If you’ve ever been to the food bank on Tuesday, you know longtime volunteer Jan. Hers is the smiling face that greets you at check-in. She is leaving us for the wilds of Alaska but we can’t let her go without a heartfelt thank you for her many years of service. Jan you have touched the lives of so many in our community and you will be greatly missed by clients and fellow volunteers alike. We wish you all the best on your new life adventure!!!

Saturday May 13th was the 25th USPS Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive and Snohomish let it be known that hunger has no place in our community. One bag at a time, neighbor by neighbor, an incredible 19,256 pounds of food was donated to the food bank! Thank you to all of our volunteers and the volunteer teams from Boeing and local high schools who came early and stayed late to unload and sort. Also, we cannot forget our committed letters carriers who went above and beyond to collect and deliver the donations. What a generous and caring community we live in. Thank you Snohomish!

Congratulations to our Executive Director Elizabeth Grant for receiving the 2017 Washington Association of School Administrator Leadership Award. In addition to her unwavering dedication to feeding the hungry in Snohomish, her contributions to Kids’ Café, Cold Weather Shelter, Community Kitchen and School Supplies in a Backpack (just to name a few) are indispensable. Thank you WASA for recognizing the positive impact Elizabeth is making in our community.

If you are planning your garden for this season, please consider growing an extra row for the food bank. Fresh produce is so healthy and always appreciated by our clients. From apples to zucchini, we gladly accept your homegrown harvest!

If you like to garden but don’t have the ability to do so, the Garden of Hope Community Garden is now open in Snohomish. They have two size beds available and it is conveniently located just around the corner from Haggen, 1017 13th St. Every gardener is asked to donate 10% and last year the food bank was delighted with the wide variety of vegetables given to feed our clients: tomatoes, corn, onions, zucchini, beans, squash and more!

All area kids age 18 and younger are invited to join us again this summer at our Kids’ Café summer breakfast and lunch program. There is no pre-registration or sign-up. Kids just need to show up and enjoy a great breakfast and/or lunch. Make sure you also keep a lookout for the Book Café in a neighborhood near you! The Book Café has partnered with the Kids’ Café to deliver free books for students to read throughout the summer. Both programs are free! Locations and times can be found at Kids’ Cafe. Thank you to Kohl’s, Bickford Motors and Chartwell for helping fund these incredible programs.