TEAM to celebrate 60 years with Barbecue Birthday Bash at Quarry Walk in Oxford

Join us for a night of fun, celebrating 60 years of TEAM Inc.! We are having a Barbecue Birthday Bash to celebrate this milestone.

The evening will include:

-Full spread of delicious barbecue
-Cash bar including wine from Jones Family Farms, beer, and cocktails
-Musical entertainers including: Sister Funk trio, Joe Zullo, and The Elwoods
-Magician Chris Lengyel

ALL PROCEEDS FROM THIS EVENT WILL COMBAT FOOD INSECURITY AND FEED OUR NEIGHBORS! 

TEAM's Project MANNA (Mobilizing Action for the Nutritional Needs of All) aims to eliminate food insecurity by supplying our partner pantries with fresh, healthy foods to stock their shelves. 100% of proceeds support our bulk purchasing of these nutritious items - and our partnership with Bozzuto's helps us save 25-30% off retail prices. Thank you for supporting TEAM & our initiatives to better our community.

Quarry Walk is at 300 Oxford Road, Oxford.

Sponsored by:
HAYNES
NEWTOWN SAVINGS BANK 

Shared from a Facebook event page.

Seymour Pink food drive Aug. 31 to benefit The Little Free Pantry on Skokorat

Join us on Aug. 31 at Stop & Shop in Seymour from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. helping us help those in need!

Food insecurity and food insufficiency are REAL and right here in our neighborhood!

Help us help the Little Pantry on Skokorat Street in Seymour. 
THANK YOU!!

Valley YMCA Child Care Center in Ansonia holding Purple Pantry Food Drive

 

Klarides-Ditria urges community to support local food pantries

Dear friends and neighbors, The cold winter weather combined with rising inflation and higher costs for groceries is exacerbating the issue of food insecurity and hunger right here in our community, and across our state.   Many Connecticut residents are struggling to make ends meet, pay bills, and afford costly medications and food. They can use our help. A small donation can make a HUGE difference and many pantries or soup kitchens make it easier than ever to provide a positive impact right from your smart phone by using your Venmo, PayPal or CashApp account.   Of course, you can still collect or purchase non-perishable items for drop off, and I encourage you to reach out to the local organization of your choice to find out the best ways to help. Locally: Saint Vincent de Paul – Derby https://svdpvalley.com/ Salvation Army Ansonia Corps https://easternusa.salvationarmy.org/southern-new-england/ansonia/ Valley United Way https://valleyunitedway.org/need-help/food-banks/ Town of Beacon Falls https://www.beaconfalls-ct.org/home/news/mobile-food-pantry Saint Michael's Food Pantry NTRYBEACONFALLSSaintMichaelsChurchFoodPantryBeaconFalls_556_2_0 Naugatuck Monthly Mobile Food Pantry https://www.facebook.com/NaugyMobileFoodPantry/ Seymour/Oxford Food Bank https://seymouroxfordfoodbank.com/ The Blessing Pantry https://www.blessingpantry.org/

Sincerely,

CT Foodshare seeks help raising awareness of food insecurity

This is shared from St. Vincent De Paul Thrift Shop and Food Bank of Derby Facebook page.

Seymour pantries expand gardens in response to need for produce

Blessing Pantry and Community Garden coordinator Aaron Smith planting and preparing the garden.

SEYMOUR - The Blessing Pantry and Little Free Pantry on Skokorat are expanding their community garden footprints in response to need for more fresh produce. 

The expansion is a direct result of listening to local residents about their limited access to produce, even among those qualifying for assistance from food banks. Produce doesn’t last until the next pantry visit, which in many cases, may be weeks away.

The Little Free Pantry on Skokorat has enlisted Team Rubicon, including town resident
Lauren Cust, to add seven 4x8 garden beds. When Team Rubicon arrives on June 3, they will
provide the labor needed to expand the current garden to more than triple its current size. 

This will mean a substantial increase in both the variety and volume of produce available to those in need.

The Blessing Pantry is also adding raised beds. They are taking their expansion project one step further by starting a Weeding Wednesday initiative where residents are invited to work in the garden while enjoying light refreshments and musical entertainment.

