The Nogales Community Food Bank is looking for members for an advisory board to guide the organization in serving the hungry in Santa Cruz County, Arizona.

Those wishing to serve are asked to write a letter of interest outlining their community involvement history and why hunger in Santa Cruz County is important to them.

The Nogales Community Food Bank is an affiliate of the Community Food Bank in Tucson and distributes USDA Commodities, donated food and produce in Santa Cruz County.

Letters of interest may be sent to Arthur Espinoza, Santa Cruz County T.E.F.A.P. Coordinator at P.O. Box 3201, Nogales, AZ  85628 or by e-mail to aespinoza@communityfoodbank.org.

For additional information contact Arthur Espinoza at (520) 982-2554.

Roberto Mejias, Ph.D., teaches Management Information Systems (MIS) classes at the University of Arizona, Eller College of Management.  He also gives his students important life lessons in what he terms corporate social responsibility or “CSR”.

Dr. Mejias frequently invites guests from non-profit organizations to briefly speak to his MIS students about community needs and social issues. He knows many of his Eller students will become future corporate leaders and his primary mission has been to provide them with a world class MIS education and inspire them to also understand how technology can assist socially conscious business leaders in improving world conditions. Dr. Mejias encourages his MIS students to be fully aware of their profound opportunities to create organizational cultures that support philanthropy and community service.

On April 15, 2008, Dr. Mejias invited Holly Altman from the UA Office of Community Relations to speak to his MIS classes about UA4Food, the campus-wide food drive benefitting the Community Food Bank’s Child Hunger and Nutrition Program.  His MIS students were surprised and shocked by the gravity of this situation in Arizona. Using the UA’s Blackboard course technology, Dr. Mejias invited his MIS students to join him in a “quick” UA4food drive to donate canned meats, peanut butter and canned vegetables.  Two collections on April 22nd, at the Eller Berger Auditorium, realized food donations of 1,592 pounds. 

“Dr. Mejias’ MIS students came through with almost 1,600 pounds of food, collected within about a half hour, which is remarkable,” said Holly Altman.  “As future business leaders these Eller students learned a valuable lesson in using technology to support community service and they will be pleased to know these food items will go far to help struggling families.”

For more information, contact Holly Altman at (520) 626-4671 or Roberto Mejias, Ph.D. at (520) 621-3600

Elsa F. Pratt, Full Charge Bookkeeper for the Community Food Bank was honored on Friday, April 25, 2008 at the Food Bank’s monthly Board Meeting for twenty-five years of outstanding service to the organization.

Ms. Pratt started at the Community Food Bank on April 25, 1983 as a Bookkeeper and was promoted to Full Charge Bookkeeper in October of 1998.  She is known, by her co-workers, for her ability to interact positively with virtually anyone with whom she comes in contact.

“Elsa’s twenty-five years of experience are a valuable asset to the Community Food Bank,” said Dan Walters,  Food Bank Director of Finance.  “She has seen our annual food distribution grow from less than 500,000 pounds per year to nearly 15,000,000 pounds.  As a full charge bookkeeper, her primary focus is accounting for our inventory to meet the requirement of our financial audits and audits performed by our donor organizations.”

Ms. Pratt is originally from Douglas, Arizona and now resides in Tucson with her husband Rollin. Elsa and Rollin Pratt have three children, daughter Celina and sons Ralph and Rollin.

To view the Winter 2008 issue of the Community Food Bank’s newletter the Nourishing News, Click Here (.PDF)

Hickman Family Farms from Buckeye, Arizona is expected to deliver over 5,800 dozen eggs to the Community Food Bank on Thursday, March 6, 2008 at 9:00 AM  for distribution in Southern Arizona.  Bill Carnegie, Community Food Bank President/CEO will be on hand to accept the delivery from Mrs. Gertrude Hickman.  The delivery will be made to the Community Food Bank, 3003 S. Country Club Road in Tucson.

 1,600 dozen eggs will benefit Tucson’s Table agencies and 1,000 dozen eggs will go to the Kid’s Club sites.  The remainder of the eggs will be distributed in rural southern Arizona.

