A YEAR IN REVIEW – 2018

2018 was a very busy year. We began the year with four distributions per month instead of two. We did this primarily to ease the congestion on Saturdays. That worked for a time, but by summer our numbers had almost doubled. We are maxed out on space, both for food and parking, but somehow we make it work.

This summer we took possession of a ‘container’. This is a refrigerated unit that sits in our parking lot measuring 23’ long, 8’ wide and 9’ tall. This allowed us to get rid of a few of our electricity eating refrigerators and freezers and it reduced our Consumers bill by $200 a month.

Food is by far our biggest expense with electricity and rent being the two second biggest expenses. Fuel for our vehicles is also a big expense, as we drive many miles picking up food from various locations. In July, on a warm, still night a large tree fell on both of our vans, covering them so well that we could not see them. The oldest van was totaled and the 2003 van received a hole in the hood and needed a new windshield. Neither Van had full coverage because of their age and mileage. The Bridge Church and one member of the Church heard about our challenge and helped out by buying us a 2014 Ford Cargo Van. We took possession in October. We still need to use personal vehicles to retrieve some food, but two vans are definitely needed. Our drivers are on the road 4-5 days a week.

A local business donated “Twelve Baskets” T-Shirts for our volunteers. These shirts have been a hit with everyone and they make it very easy for the clients to know who workers are and who clients are. And speaking of workers … we have been very fortunate to have many volunteers show up on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays (and any other time that we might need them un-expectedly). Side note: we do not ask volunteers to commit to any specific time. They may pick the time and day. This has worked very well for us, and we always seem to have enough help, praise the Lord. Many groups have also come to volunteer. We had a group of girls come one Saturday (it was one girls birthday). They brought food, helped as shopper assistants, manning a food station and working the parking lot. The Bridge Church has been coming every 2nd Saturday for several years, the Kalamazoo Spartans, Kalamazoo Auto Auction, Sanford Financial and other smaller groups. This really makes for a fun day when these events occur. Schools and businesses have participated in food drives, such as B45 Academy who ran a competition to see which team could collect the most food, resulting in over 3,000 pounds.

This summer we had a Volunteer appreciation picnic at Lakeview Park and in December we had a Volunteer dinner at Indian Run Golf Course in Scotts. We had a wonderful turn out at these events, and everyone had a great time. All food for both events was donated.

The week of Thanksgiving the WMU Football Team gave away 25 complete turkey dinners to a random selection of our clients. This was their idea, their $$$’s and their time. They did it at the pantry and
everyone had a great time. Channel 3 even showed up to record the event.

We start each distribution day with a gathering of clients and volunteers in the parking lot, forming a circle. Announcements are made, we pray and then ask if anyone has something specific that they wish prayer for. We then end our session with The Lord’s Prayer and shopping begins.

This year we signed an agreement with our landlord to purchase our building by December 2019, thus we are in an active ‘Building Campaign’ to raise the money. But, we also realize that the building we are in is not big enough, so we would like to purchase the building directly to the north of us as well. That building is almost four times as large as the one we are in now. With that building comes extra parking (which we are using right now because the owner, Ken Terpstra has generously made it available. He has also given us two large rooms (no charge) to use for storage. He has been a huge blessing to Twelve Baskets. He wants to sell and is willing to wait on us. We don’t want to take advantage of him, so the sooner the better.

As we said in the beginning, our numbers have grown. With approximately 90 families per week (average 3.4 per family) we have fed about 14,000 people this year. They are receiving a full cart of groceries which averages about $100 – $150. Of course food is distributed based on the size of the family, so it varies with each family. Clients receive a selection of meats, canned & boxed good, juices, produce, breads, snacks and deserts (such as ice cream, pies & cookies). It takes between 20 – 30 volunteers with each distribution.

Unexpected volunteers have magically shown up from time to time, such as a crew to move refrigerators & freezers to clean behind, under, inside and outside, and to wash shelves. A Portage Central athlete who mowed our lawn. Another crew came in the spring to rake both front lawns. A client with a backhoe, to move the downed tree from the vans and cut it up. A fraternity to haul away the brush. The same client with a backhoe also clears snow from the driveway from time to time.

Twelve Baskets is a 100% Volunteer, 100% Donation based pantry. We have no paid personnel. We do however have monthly expenses that continue to rise. Without the generosity of many, we would not exist. We want to thank every one of you for whatever contribution you have made. We are most grateful.

Come visit us any time. We are sure you will be amazed at the clients, the volunteers and the workings of the Pantry.

On behalf of the Board of Directors, Volunteers and those served by Twelve Baskets Food Pantry, we are most thankful for the help you have given.

Happy New Year!
May your 2019 be filled with many blessings.
January 2019