Both free pantries opened at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in response to the massive
surge in individuals experiencing food insecurity in the Valley.
Since opening in 2020, the Blessing Pantry and Little Free Pantry on Skokorat have become
hubs in the community. Both field concerns from neighbors regarding barriers to food access and increasingly unaffordable costs of groceries, housing, utilities, and child care.

The pantries have been meeting with town residents and local nonprofits as part of the founding leadership of All In for Seymour, part of the larger Valley Area All In Movement. 

All In groups from Ansonia/Derby, Shelton, Oxford, and Milford are working with TEAM, Inc., in Derby, a national leader in not-for-profit management and program performance in the field of human services, early childhood, family support, and community engagement.
The goal of All in for Seymour and the broader All In Movement is to advocate for everyone to have
access to a safe and affordable place to live, a place where access to food is secure, and a
place in the decision-making that affects our lives.

The Little Free Pantry on Skokorat is run by Seymour native Jenny Rice along with her husband and two children out of their home at 58 Skokorat St.  

The Blessing Pantry is staffed entirely by volunteers and located in the parking lot of Trinity Church at 91 Church St.

Their garden can be accessed by following the signage near the pantry. 

Both pantries are open and accessible 24/7 for anyone in need, no questions asked.

This is a press release from Jenny Rice of Seymour, who runs The Little Free Pantry on Skokorat.

Derby Police Auxiliary to hold annual Stuff-A-Cruiser food drive Sunday

DERBY - The Derby Police Department’s Auxiliary Unit will hold its 6th Annual Holiday Food Drive to benefit the St. Vincent de Paul Society Sunday, Nov. 20, from 9 a.m.-2 p.m. at BJ's Wholesale Club, 20 Division St.

At the “Stuff-A-Cruiser” event, officers will accept non-perishable food donations to feed area families in need via St. Vincent de Paul Food Bank.

According to data compiled by the Valley United Way, 12 percent of Valley adults reported experiencing food insecurity.

Give while you check your own Thanksgiving shopping off your to-do list this Sunday at BJ's. All members of the public are encouraged to come to BJ's parking lot to donate food items, even if you shop elsewhere.

As you celebrate with your family and loved ones this holiday, know that you helped provide for families that might otherwise go hungry. 

This is shared from a Facebook event page.

St. Vincent De Paul of the Valley marks 4 decades of helping less fortunate

SHELTON - Staff, volunteers, board members, and supporters of St. Vincent De Paul of the Valley in Derby Sunday celebrated the organization's 40th anniversary of helping those grappling with food insecurity.

The nonprofit held a luncheon to mark the occasion at Caloroso Eatery and Bar. 

St. Vincent De Paul of the Valley Thrift Shoppe and Food Bank is located at 237 Roosevelt Drive, Derby. Proceeds from the shop support the food bank.

In 2021, the organization distributed more than 185,948 pounds of food and more than $52,850 gift cards to the neediest among us. 

I'd like to publicly thank SVDP Executive Director Remy Kocurek for inviting me to join in the celebration. I applaud her and her crew for their tireless dedication to helping the community.

Note: The city of Derby is seeking donations of hamburger, chicken, and tuna helper for the food bank this month. See previous blog post here.

Valley United Way, Massaro Farm partner for Grow Your Own garden initiative

Valley United Way announced last week a new partnership with Massaro Community Farm of Woodbridge in managing the 13 neighborhood gardens of the Grow Your Own program within the five-town region of Lower Naugatuck Valley.

When Grow Your Own started at Valley United Way over four years ago, a few gardeners and garden beds were producing fresh vegetables as the Valley was exploring how to address food insecurity.  

Now, the garden sites throughout Ansonia, Derby, Oxford, Seymour, and Shelton contain more than 100 raised beds and have produced over 1,000 pounds of produce for community members and local food pantries.  

As coronavirus has revealed the increased need for food in the community, Valley United Way sought to create a partnership with a local non-profit who could ensure the gardens were managed, and volunteers supported, in order to reach their full potential.  

Massaro Community Farm, a nonprofit educational farm that has focused on food insecurity for over 10 years, was a natural fit.  

David Kennedy, Interim President/COO of Valley United Way commented, “It’s a very common practice for United Ways to turn to non-profits in their community with a proven skill set to take on programs after United Way has incubated them.  

