Wednesday, June 25, 2014

New Look for Agency Login Screen


When you go from Good Shepherd Food Bank's homepage to log into the "Agency Login" screen for online ordering you'll notice our brand-new look!  (We'll be adding a special "Agency Profile" feature for our agencies within the next couple of weeks -- more details coming soon!)

You can still get to the online ordering page with just a button click!
In the left-hand column simply click the "Access Online Ordering Portal" button.  It will take you to the regular ordering page.


Monday, June 16, 2014

Participate in The Solutions to Poverty Project


Maine Equal Justice Partners (MEJP), along with Dr. Sandy Butler at the University of Maine, School of Social Work, is doing a research project about poverty in Maine. They want to hear directly from people in communities throughout the State who may be having difficulty making ends meet.  We encourage you to please consider participating in the MEJP study by sharing a short survey with your clients, so they can tell MEJP a little about themselves, their opinions, and what laws or policies they think would be the most effective in helping to reduce poverty in Maine.   

MEJP will summarize the information from respondents in a report that will come out this fall. This report, including the recommendations from the survey, will help MEJP advocate for policies that increase opportunities for all Maine people. 

Who is Maine Equal Justice? 
Maine Equal Justice is a non-profit legal aid provider, whose mission is to find solutions to poverty and improve the lives of people with low income in Maine. Their work is focused on the issues that affect people’s daily lives – access to affordable health care, food and income security, supports for working families, and higher education and training opportunities. Their work is informed by what we hear from Maine people with low income and others who are committed to increasing opportunity for all Maine people. 

What are we asking you to do?
If you decide to help, please contact Chris Rusnov at MEJP (crusnov@mejp.org). She will send you paper surveys. Alternatively, if your clients have access to the internet, you can share the survey by passing along the link included at the end of this message.  It should take about 10-15 minutes to complete the survey.  By completing the survey, respondents are giving MEJP permission to include the responses (without their name attached) in a report on the study findings. 

For more information about The Solutions to Poverty Project, please contact Chris Rusnov at Maine Equal Justice Partners at 626-7058 ext. 204 or crusnov@mejp.org.

Survey link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/SolutionsToPoverty

Tuesday, June 10, 2014

Feed Maine Food Drive - This Weekend!

The 9th Annual Feed Maine Food Drive, sponsored by NewsCenter and Hannaford Supermarkets, is taking place this Saturday, June 14.

Good Shepherd Food Bank and WCSH/WLBZ staff will be stationed at 5 Hannaford locations from 6 am - 1 pm to collect donations for our hunger relief efforts. We are hoping to have our biggest food drive yet! Both nonperishable food and cash donations will be accepted.

We hope to see you on Saturday morning at one of the following locations:

Sanford Hannaford – 800 Main Street
Scarborough Hannaford – 31 Hannaford Drive
Auburn Hannaford – 95 Spring Street
Augusta Hannaford – 118 Cony Street
Bangor Hannaford – 1133 Union Street

The Great American Milk Drive


Nationwide, milk is one of the items most requested by food bank clients, yet there is a shortage of milk in the emergency food system because it is rarely donated.

In fact, Feeding America recently conducted a survey and found that the 37 million Americans served annually by the Feeding America network receive the equivalent of less than ONE gallon of milk per person per year.

The National Dairy Council and Feeding America are trying to change that with the launch of The Great American Milk Drive, the first-ever national program to help deliver highly desired and nutrient-rich gallons of milk to hungry families who need it most.

YOU CAN HELP! With a simple click of a mouse (www.MilkLife.com/give) or text message (text “Milk” to 27722), you can get much-needed milk to a family who needs it for as little as a $5.00  donation. Donations are designated to local food banks by the donor’s billing zip code. So for every online or text gift made in Maine, donations will come to Good Shepherd Food Bank to be distributed to our network of local agencies.  

Donations from the Great American Milk Drive will come to the Food Bank in the form of $4.50 milk coupons. These coupons can be redeemed at any retailer for up to $4.50 worth of any brand of white milk. This way, agencies will be able to distribute coupons directly to families, who can then go to the store and buy milk for their household.

For questions about the Great American Milk Drive, please contact Clara Whitney at cwhitney@gsfb.org.  

Sunday, June 8, 2014

Good Shepherd Food Bank's Year-End Inventory

Good Shepherd Food Bank's fiscal year ends on Monday, June 30.  In order to comply with our auditors, we need to do a physical inventory on July 1.  Because of this, all our warehouses will be CLOSED on Tuesday, July 1, and we cannot process any orders on that day.

Our schedule for the week of Independence Day is:

  • Warehouses and Offices will be OPEN Monday, June 30
  • Warehouses will be CLOSED on Tuesday, July 1; Offices are OPEN
  • Warehouses and Offices will be OPEN on Wednesday & Thursday, July 2 & 3
  • Warehouses and Offices will be CLOSED on Friday, July 4


Our warehouses will be closed on Friday, August 1, for inventory and our quarterly staff meeting.  Offices will be open that day until noon.
GSFB Network is a blog for partner agencies of Good Shepherd Food Bank focused on feeding Maine's hungry.