Loaves and Fishes Updates
May 2022
Celebrate 40 Years of Loaves and Fishes! Play Photo Scavenger Hunt with us and find 40 memories to celebrate 40 years of our history! Through May 26, we are hoping you will play the Scavenger Hunt game and join us (in person or by submitting your entry to a staff person) to mark the end of our program year in a party with our kids and families called Celebranza. The top 5 scoring participants will receive prizes and be entered into a drawing. The Grand Prize winner of the drawing, at our 40th Anniversary Celebration on June 11, will receive a dinner for 2 at The Angus Barn, along with other exciting prizes! Click here to find your Hunt Card and Instructions!
April 2022
Each year, NC Child releases the latest data for key indicators in five areas of children’s well-being: A Strong Start, Family Economic Security, Nurturing Homes and Communities, Health and Wellness, and High-Quality Education. At Loaves and Fishes, we are intimately familiar with the issues facing our children and recommend that our supporters be knowledgeable as well. Click here to see the 2022 County Data Cards that provide information for each NC county as well as the overall status of well-being for children in North Carolina.
April 2022
In our first Barbeque Chicken Sale on April 23, we were pleased to take 125 orders and enjoyed seeing many of our supporters IN PERSON for the first time since the pandemic began! If you missed our sale and would like to make a donation, click here and receive our thanks!
November and December 2021
Our Pride for Parents Christmas Store had tremendous success again this year! As a better way to assist our families and neighbors who do not have the resources to provide toys for their kids at Christmas, we served 184 families in this, our 7th year! Rather than a “handout” like the typical Angel Tree approach or community give-away events, Pride for Parents offered a “hand UP,” helping families make their own gift selections, have pride in paying for the gifts they select at deeply discounted prices, and enjoy the love, fellowship, and community of our volunteers! We were supported by donations from local churches, community groups, and local businesses in addition to a large number of individuals! We especially want to thank Siemens Healthineers in Cary and The Fred Smith Company for their first year holding corporate toy drives and providing volunteers for us!
October 2021
Twice this month we had the pleasure of gleaning sweet potatoes again! The kids (and adults) who participated enjoyed sunshine (although a bit chlly!) and the opportunity to see just how productive NC farms are! We delivered bags of potatoes to all of our families and look forward to doing this again next year! Thanks to the Society of St. Andrew for hosting us!
Each day, most participants at Loaves and Fishes are picked up at their schools by our staff, relying on our mini-buses. As gentrification has raised rents and displaced affordable housing in Raleigh, many of our students have moved further from our program delivery location resulting in a more complicated pickup process. That same relocation requires us to help take some students home at the end of program. Needing additional transportation capacity, and sometimes dealing with repairs and maintenance issues, we were blessed to acquire a "new" minibus from Kirk of Kildaire Presbyterian Church! It has been well-maintained, had less than 40,000 miles, and was perfect - especially when the church gave us a "sweetheart deal!" Thanks to Kirk of Kildaire!
August 2021
When Loaves and Fishes began in 1982, no one knew how long we would exist as an organization, how significant our impact might be, and the miracles we would experience. Our first home was in the facilities of Westminster Presbyterian Church. We also enjoyed many years at Milner Memorial Presbyterian Church, and Mount Peace Baptist Church. All have been wonderful and the source of strength and great memories. While the COVID Pandemic has disrupted our physical location, we've been blessed to have temporary homes at The Wade Edwards Learning Lab and Southeast Raleigh Table. But now we have experienced yet another miracle: beginning September 13, we will welcome our students to our "new" home - back at Westminster Presbyterian Church! We'll be scheduling an Open House in the near future and invite you to come see us "back to the future!"
July 2021
We are excited to be planning for our 40th anniversary in June 2022! Loaves and Fishes has enjoyed an outstanding history, touching the lives of hundreds of children, many of whom are now responsible adults in our commuity. The relationships we have built through the years are key to the success of the participants in our program, but our staff, volunteers, and supporters have grown thrrough those relationships, too! Over the next few months, we'll revisit our history and celebrate with each other - check on our website and social media pages to see event that you might attend and ways that you can support the journey on our Road to 40!
June 2021
Our Board of Director consists of community members who are passionate about children and want to see all young people succeed both academically and as citizens. Serving staggered three year terms, we currently have 11 members on our Board. Click here to see the members of our Board and email our Board Chair, Vielka Gabriel, if you have interest in pursuing a role in the direction of our organization.
Candid Gold Seal of Transparency
Loaves and Fishes earned the Gold Seal of Transparency from Candid GuideStar.
Click here to view our profile.
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