Hunger Ministry

Distribution: On the second Monday of each month, recipients pick up groceries and store gift cards at St. Paul's fellowship hall, or meet delivery drivers. Details for each distribution night will be provided in letters to recipients. To pick up on any other date, please follow the instructions in the letter to find alternative times when the church office is open. 


New recipients are welcome at any point in the year. To be added to the list, email hunger@stpaulsk.org to get started. We serve anyone living in the 20895 ZIP code. 


At sign-up and once a year we ask all recipients to show a piece of mail with their current address in the 20895 ZIP code to verify their home is within our service area. That's it! There are no income requirements or referrals needed. For additional food resources in 20895 and surrounding communities, please scroll down the page.


Interested in volunteering? We need help each month sorting, bagging, taking inventory, greeting families, and making deliveries. SSL hours are available. Contact hunger@stpaulsk.org to get in touch with our volunteer coordinator, and we will send you the sign-up information!

Donations to feed hungry neighbors

St. Paul's provides food assistance year-round for individuals and families in the 20895 ZIP code area who may be facing food insecurity. Our donors and volunteers make it possible!


Please consider donating one of the grocery items listed below, or even packing a whole bag. 


If you prefer to make a financial contribution, you can do so at our Giving page, or by check made out to St. Paul's UMC with "Hunger Ministry" on the memo line. Funds are used to buy food at bulk rates and to purchase grocery store cards that enable our recipients to buy fresh produce, meat, dairy, and personal hygiene products. 


Please Remember:

  • Our distribution events look a little different from events held before covid. 
  • Please donate those items found on the lists below. 
  • We cannot accept glass containers. Glass breaks and the shards are dangerous for our volunteers and recipients! (Also, have you ever tried mopping up an entire jar's worth of tomato sauce off of boxes and bags? Not fun.)
  • Nobody wants to eat "expired" food. Ensure items have a sell-by or use-by date of at least a month in the future from your donation time.


REQUESTED ITEMS


(for Bag #1)

Rice - 1 bag (1-pound size) or large box or 2 small boxes

Beans - 1 bag or 2 cans

Pasta - 1 box or bag

Pasta Sauce - 1 large plastic jar or can

Mac & Cheese - 2 boxes

Chicken Breast - 1 or 2 cans

Tuna (or other fish) - 2 cans


(for Bag #2)

Vegetables - 3 cans

Fruit (including applesauce) - 2 cans or plastic jars

Peanut Butter - 1 jar

Shelf stable milk (32 oz carton)

Box of breakfast cereal or instant oatmeal

Soup


Donations can be dropped off in the Narthex on Sunday mornings or at the church office during office hours.

Resources for those outside our service area

St. Paul's provides food and grocery-store gift cards to those living in the 20895 ZIP code. Defining our service area allows us to scale our program in a sustainable way. 


All families who receive food through St. Paul's are asked to show proof of address once a year. We do not ask for proof of income, citizenship status, or require personal information beyond proof-of-address, and we do not share our clients' information.


Sometimes people may approach members of the church asking for assistance directly. St. Paul's leaders would like to encourage our community to offer fellowship and lift up one another in prayer, but to mindfully give only through channels that provide structure for the safety of all involved. 


If someone appears to be in immediate need, phone the county's 311 hotline or Montgomery County Police non-emergency number at 301-279-8000.


For assistance if someone lives outside of our 20895-ZIP code area, or in addition to the Hunger Ministry food aid we offer, here are some helpful resources. (Please note: St. Paul's UMC is not affiliated with these organizations nor responsible for their services or policies.)

assistance


Here are additional resources for the 20895 ZIP code that you may find helpful:


FOR COVID-19 VACCINATION INFO: https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/covid19/vaccine

Through this Montgomery County website, you can click to pre-register for a vaccination appointment at a county-run clinic, a state-run mass vaccination site, or another clinic run by a hospital or pharmacy.


FOOD ASSISTANCE:


Bethesda Help provides a short-term supply of emergency groceries. If your family needs a food delivery, please call 301-365-2022. In addition to serving those living in the 20895 ZIP code area, Bethesda Help serves other ZIP codes. Visit their website http://www.bethesdahelp.org/i-need-help for more information about their supports and service area. 


