2016 Friends Breakfast

Join us as we honor our Hunger Heroes and celebrate United Food Bank’s legacy of caring!

United Food Bank’s Friends Breakfast brings together more than 400 decision-makers in the private sector and at every level of government as we honor many of the community partners who make it possible for us to provide more than 20 million pounds of food to the community in the East Valley and eastern Arizona.

Orange Ball

This year’s Orange Ball, United Food Bank’s Gala Fundraiser, will be held on September 24th, at 5:30 PM at Talking Stick Resort in Scottsdale. It’s orange for a reason: orange is the color of hunger awareness, and September is Hunger Action Month. What better way for the community to come together to help celebrate all the achievements that have been possible through our partners in ending hunger.

Spirit of Philanthropy Award

Salt River Pima Maricopa Indian Community

United Food Bank’s “Spirit of Philanthropy Award” is bestowed upon individuals, corporations and foundations whose passion for supporting the community is exemplified by their leadership, generosity and commitment to our mission to fight hunger, which continues to make a significant difference in the lives of people throughout the East Valley and Eastern Arizona.

Cocktail Reception • Silent Auction • Plated Dinner • Award Ceremony • Dancing

Cocktail Attire – Please Wear Something Orange

Tickets are $100. There are also various sponsorship and advertising opportunities available.

Have questions about sponsoring the 2016 Orange Ball? Contact Jackie Shelley at (480) 398-4442

Christmas in July

What is Christmas in July?
“Christmas in July” is an annual food drive competition, between local Chambers of Commerce here in the East Valley and eastern Arizona, to see who can raise the most money and collect the most non-perishable food to help stock the shelves of United Food Bank during the month of July.

Summer is the hardest time of the year for many individuals and families in Arizona.
When school’s out for summer, some kids face their toughest test because summer also spells the end of free and reduced school meal programs which often means
greater food-insecurity for entire families. The summer months are equally difficult for many low-income seniors who are often forced to choose between paying bills and purchasing food.

How You Can Help
You can participate in “Christmas in July” by making a Cash Contribution or by donating Non-Perishable Food Items during the month of July. Every $1.00 you give will help provide enough food for 4 meals to some our community’s most vulnerable members.

For more information, please contact your local Chamber of Commerce or e-mail Melissa Forrester at mforrester@unitedfoodbank.org or call (480) 398-4464.

Thanksgiving Turkey Drive

Imagine not being able to experience Thanksgiving dinner this year. Not having a turkey to worry about. No potatoes to scoop onto on your plate. No pumpkin pie to sneak bites of. Nothing to bring your family around the table for. Sadly this is a reality for many Arizona families.

Currently in our service area, 228,000 people do not know where their next meal is coming from, and more than 93,000 of those people are children!

This Thanksgiving, United Food Bank is working to make sure Arizona families have a dinner to put on the table. We need you help though!

We’re asking for frozen turkeys, nonperishable staples, and cash donations to help feed hungry people in our service area.

Donations may be delivered to our Javelina Warehouse.

Food Pantries

United Food Bank began and continues to exist to alleviate hunger, reduce food insecurity and increase nutritional literacy in the communities served. The most impactful way the Food Bank does this is by collecting, storing and distributing bulk food to a network of agencies, including local food pantries, faith-based organizations and other nonprofits, that then distribute emergency food boxes to those in need. These Emergency Food Boxes help to bridge the gap of available resources for low-income families and individuals on fixed incomes.

Meal Sites

The Food Bank provides bulk food to a network of community organizations and agencies in various ways for different programs. This network of agencies then distributes the food through their programs like meal sites, residential facilities, and senior programs.

Mobile Pantries

A mobile pantry is a method of direct client distribution in an organized format, managed either by United Food Bank or by partner agency staff that utilizes a dry / refrigerated truck to provide food that traditional pantries cannot accept or distribute to people in need – usually do to the agency’s storage or refrigeration capacity. The mission of the mobile pantry program is to meet the needs of hungry clients in urban or rural areas by providing food directly in their communities.

Helping Hands

This program is designed as an emergency food resource for “First” and “Second” responders like police, firefighters, social and outreach workers, protective services case managers and others who respond to emergency/crises situations, and encounter a family or household without food or food resources. A Helping Hands food box contains enough food to provide for recipients for three days.

Kids Café

United Food Bank currently collaborates with more than 30 after-school programs throughout the East Valley and Eastern Arizona to provide at-risk children with free nutritious meals and snacks. Program sites are Title 1 Schools, community based social organizations or other nonprofit programs that work with at-risk children and youth, offering a variety of after-school educational enrichment programs in a safe environment, these children and youth actively participate in a variety of educational, recreational, social and physical activities that promote learning, fitness and nutrition.

Backpack Program

United Food Bank provides food at Title 1 schools throughout the East Valley and Eastern Arizona through its Backpack Program. For low-income children, school often serves as the best way to stay nourished and fed through free and reduced breakfast and lunch. But when school is not in session during the weekend or summer breaks, these children might miss meals. Partner sites identify youth who are at the highest level of food insecurity to participate.

United Food Bank distributes backpacks filled with nutritional, child-friendly non-perishable foods that are ready to eat or easily prepared by the children who receive them. Backpacks are packed at our Volunteer Annex and are distributed to our partner programs the last day before weekends or holidays. Last year, 21,339 backpacks were distributed to hungry children.

Food for Thought

This program was designed as a resource for teachers and educators of Title 1 schools that provide structured extended afterschool or before school mentoring or tutoring programs for at-risk children and youth, to help ensure all children meet challenging state academic standards. The program allows participants to receive prepackaged nutritionally balanced food boxes through their participation in a range of tutoring, mentoring and other educational enrichment activities. Students work to achieve goals and to overcome difficulties that they may be experiencing at school. The “Food for Thought” program is designed to help educators (1) teach work ethic; (2) help motivate children to overcome obstacles to learning; (3) improve a child’s self-esteem; (4) feed the child and his/her family; and (5) promote greater parent/teacher interaction.

Help Yourself

Many people in our community live paycheck-to-paycheck or have limited resources. For them, it’s hard to see beyond next week, and budgeting resources to maximize their food-buying dollars is a weekly challenge. Fortunately, United Food Bank has set up the Help Yourself Program. It’s held on Fridays from 8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m, excluding holidays. Through Help Yourself, clients can purchase for $20 a variety of fresh meats, produce, dry goods. Clients can also select from additional bonus items like bread, pastries, dairy products, and deli products depending on availability. Clients do not need to meet any criteria or qualifications.