 The Kid’s Club eggs will be picked by the sites for use during their annual Easter activities.  The Community Food Bank Kid’s Club program operates three days a week at nine different sites in the greater Tucson area – serving a total of 540 children.  The Food Bank partners with the Tucson Parks and Recreation KIDCO program to provide children with free, nutritious snacks and lessons in nutrition.

 Tucson’s Table provides dry and perishable food and non-food products packed in small and institutional size packing for use by non-profit, 501 (c) (3) agencies with on-site feeding programs.  Tucson’s Table is currently serving over 300 agency feeding sites.  The eggs will benefit the children served by the agencies along with other programs. 

 A photo opportunity with Mr. Carnegie accepting the over 5800 dozen egg delivery from Mrs. Hickman will be available at 9:00 AM.  Carnegie will call on his early days to operate a forklift to unload the first pallets of eggs.

 The egg donations from Hickman Farms are being coordinated statewide by the Association of Arizona Food Banks in Phoenix.

 For more information, please contact Jack Parris at 622-0525 x 215. 

The Community Food Bank is partnering this March with Habitat for Humanity Tucson, Literacy Volunteers of Tucson, Pima Community College and YMCA Foundation to bring you another round of write-a-will workshops.

• Northwest
  Wednesday, March 12 at 2:30 p.m.
  Northwest YMCA
  7770 N. Shannon Road
• Central
  Monday, March 17 at 4:30 p.m.
  Pima Community College District Office
  4905 E. Broadway Blvd.
• Northeast
  Wednesday, March 19 at 10:00 a.m.
  Northern Trust Bank
  6444 E. Tanque Verde Road
• North
  Monday, March 24 at 10:00 a.m.
  Grace St. Paul’s Episcopal Church
  2331 E. Adams
• Northwest
  Tuesday, March 25 at 3:30 p.m.
  Pima Community College Northwest Campus
  7600 N. Shannon Road
• South
  Thursday, March 27 at noon (brown bag lunch)
  Community Food Bank
  3003 S. Country Club Road

Estate planning attorneys Robby Adamson, Kay Richter, and
Elizabeth Spilotro are volunteering their time to present the material.
For more information or to RSVP call 622-0525 ext. 218. Light refreshments will be served.

Do you need a will?

Did you know that less than one third of all people who die in the United States each year have a will, and that many of those wills are defective?

Do you need to accomplish any of the following? If so, you need a will.

EXPRESS YOUR LOVE… A person who dies without a will leaves their loved ones to make difficult decisions. Uncertainties about the deceased’s final wishes often lead to family turmoil.

AFFIRM YOUR BASIC BELIEFS AND COMMITMENTS… The preamble in your will can affirm the principals that guided you to make your decisions. This allows those interpreting your will insight into your choices. Those carrying out your wishes should understand them as fully as possible.

PUT YOURSELF IN THE DRIVER’S SEAT… A) Designate who will care for your dependent children; B) specify who will serve when it’s time to close your estate; C) decide on the timing for distribution of gifts; D) designate which charitable organizations you will support. Knowing that you have cared for loved ones and other concerns close to your heart can put you at ease.

SAFEGUARD YOUR ASSETS… Careful financial planning has helped you conserve your estate during life. Protect what you’ve worked for. A will can reduce probate costs in many states. It may also reduce, delay or even eliminate estate taxes. This way, more of what you worked for can benefit loved ones or carry out charitable intentions

The Community Food Bank Board of Directors is pleased to
announce the election of Gregg R. Johnson, Ed. D. as a new member of the Board.

Dr. Johnson is the Campus Director of the University of Phoenix, Southern Arizona Campus.  He holds a Master’s of Educational Psychology and a Doctorate of Education, both earned at Brigham Young University. 

Dr. Johnson has over twenty-three years experience in education administration.  He has held administrative positions with Church Educational System-Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, School Administrator at the Utah Boys Ranch, and Director of Academic affairs at the University of Phoenix, all in Salt Lake City, Utah.  He moved to his present position with the University of Phoenix in Tucson in 2006 and is responsible for the seven campuses in southern Arizona.

“We are very pleased that Gregg Johnson has joined the Board of Directors as its newest member,” said Chairman Mark Fay.  “His experience in the academic field will bring an additional perspective to the organization.”

The University of Phoenix is the largest private university in North America. In addition to providing quality educational opportunities, they support a variety of organizations and charities that enrich the communities where their campuses are located. 

