This spring, we celebrate the generosity and ingenuity of our community while also mourning the lives and livelihoods we’ve lost since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic just over one year ago. At Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program, the past year has highlighted opportunities that exist for us to better serve the food insecure population in our community. To us, spring represents renewal, growth, and change. To that end, and due to the extreme generosity of our donors throughout the pandemic, the program is excited to announce the roll out of $175,000 in program expansions.
Every year, MCHPP grows and changes in our efforts to meet the current needs of the community. It is estimated that food insecurity grew by more than 25% in Maine during 2020 and Mid Coast Hunger Prevention’s Food Pantry and Soup Kitchen visits saw a steady increase.
At the beginning of 2021, the soup kitchen saw an 85% increase in visits compared to this time last year. Similarly, in the first two months of 2021 food pantry visits have increased 18% over the same time in 2020. More people are coming to Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program, and we are committed to undertaking the below expansions and additions needed to serve them in a manner consistent with our mission of offering healthy food in a dignified way to all in need.
The food pantry will soon begin offering online ordering and pick-up scheduling. Guests will be able to choose grocery items through an online system and schedule a time to pick-up their items. This will make the process more efficient for guests and also allow Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program to accommodate more visits.
Local hubs for daily soup kitchen meal distribution will soon be offered. This will provide the opportunity for community members without travel accommodations to access meals and lower the travel time for many other guests. Having multiple hubs for distributions will also lower the wait time in line for guests. The soup kitchen has seen an unprecedented increase in meals served, and we are excited for our program to grow in a way that provides people with low barrier methods for accessing meals.
The Lisbon Mobile Food Pantry is increasing its frequency from once to twice per month. The Mobile Pantry continues to grow with the needs of the community by increasing the frequency of current locations and adding new locations. These program expansions will provide opportunities for Midcoast community members further from our main location to access our services more conveniently. The program will be announcing new site locations for the mobile pantry soon.
Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program recently piloted our first satellite pantry. This pilot program is located in one of Brunswick Housing Authority’s low-income senior housing sites. The satellite pantry offers free grocery items to residents, reduces stigma some may feel and allows residents with limited mobility or no transportation to easily access nutritious food. The program is excited to announce that due to the success of the pilot program, the satellite pantry program will be expanding to five operational sites this year, working closely with the Bath Housing Authority to operationalize this expansion.
This summer the program is expanding summer food service to include free groceries and grocery gift cards to families with children. The program will also continue to offer free bagged lunches to school-aged children through the summer months as in years past. The expansion of the program aims to further reduce child hunger in the region which can spike during the summer when students to longer receive school meals.
Mid Coast Hunger Prevention also provides food for over 600 school children during the academic year in partnership with 28 area schools. We are working to increase the variety of items offered, partner with more schools and reduce the stigma of food insecurity in the coming year.
In order to further support its community partners, Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program will explore options to offer the use of its commercial kitchen space to community partners. This space is certified for food processing and distribution and will help community partners meet their mission and make the best use of resources. This program expansion will also allow the program to further its mission to fight food waste.
Mid Coast Hunger Prevention remains dedicated to offering dignity and empowerment by providing all members of our community with access to healthy food. We pride ourselves on a track record of flexibility, ingenuity, and respect for those we serve. The amazing thing about this past year is that all of those truths held, despite enormous challenges. We are all hopeful for positive change this year, but in the meantime, you know where to find us if you’re ever in need of a meal.
All community members are eligible to receive services from the food pantry and soup kitchen. The food pantry is open Tuesday, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 4-6 p.m.; Wednesday and Friday, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.; and Saturday, noon to 3 p.m. Lunch is available Monday-Friday, 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.; and Saturday, noon to 1:30 p.m. Both services are located at 12 Tenney Way, Brunswick.
If you would like to volunteer, donate, or learn more about Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program please visit www.mchpp.org.
Kassie Pierce is a MSW intern at Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program. Giving Voice is a weekly collaboration among four local non-profit service agencies to share information and stories about their work in the community.
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