McLean Bible Church is distributing food throughout the Maryland/DC/Virginia region at churches, schools, and apartment communities to anyone in need on a first-come first-served walk-up/drive-up basis. Distribution locations and times are listed weekly on their website. https://mcleanbible.org/montgomery-county/local-outreach-2/


Mid-County United Ministries (MUM) is offering mobile pantries. Dates and locations can be found at https://mumhelp.org/mum-main-location-closed/


Manna has multiple food pantries throughout the region. They have temporarily waived all income requirements! Pre-packaged food boxes are provided to each recipient consisting of: a box of pantry staples (e.g. beans, pasta, canned vegetables, canned fruits); a box of fresh fruits and vegetables; a bag of frozen meat. Appointments are necessary to ensure food is ready for everyone to pick up. Go to http://www.mannafood.org/how-to-receive-food-from-manna/ for more info, or phone 301-424-1130.


Lasagna Love connects those who would like to receive a home-cooked dinner with neighbors who like to cook for others. To request a meal, go to: https://lasagnalove.org/request/


For other questions about St. Paul's resources, contact the church office at stpaulsunited@stpaulsk.org or phone 301-933-7933 ext 511 and leave a message.

Thank You, Thank you

During covid, before we figured out how to safely hold an in-person distribution event, our Hunger Ministry reached vulnerable families in the 20895 ZIP code by mailing grocery store gift cards. Sometimes we receive letters and calls reminding us that our work truly impacts families with fewer means. Here are just a few messages we received recently:


"We just wanted to reach out and thank you and your church from the bottom of our hearts for your kindness and generosity once again. We're continually humbled and inspired by our community's steady support and care for us and so greatly appreciate it!"


"Thank you for all the great help you have provided for our family."


If you live in the 20895 area and need assistance, please contact us at 301-933-7933 ext 511.

National UMC & Campus Kitchens

Making Meals Possible

For over two years, St. Paul's has served a hot dinner at our Hunger Ministry monthly food distribution. Delivery drivers would stop at St. Paul's on the first Monday of each month with trays of food ready to nourish hungry families and hearty volunteers. The meal is made possible by Campus Kitchen DC, a food ministry of National UMC, which rescues good food, has it transformed by Campus Kitchens, and then delivers it to programs serving those in need. 


While it is not safe to sit around tables and eat together with our neighbors during covid, St. Paul's will provide meals in "To-Go" containers, for families to pick up at the same time they receive their groceries.


You can read more about the mission of National UMC and learn about their efforts region-wide at https://nationalchurch.org/. We are proud to be community partners, working together to eliminate hunger.

Campus Kitchens

Each month, St. Paul's volunteers and families participating in our Hunger Ministry efforts are invited to enjoy a hot meal when they arrive to pick up their grocery items. The dinner comes to us monthly through our partners at National UMC and their work with the Campus Kitchens Project.


Based in Washington, DC, the Campus Kitchens Project links schools large and small with volunteers dedicated to helping end hunger and reducing food waste. Volunteers recover good food from cafeterias and university food services programs that goes unused but would otherwise be thrown out. Volunteers and partners then help prepare fresh dishes and deliver meals to community-based programs like ours, in neighborhoods throughout their local area.


College student and youth volunteers gain first-hand experience in community service and leadership, and the Campus Kitchens initiatives also provide culinary training and educational opportunities for underemployed adults. There are currently over 60 schools across the nation participating in Campus Kitchens.


To learn more, visit https://www.campuskitchens.org/


Past partnerships

Hungry Harvest: This group reclaims fresh produce that would go to waste such as grocery store overstock or mis-shapen "ugly" fruits and vegetables. Individuals subscribe to a box delivery program, and for every box delivered, Hungry Harvest delivers produce to charitable organizations working to reduce and end hunger. Subscribers from our region support produce distribution to food desert and low income public school areas in Baltimore, MD. Visit https://www.hungryharvest.net/ to learn more about Hungry Harvest's mission, delivery area, and sign-up options. 


Rise Against Hunger: As part of St. Paul's "Great Day of Service" in 2017, our church community worked together to weigh dry ingredients, seal bags, and complete over 30,000 meals kits. These were added to a shipping container with another 285,120 meals from the National Capital area warehouse and sent to partner agencies for distribution in El Salvador. Rise Against Hunger meals served 20,000 beneficiaries in El Salvador at 100 different feeding centers. https://www.riseagainsthunger.org/


Interfaith Works Shelters: What do we do with leftovers from Hunger Ministry meals and large events at St. Paul's? In the past, we have donated prepared dishes to homeless shelters in our area to feed their residents. Although Interfaith Works closed the nearby Men's Carroll House Shelter, we continue to support the womens' shelters in Rockville and Silver Spring with meals throughout the year.