Marion Polk Food Share’s Youth Farm serves as a dynamic educational opportunity for local youth. Through this unique program, participating youth learn how to grow, harvest and distribute fresh fruits and vegetables to local individuals and families in need, while developing valuable leadership skills. At the end of the Youth Farm’s 11th summer season, two…
When AWARE Food Bank caught fire in 2021, the resulting damage was felt throughout the community. An act of arson rendered the building unusable, caused significant loss of food and equipment, and disrupted service at the pantry that is the main source of food relief for neighbors in the Woodburn area. At the time, AWARE…
For more than 40 years, the Ella Curran Food Bank has stood as a beacon of hope in the Independence and Monmouth area. It provides nutritious food for hundreds of households each month, and is working to meet the increased demand for food assistance brought by inflation and the end of emergency food benefits. The…
Summer and fall are a time of beautiful agricultural growth in the Willamette Valley, with local farmers working diligently to harvest an array of fruit and vegetables. And thanks to your support, thousands of pounds of this fresh produce are distributed to individuals, families and seniors in need here in our community. When a local…
DeAnna T, Community Outreach Director at Tabernaculo de Salem, along with her grandchildren, set up shelf stable food and fresh produce to serve our neighbors at a recent pop-up food pantry service. Marion Polk Food Share’s Mobile Pantry Program, which began in 2021 to meet the increased need for food during the pandemic, is continuing…
Ray shops for food at Dallas Seventh-day Adventist Church’s food pantry, which he relies on for relief as food prices remain high. When a vital resource for emergency food assistance came to an end earlier this year, many neighbors living on the margins began having a much harder time putting food on the table. In…
Reuben and his wife, Jessica, place garden bed frames at Santana Village Park Garden. On a Saturday afternoon at a park in the Four Corners area near Salem, a group of neighbors are hard at work installing the infrastructure for a new community garden. The site is abuzz with activity as volunteers dig hundreds of…
Richard, left, and Jimbo chat while eating lunch together at the Meals on Wheels dining room at Center 50+. In-person meal service resumed earlier this year after being postponed for three years during the pandemic. Marion Polk Food Share’s Meals on Wheels program is more than just a meal. For homebound seniors and adults with…
Meals on Wheels client Sylvia, left, is thankful for the quick actions of delivery volunteer Charles, who came to her aid during a recent medical episode. Marion Polk Food Share’s Meals on Wheels program fills a vital nutritional need for homebound seniors and disabled adults in our community. Every weekday, about 800 people in Salem…
Capitol Manor residents Jeannie, left, and Bobbie share a laugh during a volunteer shift labeling bulk food bags. In a basement room at the Capital Manor retirement community in west Salem, a small group of volunteers seated around a table are hard at work labeling bulk food bags for Marion Polk Food Share. The task…
