Please enjoy these photos from the event.

May is Older Americans Month. As we celebrate our elders’ contributions to our country, we also reflect on the harsh reality that many seniors are struggling to put food on the table. There are resources available, but only one-third of Massachusetts seniors eligible for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) receive benefits, according to the National Council on Aging.

The Food Bank of Western Massachusetts is trying to change that.

In January 2013, The Food Bank was awarded a grant from the Walmart Foundation and Feeding America to expand SNAP outreach to underserved populations, especially seniors. SNAP can give income-eligible seniors (60 and older) a considerable boost to their often limited budgets.

Seniors, in particular, benefit from being enrolled in SNAP. Many elders without SNAP are making tough choices about whether they should spend their money on food or prescriptions. SNAP helps alleviate the need to make those kinds of decisions. Many seniors don’t realize that they’re eligible or might feel that they’re taking money away from another family by receiving benefits. SNAP is designed to expand when times are tough and contract when the economy improves; anyone who meets the eligibility guidelines can receive benefits.

The Food Bank staff and volunteers provides support to discover if elders are eligible and document their medical expenses correctly in order to achieve the highest deduction.

Many seniors recall the days when food stamps were issued as coupons, marking them in line at the grocery store. Currently, SNAP benefits are distributed using Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) cards. It’s hard to tell if a customer is buying groceries using their credit card, debit card, or EBT card. This anonymity at the cash register goes a long way in helping to reduce stigma around this program.

The Food Bank’s SNAP Outreach department offers application assistance and case management over the phone and in person, at a variety of pantries, Brown Bag distribution sites, meal-sites, and other partner organizations throughout the four counties of Western Mass. The Food Bank also has a team of dedicated community volunteers who donate their time to help their neighbors apply for SNAP benefits.

If you’re interested in finding out more about eligibility for SNAP, call The Food Bank of Western Massachusetts at 1-800-247-9632 to be prescreened for eligibility and to apply over the phone.

DESCRIPTION: Responsible for all direct and indirect food sourcing activity, including the creation and maintenance of the overall food bank food source plan to meet the food bank’s volume requirements and support annual food distribution goals.

JOB COMPONENTS:

1. Researches, potential new food donation sources; Creates, maintains and shares a tracking system of potential donors
2. Cultivate new and existing food donors to build relationships and maximize donation potential
3. Monitors and reports upon existing food donor results and trends
4. Creates and maintains a food source plan, tied to the food bank’s annual volume plan, documenting planned sources of target food volume
5. Provides weekly reporting of relationship development activities to include phone calls and and in-person visits to donors
6. Partners with Development in initiating new donor relationships and in optimization of existing food donor relationships
7. Partners with the Agency Relations and Network Capacity Building teams to understand agency & regional needs and limitations
8. Works closely with the Distribution Manager to effectively tie food purchasing efforts into the volume plan
9. All other duties as assigned by the Director of Food Operations

JOB SPECIFICATIONS/REQUIREMENTS

1. Experience working with food retailers and/or manufacturers and/or wholesalers to coordinate food donations (or related experience)
2. Effective organizational, project management and analysis skills; Ability to manage multiple short-term and long-term projects simultaneously and effectively meet deadlines and outcomes.
3. Excellent collaboration skills and ability to work with people of diverse backgrounds
4. Excellent communication skills both oral and written; excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to work effectively within departments, across the organization; effective internal and external relationship building skills;
5. Solid computer skills in Microsoft Office

 ADDITIONAL SPECIFICATIONS (EXPERIENCE A PLUS)

1. Experience in inside or outside sales with proven results
2. Research and/or Market researching experience
3. Strong understanding of food banking supply chain processes and challenges preferred
4. Bachelors degree

The Food Bank of Western Massachusetts is an equal opportunity employer encouraging excellence through diversity. Please email resume and cover letter to:  jobs@foodbankwma.org or mail to P.O. Box 160, Hatfield, MA 01038 for immediate consideration. Search will continue until position is filled.

