Cheryl Poulin offered to "do whatever is needed" when she started volunteering at Midwest Food Bank New England. That offer turned into building automation into our Excel inventory spreadsheets to help us be efficient and accurate. While that might make some people turn in the other direction, Cheryl has taken on the challenge. Volunteeri...
Will R. spends as much time as he can at The Friendship Center. He says it helps him "stay out of trouble." The Friendship Center is one of five Mercy Housing and Shelter programs in Hartford, CT, working to break the cycle of homelessness. This day shelter is where Will eats breakfast and lunch five days a week. He can also take a shower...
One of John Pesaturo's spare-time activities is fixing up used bicycles and donating them to children in need. With a giving heart like that, John is a natural fit for Midwest Food Bank. As MFB New England's new Operations Manager, John brings 15 years of warehouse management with him. He is responsible for food procurement, inventory, an...
The numbers are in for 2021, and it was a year of blessings. Midwest Food Bank spent $14 million and distributed $430 million worth of food. Put another way, for every dollar donated to MFB, $31 worth of food was given to those in need. MFB serves nearly 2,100 nonprofit partner agencies. Generous donors and dedicated volunteers make those numbers p...
Midwest Food Bank has again received a four-star rating from Charity Navigator, the nation's top charity evaluator. MFB has received this recognition every year since 2011. Only 3% of charities receive a four-star rating for ten consecutive years. The rating is based on MFB's demonstration of robust financial health and its commitment to accountabi...
"Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God's grace in its various forms." - I Peter 4:10 Smiles, food, and cleaning supplies are free on the third Friday of each month at Trinity Covenant Church in Manchester, CT. That's when the church puts ministry in action through Hope 4:10 ba...
We are grateful for God's blessings as we continue our soft launch phase. Warehouse shelving is beginning to fill as we obtain products from existing organizational relationships and new distributors in our region. We are utilizing 30% of our approximately 1,500 pallet positions, containing everything from Kellogg products to first aid items. One o...
Michelle Zelesky heard about Midwest Food Bank New England when she was volunteering at another non-profit. Now she volunteers at MFB weekly, loading vehicles on distribution day, sorting groceries, and operating a pallet jack in the warehouse. "I have seen so much progress in the facility since I began volunteering," says Michelle. "I li...
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...
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...
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...
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 a faith-based organization, it is the mission of the Midwest Food Bank to share the love of Christ by alleviating hunger ad malnutrition locally and throughout the world and providing disaster relief; all without discrimination. MFB is about people. Food Recipients - We work to put food into the hands of the food insecure.&...
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...
Most US households are "food secure," meaning they have consistent access to enough food for healthy, active living. However, some households lack access to adequate food due to a lack of money or other resources. These homes are called "food insecure." Midwest Food Bank turns to the US Department of Agriculture's annual report on household fo...
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...
Midwest Food Bank is pleased to announce the hire of Nate Westerfield as our new IT Director. He began at MFB on September 7 and will work part-time through October. Beginning November 1, he will transition to full-time and be located in Morton, IL division. Nate brings more than 20 years of IT experience to MFB. Most recently, Nate has served as t...
At Midwest Food Bank, we are surrounded by unsung heroes every day. Our business model relies heavily on a strong volunteer base. Volunteers fill many roles, such as bookkeeper, receptionist, file clerk, building maintenance, forklift operator, cook, volunteer leader, food distributor. These vital jobs are done with love, warmth, and joy as people ...
