Tag Archives: feeding the hungry

Community Grocery Giveaway Draws Crowd!

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We had another huge turnout at our Community Grocery Giveaway on Sunday! from 2-4pm on Sunday, June 5th, the Trinity Center was bustling with guests doing a little complimentary grocery shopping.

Our Community Grocery Giveaway is a free food event to help provide grocery assistance to anyone in the community. With food prices rising and inflation taking its toll, many people are struggling to keep their pantries stocked and their families fed. Our Community Grocery Giveaway helped relieve some of the pressure for these families and individuals.

We provided a wide assortment of all sorts of non-perishable items like cereal, ramen, pasta, canned vegetables, boxed dinners, mac & cheese, beans, canned meat, and more.

We are so thankful to be able to help fight hunger in our community and make sure that no one is dealing with food insecurity. We noticed an increase in senior citizens who participated in the event due to rising prices vs their fixed income. These are definitely challenging times for many and we’re happy to be able to provide assistance.

And we’re able to help so many every month because of our wonderful group of supporters like you! Our Community Grocery Giveaways are possible because of the generous support of our friends who donate so much food each month! Not only are we able to host these grocery events every quarter but we’re serving multiple meals a day to the community and providing food bags every month to anyone in need. God continues to bless our pantry and provide us with the needed food to provide for our neighbors in need. It’s truly nothing short of a miracle how our pantry stays stocked for all the ways we help others. We thank God for everyone who has partnered with us to care for others in their time of need.

There were so many grateful people at our Community Grocery Giveaway. Your donations have helped to make a huge impact on your community – and not just in providing food but also providing hope and showing God’s love! Thank you for caring and sharing!

We also want to give a big THANK YOU to all the volunteers who gave time on Sunday afternoon to help make sure this event was so successful! Thank you so much for your kind and compassionate spirit and giving of your free time to care for the community!! We appreciate you all so much!

If you’d like to learn more about donating food and supporting our food programs then visit hagerstownhopecenter.com/pantry.

If you, or someone you know, is in need of grocery assistance please call us at 301.739.1165 to request a food bag.

Washington County Gives Has Begun! Give Online Today!!

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Washington County Gives is a unique day of online giving to benefit non-profits in the area. From midnight until 11:59pm on May 10th you can join others in the area in support of The Hope Center by donating during WCG ’22!

We’re currently raising support for new tables and chairs for our newly expanded dining room. In 2020-2021 we renovated and expanded our food services area. The construction project more than doubled the space which allows us to feed more people daily. But with the larger space we need more tables and chairs for our guests.

Your donation during WCG will help us purchase the new furniture that will allow us to feed more men, women, and children in the area who are hungry and food insecure.

To donate click here: https://www.washingtoncountygives.org/organizations/the-hope-center-661b283e-b24d-4ea7-8fca-8d5e84104eaf or go to hagerstownhopecenter.com/wcg for a quick link to our donation page for this fundraiser.

And after you give don’t forget to get on Facebook and other social media to encourage your friends and family to join you in giving!

Thank you for your support during Washington County Gives and your continued support of this ministry to those in need in our community! For 67 years we’ve been able to help thousands of neighbors in need thanks to the generous support of friends like you!

Happy April!! Here’s the New Pantry Item of the Month!

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April is here and this new month hopefully means we’re out of the grasp of Old Man Winter and can finally be excited for all the beauty that spring brings!!

The new month means we have a new Pantry Item of the Month and for April we’re asking for donations of PASTA SAUCE!!

We’ll gladly accept any brand or variety of pasta sauce. The pasta sauce will be used by our kitchen staff for the daily meals served to the community. The pasta sauce is also a very popular item at our Community Grocery Giveaways and a staple product in our food bags.

If you’d like to donate, please drop off to our Administrative Office during business hours Mon – Fri. If those hours don’t work for you, please call 301.739.1165 or email info@hagerstownhopecenter.com to arrange a better time.

If you prefer shopping online at AmazonSmile or another vendor then please use 125 N. Prospect St, Hagerstown, MD 21740 for our delivery address.

Any donation is a huge help as we work to end hunger and food insecurity in our community! Thank you for caring & sharing with your neighbors!!

For more info about our food programs or any other programs & services at The Hope Center please visit hagerstownhopecenter.com.

Slice the Pumpkin Pie… It’s Almost Time for Thanksgiving!

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Thanksgiving is just a week away (where did November go??)! And if you haven’t made plans for your Thanksgiving feast or you’re having trouble getting all the grocery items for your meal then why not change up your plans for the day and enjoy a delicious, delivered meal from us??

Due to COVID-19 concerns we’re not hosting our large in-person celebration this year BUT we’re still making sure anyone and everyone in the community has access to a scrumptious feast.