In accordance with federal law and U.S. Department of Agriculture policy, this institution is prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, disability, marital or familial status. To file a complaint of discrimination, write USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C. 20250-9410, or call 202/720-5964 (voice and TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.

Marina at a recent visit to The Food Bank in Hatfield.

Marina Caputo from Worthington decided she wanted to do more to help her neighbors in need.  After hearing about local hunger, she pledged to collect one ton of peanut butter to donate to The Food Bank of Western Mass.

Marina’s choice of food is an excellent one; peanut butter is one of The Food Bank’s most-needed foods because of its popularity among our 300 member agencies.  It is shelf stable, high in protein, and kids like it.

The timing of this drive couldn’t be better. Marina hopes to reach her goal by the end of June, just in time for summer.  This time of year is especially difficult for food insecure families with children who no longer receive free school meals.  The peanut butter will be a welcome sight on pantry shelves.  The price of this product has also skyrocketed recently. During one quarter last year, the cost of peanut butter went up 60 percent.

If you’re interested in donating to Marina’s peanut butter drive, you can drop off peanut butter at one of the following locations: Corners Grocery in Worthington, Williamsburg Market in Williamsburg, Whole Foods in Hadley, and Tanya’s Salon in Worthington.  Help Marina reach her goal!

How long have you been with the Food Bank?: I’ve been with The Food Bank for almost 5 ½ years.

Tell us about your work at The Food Bank: As the Volunteer & Development Coordinator, the primary focus of my position is to work with individual volunteers, both in recruitment and placement. I  work with staff to find additional ways for volunteers to get involved. I also facilitate a volunteer orientation twice-a-month. These orientations are really great because, in addition to  sharing volunteer needs, we also teach people about The Food Bank and hunger in Western Massachusetts.

I also work with community groups and civic organizations to schedule group volunteer opportunities, and help coordinate food drives.

I currently chair the organization’s Diversity Committee, and in the past have served on both the Staff Recognition and Wellness Committees.

What do you like best about Coordinating Volunteers: I love hearing about what volunteers did before they came to The Food Bank – there are so many interesting people involved –  or the others ways they’re supporting the community. And most of our volunteers are not just volunteering here. They are lovely people to work with!

What are some of the exciting things happening with volunteers: Many of our volunteers are currently working on the 2014 Hunger Study. This is a big project, with over 60 volunteers participating. These volunteers go to emergency food providers and collect data from individual participants about their personal experiences with hunger.

We’ll be hosting an ice cream social here at The Food Bank for all of our volunteers on May 30th. It’s our way to thank everyone for their help, from the regular volunteers who sort donations day-to-day, to those who help with the occasional event. It’s a great way to recognize our volunteers for their dedication and support, and to also get them to meet other volunteers they wouldn’t necessarily work with.

What is your favorite story about Volunteers: We have some volunteers who help with just about any need we have; they’re very dedicated. Last summer, one such volunteer responded to a later afternoon email for help with Brown Bag distribution the following morning. I didn’t think we’d get anyone, and just a few minutes after the email had gone out, I had someone to fill-in. I am always so impressed by the level of dedication our volunteers show.

Could you share a little bit about yourself? What do you like to do in addition to coordinating volunteers?   Well, I love music. My musical taste runs the gamut and is super-eclectic. I think I was born a few decades too late. I like a lot of older bands-the “Oldies”. I also love to read-I love a good short story and enjoy music biographies. And, I really like lifting weights. I’m a member at Pioneer Valley CrossFit in Hadley, and am proud that I can Deadlift 195 pounds for 5 reps. I also really like to laugh and make people laugh. I’m okay with looking silly.

Any departing food for thought?: It’s nice to work somewhere where the community really supports the organization. We are very lucky to have so much commitment from people in Western Mass.

If you’d like to contact Erin and become a volunteer, sign up for an upcoming volunteer orientation.

