Wednesday, February 24, 2010


Get a Ticket to Ride and Help St. Mary's


This Friday, Feb. 26, bring 3 non-perishable food items or a $3 donation to St. Mary's Food Bank to Encanto Park's Enchanted Island Amusement Park and enjoy unlimited rides from 4:30pm-7:30pm. You can try the carousel, train, bumper boats, or any of the other attractions while providing food to those in need in Arizona. For more info, call 602 254-1200 or visit http://www.enchantedisland.com/.

Monday, February 22, 2010


They Picked . . . They Came . . . They Conquered


Under the most adverse of conditions, Super Sitrus Saturday was a big success. Many people were not going to let a little(?) rain stop them from bringing in their oranges and grapefruit to our locations in Arcadia and Central Phoenix. Almost 20,000 pounds (that's 10 tons, folks) was collected. Thanks also to our volunteers and staff (including yours truly) who gave of their time to help. If you've gleaned fruit and couldn't make it to our locations on Saturday, you can drop it off at our 31st Ave. or Surprise locations.

Tuesday, February 16, 2010


If You Glean It, We Will Come


This Saturday, Feb. 20, from 9-2, St. Mary's Food Bank will be holding its first "Super Sitrus Saturday". People throughout the Valley can glean their trees and bring the fruit to either North Phoenix Baptist Church (Central & Bethany Home) or Shepherd of the Hills Church (56th St. & Lafayette Blvd.) in Arcadia. Also anyone who brings fruit to Shepherd of the Hills will be eligible for a "thank you" car wash. The Food Bank is hoping to collect a total of 2.5 million pounds throughout the Valley by March 31. If you want to become a volunteer gleaner, call Chuck at 602 343-5658

They Came, They Saw, They Gleaned

Kudos to Willow Canyon High School in Surprise. Last weekend a group of 90 volunteers, including students, staff, and parents, gleaned citrus trees in the Sun City area. When they had finished, a total of 40,380 pounds of citrus had been donated to St. Mary's Food Bank. The Food Bank, which is hoping to collect 2.5 million pounds of citrus by March 31, will use the citrus both for their food boxes and to trade to other food banks for local fruits and veggies (e.g., potatoes, apples, and onions).

Thursday, February 11, 2010

Past, Present, and Future Major Leaguers go to Bat for St. Mary's
This month Major League Baseball will step up to the plate for St. Mary's Food Bank. On Feb. 17 & 18 players from the Brewers minor league system will glean produce from trees at two Sun City locations, helping the Food Bank to reach it's goal of gleaning 2.5 million pounds of citrus by Mar. 31. Then on Feb. 20, former players like Tim Salmon and Dave Dravecky and current players like Micah Owings and Eric Chavez will be at Surprise Stadium from 5-8pm to hold clinics and sign autographs. A donation of non-perishable food gets you in free.

Monday, February 8, 2010


Boy Scouts Come Through For St. Mary's


February 8 marks the 100th Anniversary of scouting, and throughout the state of Arizona Boy Scouts have collected food for distribution to food banks state-wide. Locally, St. Mary's received 12,800 pounds of non-perishable food. This is over three times the 4,000 pounds collected in 2009.

Tuesday, February 2, 2010


The Emergency Continues . . and St. Mary's Responds
Continuing its emergency food response to areas of Apache, Coconino and Navajo counties hard-hit by January’s record winter storms, St. Mary’s Food Bank coordinated with the Arizona National Guard to deliver more than 2,000 Emergency Food Boxes to Holbrook this weekend to help those desperately in need of food including those living on the Hopi and Navajo Indian reservations.
After sending more than 1,100 food boxes along with a truckload of water and produce to Chinle on Jan. 25-26 to meet emergency needs at the time, state officials contacted St. Mary’s on Jan.30 asking for further emergency assistance. The landscapes of the reservation have seen 5 to 8 feet of snow, making it impossible to obtain essential services and provisions for those unable to leave their homes and navigate roads obliterated by the melting residue of record snowfall.
The higher elevations received an additional 12” of snow from a secondary storm this past week and flood hazards are developing in the lower elevations. The National Guard was able to resume air operations in the area on Saturday when the storms finally subsided, and residents who have not yet been provided assistance are still being discovered.
Calling in all necessary personnel for emergency duty, the Food Bank also enlisted the help of dozens of volunteers to build the necessary Emergency Food Boxes for the five-hour trip to the north. Especially giving was a group of volunteers from The Arizona Republic, who quickly agreed to stay well beyond the originally planned time until all the food boxes needed had been accounted for.
Less than 48 hours after the initial call was put out, more than 2,200 Emergency Food Boxes had arrived at the Navajo Rex Fairgrounds for both ground and air distribution to more than 60 Chapter Houses along the reservation. This brings to total of number of boxes – which are designed to feed families for several days – to more than 3,300 over the last eight days.
St. Mary’s Food Bank remains in contact with all state agencies and stands ready to provide further assistance to this effort.