HomePublicationPasadenaFriends In Deed Food Pantry Needs Summer Donations

Friends In Deed Food Pantry Needs Summer Donations

OUTLOOK Photo Friends In Deed Program Director Tim Nistler (right) directs volunteers on how to help shoppers find what food they need, including new staple items and the freshest produce available that day. Cash, checks and online donations are also welcome, according to Friends In Deed administrators.
OUTLOOK Photo
Friends In Deed Program Director Tim Nistler (right) directs volunteers on how to help shoppers find what food they need, including new staple items and the freshest produce available that day. Cash, checks and online donations are also welcome, according to Friends In Deed administrators.

As long as vulnerable people in the Pasadena area need access to food and groceries, Friends In Deed plans to be there with its Food Pantry to lend a helping hand.
Supplies for the pantry tend to become scarcer during summer months — many large donations are school-based, and produce doesn’t last as long in the hotter weather — so the need for donations rises to accommodate that.
“It’s doing a great service and it’ll definitely go to use,” said Joshua Grater, executive director of Friends In Deed. “There are a lot of mouths to feed.”
The charity seeks the usual suspects for food outreach — non-perishables like canned food, rice, bottled water, ready-to-eat meals — but also is hoping for frozen meats, other proteins and cold compress towels. Other high-priority food items include peanut butter, canned tuna, canned chicken, cereal, rice, cooking oil, sugar and flour.
Cash, checks and online donations are also welcome, according to Friends In Deed administrators.
The pantry, located at 444 E. Washington Blvd. (at the intersection with Los Robles Avenue), serves its clients three days a week. As of last year, it served 700 people and 300 homes, mostly in the Pasadena and Altadena area.
Local partners include Pasadena Farmers Market, Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, Smart & Final, Food Forward and Costco, in addition to congregations, civic groups, scouting troops, other businesses, schools and youth groups.
Grater said the organization’s partnerships and capabilities continue to grow.
“Things are going well,” he said. “We have a steady flow of clients, but we are growing our pantry at present. We have a refrigerator van now, so we have more visibility. We’ve been getting more partnerships and that’s always good.”
Nonperishable food donations are accepted between 8:30 a.m. and 4 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays at the pantry, while fresh and frozen fruits, vegetables, meat and dairy are preferred to be donated on Mondays, Tuesday and Wednesdays to ensure quick distribution.
For more information, visit 9 or call (626) 797-2402.
— Zane Hill

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