FULL-TIME; Non-Exempt

Job Description:

Working to promote and advance The Food Bank of Western Massachusetts’ mission of reducing hunger and increasing food security in the local community, the Digital Communications Coordinator’s primary responsibilities are to maintain and expand The Food Bank’s presence on the web, uphold and expand a digital media database, and support Communications endeavors via traditional media. S/he should be an effective communicator who applies a solid foundation in writing to emerging and evolving technologies as well as The Food Bank’s regular print publications, such as the quarterly newsletter and the annual report. Working closely with the Communications and Marketing Manager, the Communications Coordinator will join The Food Bank as part of the Development and Marketing team, who is responsible for all fundraising, publicity, and public relations for Western Massachusetts’ largest hunger-relief charity.

Responsibilities:

• Deliver messages and promote activities across multiple online channels, using appropriate tone and content
• Develop online messaging for general consumption and for a variety of specific audiences
• Assist with other communications needs, as directed
• Assist with general development needs as event support, as directed

Website:

• Update content on Food Bank website weekly
• Provide website maintenance and troubleshooting using the WordPress CMS platform
• Draft posts for Food Bank blog

Social Media:

• Update Food Bank social media accounts on a daily basis per social media strategy guidelines/calendar using digital photography, digital images, and sourcing dynamic links
• Implement new social media strategies as they are developed
• Work with external partners to carry out collaborative online marketing campaigns (including virtual Food Drives, FirstGiving.org, etc)

Communications & Marketing:

• Assist with creation of content for Food Bank newsletter and e-newsletter
• Coordinate and collaborate with other departments on the creation of materials to be used by external audiences

Media Relations:

• Draft press releases and media advisories
• Maintain and expand media contact database
• Track all media hits and impressions via traditional and social media

Job Specifications/Requirements:

• Bachelor’s degree in Communications, English, Journalism, or related field
• 1-2 years experience in journalism, corporate or non-profit communications preferred
• Proficiency with WordPress CMS, Google analytics, Google Earth, social media (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Flickr, etc.), and other online tools is essential, as is an ability to build engagement through these online tools
• Proficiency with the Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator)
• Working knowledge of HTML and CSS
• Excellent writing skills are critical, including an ability to write effective press releases, blog posts, and other content for both print and online media
• Team-player with superior interpersonal and collaboration skills
• Exceptional oral communication skills
• Ability to multitask and prioritize a number of projects

REPORT TO: Development and Communications Manager

The Food Bank of Western Massachusetts is an equal opportunity employer encouraging excellence through diversity. Please mail resume and letter of interest to: The Food Bank, PO Box 160, Hatfield, MA 01038 or email at jobs@foodbankwma.org Search will continue until position is filled.

THE FOOD BANK IS A FRAGRANCE FREE WORKPLACE. WE ASK THAT ALL CANDIDATES INVITED TO INTERVIEWS REFRAIN FROM WEARING STRONG FRAGRANCES OR PERFUMES.

In accordance with federal law and U.S. Department of Agriculture policy, this institution is prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, disability, marital or familial status. To file a complaint of discrimination, write USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C. 20250-9410, or call 202/720-5964 (voice and TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.

For asparagus lovers Spring is the greatest season of them all. For health-minded eaters asparagus is a very low calorie vegetable. 100 g fresh spears give only 20 calories. More calories will be burnt to digest than gained, the fact, which fits into the category of low calorie or negative-calorie vegetables.

Directions:

1. Wash Asparagus and cut into 1-inch pieces
2. Steam for 5 minutes until almost tender
3. Cool in an ice water bath and drain
4. Cook pasta according to package directions. Strain, rinse with cold water, and let cool
5. Combine all ingredients, place in air-tight container
6. Chill before serving

Nutrition Facts: 130 calories, 2g fat, 160mg sodium, 24g total carbohydrates, 6g protein. Contains 70% of the recommended daily value of Vitamin A.

Source: WIC Nutrition Program

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The ECC Gluten-Free pantry opened officially on March 4^th, and it is the first and only gluten-free pantry in Western Mass., a fact not lost on Bialecki. “We have opened the gluten free pantry to all of Western Mass. that we can reach. We currently have clients from Easthampton, Southampton, Westfield, Chicopee, Holyoke, Amherst, and Springfield,” she said. The gluten-free pantry serves 40 clients who are allowed to come on an as needed weekly or monthly basis.

