneficiary of charitable efforts by local businesses. These fundraisers bring awareness of food insecurity and MFB's mission while providing donors with fun perks. 210 Financial's Pumpkin Pie Giveaway is a perfect example. Morton-based 210 Financial recently offered their customers a free pumpkin pie in exchange for ...
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...
