vaughan food pantry
2493 White Mtn. Hwy., North Conway, NH
HOURS:
Tuesdays 12pm - 1:45pm
Thursdays 1pm - 2:45pm
WHAT WE DO:
There is significant poverty and food insecurity of our rural population. NH continues to lag behind the rest of the country in its economic return from the recession of 2008-2011. What people see when they visit the Valley are financially comfortable vacationers. What they do not see are the many people living in poverty or precarious financial health. They do not recognize that many of our tourist-based employees have three part-time jobs and are often one paycheck from insolvency.
The target population for the food pantry includes any with food insecurity including seniors living on fixed incomes, many families that are dependent on seasonal employment or those with limited financial resources, transient and homeless, including teens, those with mental health issues and, many that have temporary food insecurity for a variety of reasons.
Our immediate goals each week are to plan and organize for the efficient distribution of food to our clients. We process each client with dignity and privacy and provide a variety of both fresh and pantry food needs, dependent upon their household. We work with the area food banks, including the NH Food Bank, and grocery stores such as Hannaford and Shaws to maintain enough inventory to service our 600+ families in need.
We have over 100 volunteers that assist in this operation and have a part-time staff administrator to lead. We also host several fundraisers, annual appeals and events to supplement our budget. We are rightly proud of our efforts and recently raised funds to purchase a van to help our volunteers move food from all the different locations.
Once we complete our new building our goals will extend to partnering with new programs for reaching our senior centers, medical facilities, senior groups and other programs to alert them to the signs of food insecurity in their clients. Our hope is that the 1 in 9 residents in our community we know are living below the poverty level are offered an opportunity to supplement their food needs with our pantry.
ANNUAL MT. WASHINGTON RADIO FOOD DRIVE