Bialecki says the biggest challenge has been keeping up with the higher cost of the gluten-free product. “The more people we reach the greater the need will be to purchase more food, and even at a wholesale price the food is expensive.” “A few of the [gluten-free] companies I am working with in Colorado and Ohio are asking other companies to help out and make donations whenever possible as well. The Gluten Free companies are very serious about helping those in need and have been very supportive,” she added.

In the just over 3 weeks since its opening the pantry has been featured on 22News WWLP, the Daily Hampshire Gazette, and WFCR. “Area medical offices are excited and have been sending clients to us for help,” Bialecki said.

If you would like to learn more about the ECC gluten-free pantry visit them on Facebook, or call 413-527-5240.

The Network Capacity Coordinator will work in Berkshire  County in Western Massachusetts to strengthen the emergency food network by encouraging participation in food access projects and by building the capacity of member agencies and other partners to work together to increase food security. The primary focus of this position will be member agency and partner and network support and coordination rather than direct services. This position will be housed in Berkshire County  and will require extensive travel within the county and regular travel to The Food Bank in Hatfield.

Responsibilities:

1. Cultivate relationships with member agencies and encourage their participation in various capacity building supports that The Food Bank offers (Agency Development & Training Institute, SNAP, volunteer coordination, nutrition programming, food distribution programming, etc.)
2. Develop and cultivate relationships between non-member partners and member agencies to foster better food access.
3. Work closely with other Food Bank departments that conduct outreach to member agencies to ensure effective and efficient coordination
4. Plan and facilitate monthly coalition meetings with member agencies in assigned region to provide a networking and learning opportunity.
5. Write and disseminate the Berkshire County component of the Network Capacity Department quarterly newsletter.
6. Represent The Food Bank in select venues related to food access
7. Work with member agencies and The Food Bank’s Nutrition Department to plan Intergenerational Community Meals
8. Identify other community needs and possible food access projects for member agencies to coordinate or take part in.
9. Communicate Food Bank policies and procedures to current and potential member agencies and clients
10. Develop and provide reports as necessary
11. Research, develop and distribute materials for outreach

Job Specifications/Requirements

1. Knowledge of and experience with issues related to hunger, poverty, and nutrition
2.  Strong diplomatic and interpersonal skills
3. Very strong communication skills, including written and verbal
4. Ability to present information succinctly and clearly, both verbally and in writing
5. Strong organizational and time management skills
6. Proficient in program development, implementation, and evaluation
7. Ability to coordinate meetings, trainings and educational programs
8. Strong MS Office, internet, and database management skills
9. Experience and comfort working in a variety of cultures and communities
10. Office experience to include coordinative and project management experience
11. Ability to drive, excellent driving history, and access to a reliable vehicle

REPORT TO: Network Capacity Manager

THE FOOD BANK IS A FRAGRANCE FREE WORKPLACE. WE ASK THAT ALL CANDIDATES INVITED TO INTERVIEWS REFRAIN FROM WEARING STRONG FRAGRANCES OR PERFUMES.

In accordance with federal law and U.S. Department of Agriculture policy, this institution is prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, disability, marital or familial status. To file a complaint of discrimination, write USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C. 20250-9410, or call 202/720-5964 (voice and TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.

Spring is here and this light and healthy recipe is right in line with warmer weather and celebrating National Nutrition Month this March. It features cottage cheese which is an excellent source of protein, with 1/2 cup low fat cottage cheese providing 14 grams of protein, 2.5 grams of fat, 10 mg cholesterol, 4 grams of carbs and only 90 calories. It is a heart-healthy treat and also provides calcium and potassium.

Directions:

Toss the spinach and green onions with the vinaigrette; divide evenly onto 4 salad plates.   Top each salad with the strawberries and walnuts.  Spoon the cottage cheese over the spinach mixture and serve.

Nutritional info:  Per serving: Calories 220, Fat 5 gm, Carbohydrates 29 gm, Fiber 5 gm, Protein 16 gm, Sodium 520 mg Source: daisybrandhealth.com

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