NEWS AND EVENTS

BREAD BASKET would like to thank the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe for their support this year. In our present economy many families and individuals have had to turn to food banks for the first time in their lives. The need for assistance has gone up tremendously while support has not. We hate to have to turn anyone away because we lack the resources. Summertime is always the worst as people take vacations and contributions taper off. This year the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe donated $5,000.00 to help us feed the hungry during the summer months of 2011! We are so grateful for their generosity. June 2011





News and Events & Holiday Hope 2005 Information


Bread Basket would like to thank the United States Post Office Processing and Distribution Center in Seattle Washington for helping us in our efforts to help those who were survivors of the hurricane Katrina as well as the needy here in Pierce County.

The post office held a food and clothing drive, which Bread Basket was the recipient of approximately ten pallets of clothing. This was the efforts of 1800 employees at that location. Thank you Ron Adkins for coordinating this awesome effort and thank you to all of your crew for the support.

BREAD BASKET receives $2155.71 grant from the Fred Meyer Foundation.

Bread Basket received a community grant totaling over $2100.00 from the Fred Meyer Foundation for it’s food bank.

“The Fred Meyer Foundation was particularly impressed by the successful track record of the Bread Basket and its programs,” Mary Loftin, vice president of public affairs for Fred Meyer and executive director of the Fred Meyer Foundation, said. “We hope this community grant will help the Bread Basket continue the important work it is doing to enrich the health of the community. We are proud to be a part of the University Place community and are committed to helping where we can. Social responsibility and community involvement are company priorities established by our founder, Fred G. Meyer. Mr. Meyer said, “To be a good neighbor, you must strive to be a good neighbor in all ways.”

Financial support of nonprofit organizations is just one of the ways Fred Meyer upholds this tradition. The Foundation’s community grant program is driven by 29 local Advisory Committees made up of local Fred Meyer employees who research nonprofit organizations in their communities and then award community grants.

“These grants are the result of true community efforts involving both our employees through our annual employee giving campaign and our customers through the contributions they make in our stores using the Make Change Count coin boxes and scan cards at the check stands. The dollars collected through these employee and store efforts are combined and then allocated by the Advisory Committees as community grants in the four western states where we have stores,” Loftin said.

The Fred Meyer Foundation assists nonprofit organizations dedicated to helping children and reducing hunger in communities served by 129 Fred Meyer stores in Alaska, Idaho, Oregon and Washington. Fred Meyer is a division of the Kroger Co., which is one of the nation’s largest food retailers. The Fred Meyer Foundation has awarded grants totaling approximately $4.5 Million since it began in December 1998. For more information call 1-800-858-9202, ext. 5605.

Bread Basket is a small organization doing big things! Currently almost all of the food distributed is purchased by the organization. Bread Basket is excited about the grant from the Foundation as it is positioning itself to receive contributions from agencies such as Emergency Food Network and Northwest Harvest that supply a portion of food bank’s food free of charge. This year at the top of Bread Basket's wish list was industrial strength shelving to store food at its food bank and for the surplus storage at its storage unit. Bread Basket had been using antiquated handmade wooden bins donated by a larger food bank. Bread Basket also needs a commercial scale.

“We recently moved into a new location and we were excited that the United Way donated some metal shelving to us that got us started,” Rose Ehart, executive director of the Bread Basket, said. “We received small cash donations from members in our community specifically towards this project and we were on pins and needles because we were halfway there and knew someone in our community would come through to help us complete our project. I was ecstatic when Terasa Hart, manager of the University Place Fred Meyer, called me and said someone from their Committee had brought us to their attention. I was amazed at how quickly they made their decision and presented us with the check. We are grateful to the Fred Meyer Foundation for caring about our community and helping us to keep in line with our motto which is to ‘do good…even better!” Rose shared.

Anyone can feel free to make a cash donation to the Bread Basket. Bread Basket is a 501c3 tax- exempt organization so your gifts are tax deductible. “Right now through the summer our greatest need is cash to purchase food,” Rose reminds us. “And don’t forget we are one of the two agencies in Pierce County out delivering groceries to the needy; and with the cost of fuel these days we could sure use more good neighbors like the Fred Meyer Foundation to help us get through the summer months. We simply don’t want to have to turn anyone away.” If you would like to help the Bread Basket you may contact them by calling (253) 565-3271. You can also mail a check to POB 65328 University Place WA 98464-1328 or make a secure donation through Paypal by visiting the Bread Basket’s web log at http://www.breadbasketoutreach.blogpsot.com/

Bread Basket is proud to be a partner of the city of University Place “the place to live, work, play, and learn.”