"Such an action allows a United Way to better focus on its primary mission and work.  In the case of Valley United Way, that means raising money to support our community’s network of exceptional non-profits, all with an eye towards making our community as strong and healthy as it can be.” 

Eager to get started, Massaro will provide organic seedlings raised at their farm and will work with community volunteers to fill the garden beds with an assortment of vegetables.  Tomatoes, lettuces, peppers, and cucumbers will be part of the collection that is planted in the gardens to help feed communities. 

Caty Poole, Executive Director at Massaro, who is also a member of the Food Security Task Force of the Valley Council for Health and Human Services, has seen firsthand the needs of the community in the farm’s work with food pantries. "Now, when demand for hunger relief is at an all-time high, Massaro Community Farm is pleased to manage the Grow Your Own program to help ensure as much food as possible reaches families who need it most," Poole said.

Looking forward to the partnership, Kennedy said, “Valley United Way is so grateful to Caty Poole and her team at Massaro for being willing to take on the oversight of this project. The Farm’s expertise and experience, will ensure that the Grow Your Own project will have its best season ever this year - and get more fresh food to our communities during these hardest of times.”  

Kennedy pointed out that “the Grow Your Own project would not be possible this growing season without the underwriting of a very generous and long-standing donor of Valley United Way, the Raymond P. Lavietes Foundation. For decades, Mr. Lavietes and the Foundation have been passionate about Valley United Way’s work. We are so grateful to the Foundation’s directors for their support; without them, we could not be doing the work we do.”  

Beaver Brook garden in Ansonia.

A list of gardens and their locations can be found at www.valleyunitedway.org/grow-your-own. Anyone who wants to learn about volunteering at the neighborhood gardens can contact Corey Thomas, Education Director at Massaro Farm:  Education@massarofarm.org  or call 203-736-8618.  

All volunteers are required to be in good health, wear masks, and to practice social distancing behaviors while working in any of the gardens.

This is a press release from Valley United Way.

TEAM, Griffin partner to promote elderly nutrition at Derby Senior Center

Who? TEAM’s Elderly Nutrition Café Meals annually serves more than 3,000 lunches at 4 Valley café locations - this is in addition to TEAM Meals on Wheels home-delivering more than 40,000 meals in the last year alone. TEAM is a nonprofit human services organization serving the Greater Valley and surrounding region. 

What? To increase awareness of Elderly Nutrition & Wellbeing opportunities, TEAM is hosting celebrity chefs from Griffin Hospital at its Derby café location (Derby Senior Center). These congregate meal café opportunities include healthy balanced meals in a friendly group atmosphere such as senior centers, senior housing, and other suitable cafe locations. TEAM’s Elderly Nutrition Programs are offered every week at four convenient locations – these meal café opportunities are available to Valley seniors, and for those unable to access a café TEAM will deliver to homebound or isolated seniors via Meals on Wheels.

When? At noon Thursday a Hawaiian Luau style lunch will be served by Griffin Hospital Celebrity Chefs.   

Where? Derby Senior Center, 293 Main St., Derby. Serving in 12 communities, TEAM’s central offices are located at 30 Elizabeth St., Derby.

Why? TEAM is committed to maximizing opportunities for the independence and well being of our Valley seniors most in need – this event (which has more than 90 seniors who have responded!) is to help raise public awareness of these services that aim to provide nutritionally balanced meals, to reduce senior hunger and food insecurity, and to promote socialization, health, and well being for older residents in our Valley. 

For those who are homebound or isolated and unable to get to a congregate site, TEAM’s Meals on Wheels program delivers daily nutritious meals, friendly social visits, and safety checks to enrolled seniors all year long. 

TEAM’s lunchtime café meals are available at several locations throughout the Valley, with locations and days/times listed below:

Congregate Meal Program Service Locations

Callahan House

32 Smith Street

Seymour, CT 06483

Lunch Monday thru Friday, 11:30 AM

Derby Senior Center

293 Main St.

Derby

Lunch Tuesdays and Thursdays 11:30 AM

Griffin Hospital

130 Division St.

Derby

Dinner Tuesday thru Friday, 4:30-6 PM

Oxford Senior Center

10 Church Road

Oxford

Lunch two days per month (rotating schedule) 12 PM

This is a press release from TEAM, Inc.