100th Day Donation Drive for Gather with North Hampton School
This week, Beau is excited to join his North Hampton School class in their 100th Day Donation Drive service learning project to benefit the Gather food pantry! Today, February 10th, is the 100th day of school and marks 13 years of this uplifting collaboration.
Each grade level aims to collect 100 of a specific item on Gather’s winter wish list. These include food, personal care, and household items. The drive supports the New Hampshire food bank at a time of year when donations are scarce. Plus, it’s a simple way for students to make a difference in the lives of others!
Beau assisted his grade by donating bottles of shampoo and conditioner. And because we are passionate about this project and everything Gather does for our local community, LeMay Family Goodworks is jumping on board by donating the pantry’s most-needed items right now: 100 12-packs of toilet paper, 100 laundry detergents, 100 deodorants, and 100 hand lotions! Beau joined team members Hannah G., Hannah W., Will, and George to drop off the items to Gather on Thursday.
Keep reading to learn more about Gather and their efforts to end hunger in the Greater Seacoast.
About Gather: Working Toward a Hunger-Free Greater Seacoast
Gather has served Seacoast residents facing hunger for over 200 years and remains committed to ending local hunger through collaboration and leadership—such as the drive with North Hampton School and regular projects with LeMay Family Goodworks!
Today, Gather serves the New Hampshire and Maine Seacoast through its innovative distribution programs and Pantry Market. Additionally, the nonprofit offers education and recipes for healthy living. Thanks to their focus on streamlining internal systems, processes, and controls, the Gather food pantry ensures that 90 cents of every dollar donated to their organization goes directly toward local hunger relief!
But Gather is more than a simple food bank—they fight food insecurity in several ways. Their robust programs include:
Pantry Market
Members can visit the Pantry Market once a month to shop and receive 7-10 days worth of food (plus personal care items and cooking ingredients that may last the month!). Those in need may also visit during open hours on Community Fridays, which are open to all and don’t count against a customer’s monthly Pantry Market visit.
Mobile Markets
Everyone is welcome to shop at Gather’s Mobile Markets and enjoy an outdoor, farmer’s market-style shopping experience. Everything is 100% free. Check out the upcoming Mobile Markets to find one near you.
Meals 4 Kids
The Meals 4 Kids (M4K) program allows local kids and teens to receive free fresh and nutritious food via a farmer’s market-style distribution in several Greater Seacoast locations when school is not in session. M4K participants shop for healthy groceries to replace the five breakfasts and lunches their children would’ve received if school were in session. Over 600 kids participate in M4K weekly throughout the summer!
Cooking 4 Community
Through the Cooking 4 Community (C4C) program, Teams of Gather’s staff and volunteers cook up delicious, nutritious meals to-go for members. This also helps the New Hampshire food bank reduce waste! Members can get these healthy meals at the Pantry Market between Monday and Thursday while they last. They’re an excellent option for those who don’t have the time, resources, space, and/or ability to make homemade meals. Each member/family can take one or two meals daily to supplement their household.
Gleaning
Gather is the fiscal sponsor for NH Gleans, a statewide initiative that rescues food from local farms, producers, farmer’s markets, community gardens, and similar local programs that would otherwise go to waste. They work with farmers in Rockingham, Strafford, and York Counties.
Additionally, Gather purchases shares from local farmers through their annual Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) programs. They then distribute the produce through their many programs, supporting both local farmers and community members facing food scarcity! Learn more about the Gleaning Program.
Grow 4 Gather
On a related note, Gather also asks friends and neighbors who want to help to donate items from their home gardens to the New Hampshire food pantry. Volunteers can also help at one of Gather’s gardens in Portsmouth, Stratham (Timberland), and Lee (Tuckaway Farm). The Grow 4 Gather program allows Gather to provide fresh, healthy food options in their Pantry Market.
Gather Café
The Gather Café at Great Bay Community College is the nonprofit’s foray into a self-sustaining revenue stream. Their team makes breakfasts, lunches, and more using food from various vendors and local farms. Each purchase helps subsidize GBCC students and all of Gather’s programs.
Seacoast Food Providers Network
Finally, Gather has brought together the Seacoast Food Providers Network, consisting of 40 food providers in the area. Members share ideas, intellectual property, resources, and more. They aim “to create a collaborative, sustainable, and efficient charitable food system through a network of food pantries and community kitchens to ensure all community members have dignified access to food.”
How to Help Gather
If you’d like to help Gather combat food insecurity in the Greater Seacoast, there are several ways to make a difference:
Volunteer: There are many opportunities to volunteer for Gather’s various programs, from sorting and stocking at the Pantry Market to Mobile Markets to office assistance! Learn more and register here.
Donate Food: Hold a food/personal care drive at your company, school, club, church, or even within your neighborhood. Discover how to organize a drive and Gather’s current needs.
Donate Funds: And, of course, one the fastest ways to support Gather is through monetary donations—especially since they do not receive state or federal funding! Easily donate online to help them “keep the lights on, the trucks running, the food cold, and [pay for staff].”
Additionally, you can participate in one of Gather’s events! Get your child’s school involved in the next 100th Day Donation Drive. Or, save the date for a beautiful evening out at the Gather Gala on June 7th. Check out all upcoming event details!
Please follow Gather on Instagram @gather.nh or Facebook for their latest efforts, events, and volunteer opportunities. And if you or someone you know in the area could use a helping hand, please share this influential New Hampshire food bank with them!