WHAT WE'VE BEEN UP TO IN 2005
This year we're having an exciting time. Here's a little recap if you haven't been around for a bit. January started with us doing away with manditory appointments. That's right we listened to our clients and we are doing what we can to meet the most needs. Of course you can only come during the hours we are open!

We also began supporting a wonderful program that has a heart for children. Operation Hope is an afterschool program that tutors and mentors low-income and at-risk youth each week Mon-Fri. Operation Hope has been commended by the Tacoma school district for the marked improvement in the grades and attendance of the children whose lives are being changes. We are happy to be a part of this by providing the programs snacks each week. If you would like to contribute to the afterschool program's snack fund, please contact us.

Speaking of snacks, we are tickled pink to provide food for the Tacoma Daycare and Preschool Association's afternoon "Feeding Frenzy" program. The "Dinasaurs" class (children who are school aged) are able to walk over to their very own pantry and select food when they are hungry. Basically they shop by pictures, so Speghetti-o's, Ravioli, soups, and etc. are a big hit. Most of these children are low income and some may not get enough to eat once they get home. We are glad "Tacoma Day" and it's Director Rosemary Toten are committed to seeing no child goes hungry as long as they can help it. We are glad to help as well.

March found us scrambling to move from our old location to our new one. In the middle of the hussle and bustle we still managed to have our Easter Celebration. We brightened the lives of 500 children by providing them with beautiful Easter Baskets filled with toys, candy, books, and more. But most of all they were handmade with love. Our organization is grateful to the United Way of Pierce County for passing our name on to the TOY RESCUE MISSION. Karol Barkley, executive director and her crew of helpers provided approximately 200 of those handmade baskets towards this event. TOY RESCUE MISSION'S Baskets were way cuter than ours and they should have been, they've been making them by hand for many years. We used to buy them. Thanks Karol for your support and friendship! God bless you for making so many families, children and agencies happy.

By the way the Toy Rescue Mission is also 100% volunteer run, please consider checking out this unique agency and supporting them.

April found us relocated to the beautiful Clock Tower Building at 3617 Bridgeportway W #R in University Place. This temporary location is conveniently located next to the library. (Yes, temporary). Our city's renovation plans also include our current location. This means we will need to move as soon as September 2005 or anytime shortly thereafter. If you or someone you know has a building they would like to donate to the Bread Basket to use for our food and clothing bank, please let us know.

May is one of our busier months. We visit residents of nursing homes and care centers to brighten their lives and celebrate Older Americans Month with them. If you know of a senior who could use a visit, please let us know. If you don't think we are making our way to your care center fast enough please call us and we will do all we can to visit your residents on this year's tour! Or put you at the top of the list next year.

This is also the time of year we start looking towards our back to school event. If you would like to donate school supplies, new clothing, or cash for this event please contact us. September is only around the corner.

MORE EVENTS
This year’s back to school event was a success. We are grateful to agencies like Key Peninsula Senior Community Center, United Way, Office Depot, Emergency Food Network and private donors like John and Debi Srail, Michael Venuto and many more whose generous donations of cash and/or supplies helped us to equip many children for the 2005/2006 school year. Thank YOU!

We would like to thank those who have volunteered this quarter to help us get the work done. Especially those who used their own vehicles and gas to deliver food to the homebound. We could not do it without you.

We will be gearing up for the holiday season, if you are able to help in any way, please do. Thanksgiving we will be providing food to the needy. We can still use cash donations for turkey purchases; please do not donate turkeys, as we will not be able to accept them. Last year the Tacoma Rainier’s ball club (owned by the owner of Foster Farms) donated turkeys, and all the trimmings for several families to enjoy the Thanksgiving holiday with. We are pleased to announce the Tacoma Rainier’s has already committed to a repeat of those efforts. Each year they help many organizations and therefore, they are not able to provide all of the turkeys we will need, therefore, we still need your help to feed the poor.

Christmas is a little further off, but we do want people to keep in mind that it is our biggest event as we give out far more than food and clothing. Please keep Bread Basket in mind when you are doing your holiday giving. Please call us if you have any questions. (253) 565-3271 For those who need holiday baskets, please call to reserve one for your family according to this schedule only. Thanksgiving: November first through seventh
Christmas: December 1st though seventh

Please remember it is on a first come first served basis while supplies last. Please do not call prior to these times or after the cut off. In addition, to be fair for all we will not be allowing reservations for both holidays at the same time. Thank you!

Students please keep us in mind if you want to volunteer someplace. We would love to have your help. If you are interested in food drives, fundraisers, or simply putting all of that youthful energy to work at the Bread Basket have your parents give us a call. This is an excellent opportunity to have a great time and make a difference simultaneously. If you are working towards a letter in volunteering (the United Way's program) we'd love to have you at the Bread Basket.