Dr. Johnson was elected at the January 25, 2008 Community Food Bank Board meeting and will serve until 2010.

Legal services at CFB have become a vital part of helping those in need. They improve access to income, food and health care for our clients. Lawyers and students working through the Public Benefits Legal Clinic have been making a difference this way. “This innovative collaboration with CFB has been extremely successful. Many of the families we have helped at the clinic were not aware of our services, but were in dire need of the type of legal assistance we could provide them,” says clinic attorney Lydia Glasson.

The legal clinic is an outreach office of Southern Arizona Legal Aid. This Tucson-based nonprofit provides free civil legal services to qualified low-income persons. Legal Aid assists people with housing, domestic relations, public benefits, disability, consumer, bankruptcy, education and immigration cases.

Under the supervision of Glasson, a Legal Aid public benefits attorney, student interns from the U of A College of Law provide legal services to individuals and families with problems involving Food Stamps, Social Security, Medicare Part D, Medicaid and several other programs. In addition, a social work intern from ASU helps clients apply for benefits, and provides supportive services such as locating housing, food, and healthcare for clients.

The legal clinic’s services are coordinated with the services offered by CFB’s Community Food Security Center. “The opportunity to coordinate our services with CFB has resulted in providing effective services to the low-income community in Pima County,” says Glasson. CFB advocates refer clients with legal issues to the clinic. Many of these families have multiple legal and social problems that ultimately affect their ability to become self-sufficient.

Most legal clinic clients are elderly, disabled or immigrants. Often they are either unaware of or confused about their eligibility for various formal food assistance programs. The legal clinic does a full assessment of each individual’s needs to determine how available programs such as job services, utility assistance, Food Stamps, WIC or health insurance can be maximized. In addition to providing legal assistance, the clinic educates clients about services offered by CFB such as food boxes, farmers’ markets, the Value Foods Store and gardening programs.

Since the establishment of the clinic in 2004, over 240 cases have been opened, leading to the referral of over 500 individuals to Southern Arizona Legal Aid’s central office or other agencies in the community for legal or social services.

To view the Winter 2008 issue of the Community Food Bank’s newletter the Nourishing News, Click Here (.PDF)

“Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach him how to fish and he will eat for a lifetime.” This Chinese proverb is often a hot topic around the Community Food Bank. While much of CFB’s mission is fulfilled by distributing food to the hungry, the organization is taking several additional steps to prevent hunger and support health.

Advocacy, outreach, education, food production, gleaning, economic literacy, food cooperatives, community partnerships and legal aid: these are just some of the tools CFB’s Community Food Security Center uses to help people.

CFB often sees clients who express a desire to find solutions to hunger. While many beleive they lack the economic power to better their situation, the center can help.

The center tackles the basics, like assisting clients in accessing Food Stamps. It also wrangles with more complex issues, like the link between inadequate nutrition and poverty, and the effect of local agriculture on nutrition.

The award-winning programs of the center are focused on long-term solutions.

Innovation Award
Healthy food is the cornerstone of a healthy life. However, many people cannot afford the kinds of food needed for a balanced diet, leading them to adopt unhealthy eating habits. This can create a domino effect for many low-income people. Home gardening is an equalizer. Over the past three years, about 400 home gardeners have learned how to grow food through CFB’s bilingual gardening education program.

The Innovation Award from the Community Foundation for Southern Arizona, given to CFB in November, provides $5,000 to support home gardening. The award represents the foundation’s support of CFB’s efforts to provide people with knowledge and resources.

Glynwood Harvest Award
Where does your food come from? A farm around the corner? A food plant in Ohio? Overseas? The CFB knows that a healthy, hunger-free community needs a food system in which all people, regardless of income, can participate. The 2007 Harvest Award—Connecting Communities, Farmers and Food—was awarded to CFB for a variety of programs that tackle these issues. These programs do everything from growing food to educating people about food economics.

Open Space Award
A 2007 Common Ground Award was given to the Marana Heritage River Park in November. The park features the Learning Farm, a 10-acre sustainable farm that will provide not only farming education, but locally grown produce for the community and for CFB programs. This partnership between the Town of Marana and CFB, as well as local farmers and businesses, illustrates  an enhanced understanding of the importance of local agriculture to healthy communities and people