|
(ST. MICHAELS, MD – December 20, 2021) The St. Michaels Community Center recently received a No Kid Hungry grant in support of its ongoing food distribution program for children and families experiencing food insecurity in St. Michaels and the Bay Hundred communities. Maryland’s Bay Hundred area is a rural and mostly agricultural area that extends from St. Michaels to Tilghman Island. SMCC’s food distribution program includes a food bank and community food pantry; a weekend backpack program; Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and Women, Infants, and Children nutrition outreach and services; after school and childcare meals and snacks; summer program participant meals; and more. No Kid Hungry is a national child hunger organization working to end childhood hunger. The national campaign is run by Share Our Strength, a nonprofit working to solve problems of hunger and poverty in the United States and around the world, with more at www.nokidhungry.org. “The St. Michaels Community Center is the only nonprofit in the Bay Hundred area whose primary mission is to provide services to economically disadvantaged residents,” said SMCC Executive Director Patrick Rofe. “We also serve people in crisis and emergency situations, including those suffering from the effects of fire, flood, eviction, job loss, or other special circumstances.” Rofe says 1 in 5 children nationwide are food insecure – that means hungry—with 43% of Talbot public school kids receiving free or reduced-price school meals. “The $10K No Kid Hungry grant will be used to serve more than 1,000 of our local youth facing food insecurity,” says Rofe. “We still need to count on donor support each year to help meet our community’s needs, but this grant helps to offset the costs of making sure no one goes hungry throughout the entire year, and especially during the holidays.” The Community Center also participates in the Talbot County Hunger Coalition to help eliminate food insecurity for low-income individuals and families in Talbot County. The Center’s Community Café and pantry are open three days a week to provide meals and groceries for anyone in need, with limited local delivery provided by a group of dedicated volunteers. The St. Michaels Community Center also hosts food drives and holiday meals for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter, along with year-round engaging programs and activities for children and adults. Tax-deductible donations to the St. Michaels Community Center are being 100% matched through December, and can be made online at www.stmichaelscc.org. Proceeds from the Treasure Cove Thrift Shop in St. Michaels, Md. also help the nonprofit provide year-round community programs and services that serve, empower, and connect people from throughout the Bay Hundred area.
0 Comments
 December, 2021 Dear Friend, It’s an honor to serve our community and I love what I do. With your support, I get to work with a great staff, board of advisors, and volunteers to make a difference in the lives of those in the Bay Hundred community. Please consider donating to St. Michaels Community Center this holiday season. Your gift will go twice as far because it will be matched dollar-for-dollar by the Board of Advisors. Soon after I arrived at SMCC four months ago, I was inspired by Emily*. She is a member of our community who regularly visits the Center to participate in our programs. Emily has strength and resilience that far exceeds her age. Emily is a 4th grader at St. Michaels Elementary School who participates in our Afterschool Programs. She also brings home food and groceries from SMCC each week to feed her family of six. She lives with her diabetic mother, grandparents, younger sister, and older brother. It would be easy for Emily and her family to lose hope during an increasingly difficult time. Life is hard, and sometimes comes with adversities like poverty, or a chronic illness. Thankfully, Emily has the safety net she needs through the work of the St. Michaels Community Center. Work that is only made possible through the help of our donors. Donors like you who help us deliver each week more than 200 bags of groceries and meals to our community, including Emily and her family. The St. Michaels Community Center is more than a food pantry. We’re a place where service in our community is seen and felt by Emily and many other neighbors and friends. We’re a place of empowerment for children like Emily to help smooth the edginess of life while providing nutritious meals so hunger is no longer a worry. And most importantly, the St. Michaels Community Center is a place of connection—a place where Emily and others in our community find hope and are strengthened in character and self-worth through a sense of belonging to something bigger than an adverse home life. One day as Emily was leaving, she said. “My grandmother loves everything that Ms. Jeannie cooks in the kitchen, and I really like those cookies she adds for dessert.” It’s only because we have a dedicated staff and volunteers that we can achieve our mission. In fact, the cookies Emily mentioned are donated every week by the St. Michaels Rotary Club and a volunteer who loves to bake and give back to their community. We’re lucky to be of service to Emily and her family, and all our friends and neighbors who participate in our programs and activities. We’re grateful that we can make a difference because of your support. Your donations help improve the lives of people in very meaningful ways—which is a great motivator each day. It’s also the reason people like you continue to generously support our operations through charitable donations. When you donate to the St. Michaels Community Center you are helping to improve lives and ensuring a bright and continuing future of the Community Center’s mission. We simply can’t do this work without your help. Please generously support our work and the future of our community by making a charitable donation to the St. Michaels Community Center. You can mail your check or donate online at paypal.me/smccmd. Your donation will ensure St. Michaels and the Bay Hundred communities we serve have the resources to provide hope and security, especially to those who need our help the most, like Emily. With deepest gratitude,  Patrick Rofe Executive Director P.S. Double your impact! For the rest of December, the SMCC Board of Advisors will match all donations dollar-for-dollar. Your employer might help too. Ask your employer if they will match your gift to SMCC! Thank you! *Name has been changed to protect identity. Thank You on behalf of the individuals and families we serve!  (EASTON & ST. MICHAELS, MD – Dec. 3, 2021) Mid-Shore Board of REALTORS® recently provided a $1K contribution to the St. Michaels Community Center to help address food security in our local communities. The funds were raised through a crab feast raffle sponsored by Mid-Shore Board of REALTORS over the summer and will be used to help the St. Michaels Community Center provide pantry bags and meals to Bay Hundred families and individuals in need. “The St. Michaels Community Center is fulfilling an important role in our community in making sure no one in the Bay Hundred area goes hungry,” said SMCC Executive Director Patrick Rofe. “So this kind of support from the Mid-Shore Board of REALTORS® and all our donors is critical in helping us to fulfill our mission of serving, empowering, and connecting our community.” “Our REALTORS® and leadership are deeply invested in the communities we serve,” said Mid-Shore Board of REALTORS® President Gwen Eskridge. “Contributing to organizations like the St. Michaels Community Center helps everyone by helping to make our communities more resilient.” The Mid-Shore Board of REALTORS®’ advocates for its members and the public to preserve the right to own, transfer and utilize real property while providing its members with resources in accordance with the REALTOR® Code of Ethics, with more at midshoreboardofrealtors.com. Donations to SMCC and proceeds from the Treasure Cove Thrift Shop in St. Michaels, Md. help the nonprofit provide year-round community programs and services that serve, empower, and connect people from throughout the Bay Hundred area, with more information at stmichaelscc.org.  From left: Mid-Shore Board of REALTORS® Community Service Member Gary Marquardt; MSBR Community Service Chair Diana Albers; St. Michaels Community Center Executive Director Patrick Rofe; and MSBR Community Service Member Leslie Stevenson. Mid-Shore Board of REALTORS® recently provided a $1K contribution to the St. Michaels Community Center to help address food security among our local communities, with more www.midshoreboardofrealtors.com or at www.stmichaelscc.org. |
Thank youThank you for following the news of the St. Michaels Community Center. Be sure not to miss any announcements or late breaking news by signing up for our electronic newsletter here: Recent Newsletters:Categories
All
More News Stories:
May 2023
|
RSS Feed