We’re offering free meal delivery on Thanksgiving Day from 11:30am until 1pm to Hagerstown and surrounding areas. If you, or someone you know, would like a free Thanksgiving meal please call us at 301.739.1165 during business hours to request delivery. If you call after business hours and leave a message please remember to include your phone number so we can contact you about your meal. We are taking meal orders until end of business day on Monday, November 22nd.

Our Great Hagerstown Thanksgiving Feast includes roast turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, sweet potatoes, succotash, cranberry sauce, and pumpkin pie. Trust us when we say it’s the most delicious meal in the city! And our secret recipe stuffing is YUMMMMMMMM!!!

If you don’t have anywhere to eat your meal then please join us for our daily Soup Line on Thanksgiving. Soup Line will be held in the Trinity Center on Thanksgiving. Doors open at 12pm and the meal will be served at 12:30pm. Soup Line guests will receive the same delicious Thanksgiving feast as the delivered meals. Please remember to wear your mask!

To order Thanksgiving meals or for more info please call 301.739.1165. Spread the word and invite others to request our Great Hagerstown Thanksgiving Feast delivered!

Feelin’ Fruity

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July has arrived even though it doesn’t feel like it. But with the arrival of the new month comes our new Pantry Item of the Month!!

For July we’re asking for donations of canned fruit and/or cups of fruit. We’ll gladly accept any brand or variety of fruit. Donate your favorite or whatever may be on sale. Either way we’re gonna put it to good use.

This month’s pantry item will be primarily used in our food bag program and at our next Community Grocery Giveaway taking place on August 13th. We try to make sure that each food bag has fruit included but we are often running low on these items.

To donate please drop off at our Administrative Office during business hours M-F. Our Admin Office is located opposite our Thrift Store on our central lot located at 215 W. Church St in Hagerstown. If you are unable to drop off during business hours please call us at 301.739.1165 or email info@hagerstownhopecenter.com to arrange a time that works for you.

If you’d prefer to shop online at smile.amazon.com or another online retailer then please use 125 N. Prospect St, Hagerstown, MD 21740 as our delivery address. (To learn more about shopping at AmazonSmile please click here: General Information | hagerstownhopecenter and scroll to the bottom of the page)

Thank you for partnering with us to help feed neighbors in need in our community! To learn more about the food programs at The Hope Center please click here: Food Programs | hagerstownhopecenter

Down on the Farm

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Did you know…

We have a farm?? The Farm is home to our Good Samaritan Lodge and our outdoor camp facility for Camp Wild.

But The Farm is not just used for those ministry purposes. The Farm is an actual farm complete with barn and fields!

The Farm is situated on about 80 acres just outside of Hagerstown on the Conococheague Creek.

For the past few years our farmyard and barn has sat dormant. But this spring we’ve started bringing it back to life. And now we’re excited to announce that The Farm is up and running again!

Spearheaded by Terry, husband of our Thrift Store/Donation Center manager, Aimee, The Farm is now home to a pair of steer along with chickens, and turkeys.

The animals are being raised to help supplement the eggs and meat supply we use at The Hope Center to feed our residents and community guests.

We want to give a huge THANK YOU to Terry, Dillan and the rest of the crew who’ve helped mend fences, corral the steer, and bring our barn back to life! There’s a lot of work involved with this operation and we’re so thankful for their skill, hardwork and desire to help make sure we’ve got plenty of meat to feed those in need in our community!

If you are ever in need of a delicious meal please join us for one of our meals served every day of the year. Our kitchen does not close ever – it’s open on holidays and during inclement weather. All meals are free for anyone and everyone in the community – so bring the family or the whole neighborhood!

For more info about our food/meal programs or our farm please call 301.739.1165 or email info@hagerstownhopecenter.com

And the Pantry Item of the Month is…

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June has arrived which means it’s time for our newest Pantry Item of the Month!

For the month of June we’re asking for jars of pasta sauce. We’ll gladly accept any brand, variety, or size of pasta sauce.

Our kitchen uses a good amount of pasta sauce each month for the community meals we serve. And pasta sauce is also a staple item, along with boxes of spaghetti, for our food bag program. We make sure each food bag has pasta sauce when available.

We’ve also learned that pasta sauce is a hot item at our Community Grocery Giveaways that we host every season.

We’d appreciate any donation of pasta sauce! To donate please drop off at our Administrative Office (215 W. Church St) during business hours Mon – Fri. If you’re unable to drop off during the weekday then please call us at 301.739.1165 or email info@hagerstownhopecenter.com to arrange a time that works.

If you’d prefer shopping online at your favorite vendor please use 125 N. Prospect St, Hagerstown, MD 21740 for our delivery address.

Thank you for caring and sharing with the community! If you’d like to learn more about our food services please visit https://www.hagerstownhopecenter.com/food-programs

PB&J for May!

