11th Annual Mmmilk & Cookies Event attracts more than 500 Girl Scouts to St. Mary’s

Girl Scout cookie-selling season is again upon us, and St. Mary’s Food Bank Alliance welcomed more than 500 Girl Scouts and Brownies to the Stardust Campus on Saturday for the 11th Annual Mmmmilk & Cookies Event, co-hosted by Shamrock Farms.

The girls toured the Food Bank warehouse, learned more about the need for emergency food in our community. Hunger 101 program manager Chet Provorse hosted presentations on hunger and good nutrition and talked about how the “Gift of Caring” program helps neighbors in need.

Each year, the scouts invite members of the community to purchase additional cookies to donate to St. Mary Food Bank for families and individuals in need. In addition, Shamrock Farms will again generously make a matching milk donation per cookie package donated to St. Mary’s. The cookies and milk are included in the emergency food boxes, a three-day supply of food for families in need.

The Girl Scouts were not only a great audience – and asked great questions – they brought nearly 900 pounds of non-perishable food with them as well! We wish them all lots of luck this season – although those great cookies are an easy sell at our house!

USDA Unveils Historic Improvements to Meals Served in America’s Schools

First Lady Michelle Obama and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today unveiled new standards for school meals that will result in healthier meals for kids across the nation. The new meal requirements will raise standards for the first time in more than fifteen years and improve the health and nutrition of nearly 32 million kids that participate in school meal programs every school day.



Full Story: http://www.fns.usda.gov/cga/PressReleases/2012/0023.htm

HORN OF PLENTY now available online

St. Mary’s Food Bank Alliance’s HORN OF PLENTY now available online

We thank you for your interest in the fight against hunger in Arizona. By receiving your edition of the magazine via email, you are not only saving environmental resources, you are saving Food Bank resources that can be directed back to client services. With 1 in 5 Arizonans, 1 in 7 seven seniors and 1 in 4 children suffering from food insecurity, every dollar we can save on printing and mailing costs allows us to distribute seven more meals into the community.

We extend this “Thank You” to your home and hope you enjoy the articles spotlighting those helping their neighbors in need.

The online magazine can be raeched at:  http://smfba.convio.net/site/DocServer/HOPWinter2012_online.pdf?docID=141&autologin=true

EMPOWERING HABITS, EMPOWERING LIVES…

Arizona Department of Health Services, Bureau of Nutrition and Physical Activity presents…
UNLEASHING YOUR INNER SUPERHERO FOR HEALTH!
(Free Train the Trainer Workshop for Childcare Providers)
Come spend the day with the ADHS Super Hero Squad as we “Hero Up” to energize the classroom with nutrition and physical activities that build a healthier tomorrow.
Saturday, February 25th 2012, 8:00 am – 3:00 pm (4.5 Training Hours), Bonus Session 3:00 – 5:00*( 1.5 Training Hours)
Desert Willow Conference Center, 4340 East Cotton Center Boulevard, Phoenix, AZ 85040
To Register or for more information: ttps://www.surveymonkey.com/s/EmpoweringHabits_EmpoweringLives
Sessions will focus on the EMPOWER Standards related to Nutrition and Physical Activity! By the end of the day, Superhero’s for Health will have: The ability to transform the Empower Standards into fun, interactive classes; A better understanding of the powers they possess; and The tools they need to unleash inner Super Heroes for Health in their centers and community.
Questions or Comments?  Anne Whitmire at anne.whitmire@azdhs.gov or 602-364-1621

Betty Fairfax Kiddie Kollege Kids Makes a Difference

St. Mary’s Food Bank Alliance would like to share a BIG THANKS with some Little donors.
Pre-schoolers at the Betty Fairfax School’s Kiddie Kollege in Laveen invited St. Mary’s Hunger 101 Program Manager Chet Provorse to chat with them about the issues of hunger and good nutrition. And the kids had a surprise for Provorse as well, gathering enough non-perishable food during an in-house drive to provide 275 meals for the one in four children across Arizona who may not have food to eat tonight.

Their desire to help and share is another reason to believe Arizona’s future will be good hands, with kids who are learning that they can make a big difference.

Sun City Grand Softball Club Donates More than 20,000 Meals

Sun City Grand Softball Club Donates More than 20,000 Meals to Surprise Families

St. Mary’s Food Bank Alliance would like to thanks the players, spouses, volunteers and fans of the Sun City Grand Softball Team for helping hungry families in Surprise during it annual holiday benefit tournament at Field of Dreams ballpark in Sun City.

The four-day event included eight teams conprised of Sun City Grand Softball club members, and included a silent auction of items donated by local businesses as well as a concession stand with coffee, doughnuts, hot dogs and soft drinks for sale. Female members of the club served as coaches and not only collected player fees, they enforced “fines” made in fun and with the purposes of raising donations for both St. Mary’s and the Relay for Life event. Volunteers also donated their time to umpire, keep score, announce and groundskeep during the tournament.
The $3,000 donated to St. Mary’s will allow the Food Bank to distribute more than 20,000 meals to those in need in Sun City, Surprise and the westside. On behalf of your neighbors in need, thank you to the Sun City Grand Softball Club for including the Food Bank in this wonderful event.

An American tradition turns 100 this year

Girl Scouts, leaders, parents … Come Visit the Food Bank on Saturday, January 28

An American tradition turns 100 this year – and is about to begin again.

The annual Girl Scouts cookie sale is about to entice the world with Thin Mints, Tagalongs, Samoas, Do-Si-Dos, Trefoils, Dulce de Leche, Thank U Berry Munch, and the newest flavor, Savannah Smiles. And through the Gift of Caring program, the scouts make sure that those in need also share in the great flavors of the season.
St. Mary’s Food Bank Alliance is bringing back a tradition of its own this year, inviting all Valley scouts, brownies, leaders and parents to visit our Del E. Webb Distribution Center (2831 N. 31st Avenue on Saturday, Jan. 28 from 8 a.m. to noon. Come join one of five different tours of the food bank, receive information on hunger in Arizona and tips on good nutrition from St. Mary’s Hunger 101 program and gain a better understanding of who benefits from this important Gift of Caring program.
Good luck on your cookie drive this year … and we hope to see you all on Jan.

St. Mary’s Food Bank Needs Your Citrus Donations this Winter!!!!

Today is the official kickoff of gleaning season here at St. Mary’s Food Bank Alliance. We need your excess grapefruits and oranges and lemons from your backyard trees to help feed the hungry of Arizona.

We would appreciate you gleaning the trees yourself and delivering the citrus to our food bank locations in Phoenix (2831 N. 31st Avenue) or Surprise (13050 W. Elm Street). But we also have a special citrus hotline (602) 343-5658 where homeowners can call and schedule a date for volunteers to come glean your trees (volunteers will pick grapefruit and oranges trees only) and there is a tax-deductable $15 charge per tree to cover the cost of materials and transportation to the Food Bank. Volunteers will glean from January until early March, so made your reservations now.

St. Mary’s also needs your helping hands! The Food Bank does not have enough volunteers to meet the expected number of homes and areas requesting to be gleaned. If you have a few hours, a day or a weekend when yourself or your church, organization or club would like to help St. Mary’s fill their bins this winter, call the same citrus hotline number above and leave all the pertinent information.
St. Mary’s not only distributes the gleaned citrus to Arizona’s hungry, but shares the bounty with food banks in others states – in the form or frozen juice. In return, states share their surplus fruits and vegetables with St. Mary’s to help provide a variety of nutritious items for all.