Food on the 15th News

Food on the 15th has partnered with the Asian Studies Program at UMBC to start a Food Pantry at a low-income Asian senior citizen building in Columbia. UMBC has awarded them a small amount of seed money to start the Food Pantry project, but after that they need to create a continuous flow of  non-perishable food donations. They are looking to make contacts with Asian churches, schools and places of business that can assist in collecting food.

Chris Young, a River Hill High School student, is building the Food Pantry as part of his Eagle Scout Project. Food on the 15th is in constant need of  non-perishable Asian and non-Asian food items as they are currently delivering free groceries to over 100 low-income Howard County senior citizens each
month. Claret Hall is a collection location for Food on the 15th. Look for the box in the lobby for donations.

Food on the 15th has the following volunteer opportunities available:

1. A “bagel runner” to pick up bagels from two locations off Route 29 and deliver them to a low income senior citizen building in Ellicott City every Wednesday
2. A Summer Diabetic Food Coordinator
3. A high school student with a car to help with the Pointers Run sorting and bagging each month for the 2014-2015 school year. This needs to be someone committed to the project who does not participate in sports or another activity that would prevent them from helping monthly.

Students receive community service hours for volunteering, and this type of community service looks great on a college or job application. They can also tailor long-term volunteer opportunities around busy schedules. To volunteer or find out more information, email foodonthe15th@gmail.com or visit  www.foodonthe15th.org. To find out about monthly deliveries and sporadic volunteer opportunities, “Like” Food on the 15th on Facebook by searching “Food on the 15th.” If you’re unfamiliar with Food on the 15th, watch a video by Voice of America at Pointers Run Elementary that was translated into multiple languages and shown around the world. You can view it at http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=BofDbVEFsB4.

Article provided by River Hill Resident Julie A. Rosenthal, Founder and Director of Food on the 15th, 2013 Audrey Robbins Volunteer of the Year Award Recipient from the Association of Community Services.