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For the month of May we’re asking for jars of peanut butter and/or jelly for our Pantry Item of the Month.

Peanut butter and jelly is are staple items of our food bag program. If we have them in stock they go into food bags for neighbors in need. Peanut butter is a very popular item and we often run out of jars.

We’re asking for any brand or type of peanut butter. From crunchy to creamy, Peter Pan or Jif, natural or honey roasted, we’ll gladly take any jar of peanut butter. And the same goes for jams & jellies. We’ll happily take any brand or flavor.

And with our next Community Grocery Giveaway taking place on May 14th, we’re going to go through a lot of peanut butter and jelly this month. Any donation of PB&J will be a huge blessing.

To donate please drop off to our Administrative Office during business hours M-F (8:15-11:30am and 12:15-4pm). Our Administrative Office is located across from the Thrift Store on our central parking lot at 215 W. Church St. If you’re unable to drop off during our business hours please call us at 301.739.1165 to arrange a better time.

If you’d prefer ordering online from your favorite vendor like AmazonSmile please use 125 N. Prospect St, Hagerstown, MD 21740 for our delivery address.

If you, or someone you know, could use a food bag or grocery assistance please call us at 301.739.1165 to request a food bag. And don’t forget to make a plan to join us on Friday, May 14th for our next Community Grocery Giveaway.

Washington County Gives Returns May 11th!

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It’s almost time for Washington County Gives 2021! Washington County Gives is a 24-hour day of online giving benefitting non-profits in Washington County.

From midnight until 11:59pm on Tuesday, May 11th, you can join other generous neighbors in supporting The Hope Center by giving online at washingtoncountygives.org.

This year we’re asking the community to support our major food services expansion and renovation project.

The expansion and renovation of our food services area is in full swing. In fact, at the end of April we were able to move into our brand new kitchen! The new kitchen will provide our food services staff and volunteers a much larger and more efficient space to prepare and serve multiple meals a day to our residents and community guests.

Now that the new kitchen is completed, the construction project has moved into the dining room where our old kitchen has been torn out and will become a part of a much larger dining room. This expanded dining room will allow us to seat twice the amount of people per meal.

In addition to the new kitchen and dining room, we’ve been able to have a brand new pantry which is 3x’s bigger than the previous pantry. This huge pantry will provide ample room for all the food we need to create meals and allow us more storage for our food bank program and community food giveaway events.

This is a much needed project as we have not made any major changes or improvements to our kitchen since moving into our building in the late 1950’s. This construction project will allow us to meet the current needs and also be prepared to better reach people in need in the future.

Please consider partnering with us to feed our community by donating a gift to us during Wsahington County Gives. To give during the event is quick and easy and will make a huge impact in our goal to end hunger and food insecurity.

You can donate to our cause any time on May 11th. We’ll provide a link from our Facebook page and also our website which will lead you directly to our WCG page to help make donating even quicker for you.

And please encourage your family, friends, church, coworkers, and social media followers to join you in giving to our construction project.

To learn more please click here: WCG | hagerstownhopecenter or call 301.739.1165.

March Pantry Item of the Month

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We’re a few days into a new month – and the arrival of a new month means a new Pantry Item of the Month!

This month we’re not asking for a specific food donation. Instead we need heavy duty paper plates and/or 8oz cups for hot beverages.

We’re still serving all meals in the Trinity Center due to social distancing guidelines from the pandemic and also because of the kitchen expansion construction project. And because of all that we are still using disposable serving items for all of our daily meals for our residents and guests.

Earlier in the pandemic we asked for donations of products like plates, cups, and plastic serveware and the community came through in a tremendous way! Now we’re at the point where we desperately need more disposable plates and cups.

If you would like to donate heavy duty paper plates and/or 8oz cups (for hot beverages) please drop them off to our Administrative Offices during business hours (M-F 8:15am-11:30am and 12:15pm-4pm). If our office times don’t work for you then please call us at 301.739.1165 or email info@hagerstownhopecenter.com to arrange a time that suits.

If you’d prefer shopping online at your favorite vendor like AmazonSmile* then please use 125 N. Prospect St, Hagerstown, MD 21740 as our delivery address.

We truly appreciate any donation of these items! Thank you for helping to make a difference in our community! If you’d like more info on our food services programs or any of the other programs we provide the community please visit hagerstownhopecenter.com.

*AmazonSmile is a way for you to shop Amazon while also making a donation to your community! When you shop AmazonSmile, Amazon will donate a portion of the proceeds from your order to The Hope Center. Go to smile.amazon.com and log into your Amazon account. When prompted to select a non-profit search for The Hope Center at Hagerstown Rescue Mission and choose us as your beneficiary. Now you’re ready to shop! It’s that easy. For more info go to hagerstownhopecenter.com and scroll down our homepage for the AmazonSmile info.