Cape  Henlopen  Food  Basket  Newsletter                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        Winter,  2019                                                                                                                                                                            Vol.  V1,  Issue  1    

1   From  the  Cape  Henlopen  Food  Basket,  we  say  to  our  donors  and  volunteers,       THANK  YOU  FOR  YOUR  SUPPORT!    

 

 The  Cape  Henlopen  Food  Basket  (CHFB)  is  the  local  food  bank  located  in  Rehoboth  Beach,  Delaware,  serving  the  residents  of  the  Cape  Henlopen  School  District.  Visit  us  at  capehenlopenfoodbasket.org.    Motivated Individuals Provide Food Variety All  it  takes  is  a  little  personal  initiative  and  follow  through  to  make  a  big  difference  for  hungry  families  in  our  community.  Liz  and  Bob  Shea,  past  CHFB  Board  Members  and  current  volunteers,  gather  food  donations  from  the  Lewes  Public  Library  a  few  times  a  week  and  bring  them  to  supply  the  Food  Basket.  The  Shea’s  have  been  caretakers  for  a  donation  box  at  the  Library  for  the  past  8  years.  They  took  it  upon  themselves  to  make  this  connection  happen.  Without  their  initiative  and  follow  through,  the  Food  Basket  would  not  have  tapped  this  source  of  generosity  from  the  Lewes  community.  Others  have  taken  similar  initiative.  Boy  Scout  troop  leaders  have  guided  their  young  members  to  solicit,  gather,  donate  and  even  stock  our  shelves  with  their  collected  foodstuffs.  Girl  Scout  troops  have  donated  cookies.  Yum!  A  local  neighborhood  Tennis  Group  contributes  a  yearly  Labor  Day  haul.  A  4H  Club  does  the  same.  Local  churches  sponsor  regular  food  drives.  Lunch  with  A  Purpose,  a  local  group  of  250  or  so  women,  had  a  food  drive  in  February.  The  Coastal  Corvette  Club,  Rehoboth  Beach  Kiwanis  Club,  the  Midway  Lions  Club,  the  Kinsale  Glen  and  Paynter’s  Mill  Homeowner  Associations  also  have  banded  together  to  give  food.  The  Food  Basket  arranges  for  the  “meat  and  potatoes”  that  fill  the  bags  full  of  groceries  we  distribute  to  needy  families  in  the  Cape  area-­‐-­‐to  the  tune  of  about  $90,000  per  year.  But  these  local  food  

drives,  initiated  by  individuals  generous  with  their  time  and  talents,  provide  variety  to  complement  the  food  essentials.  If  you  would  like  to  sponsor  a  food  drive,  see  our  website  at  capehenlopenfoodbasket.org  for  a  list  of  needed  food  products.  Contact  us  by  email  at  chfoodbasket@gmail.com  to  arrange  drop  off.  All  it  takes  is  some  initiative  and  follow-­‐up  to  stock  our  Food  Basket  and  help  our  community,  as  many  local  organizations  and  individuals  have  proven.    HOUSEHOLDS IN NEED During  the  Year 2018,  the  Cape  Henlopen  Food  Basket  served  2,160  households  and  6,313  individuals.  This  is  a  slight  uptick  from Year 2017  when  the  Food  Basket  served  2,090  households  representing  5,882  people.  There  is  great  need  in  this  region  and  with  your  help  we  are  meeting  our  mission  to  provide  emergency  food  to  needy  people  within  the  boundaries  of  the  Cape  Henlopen  School  District.  As  some  clients  have  expressed:  “After  bills,  not  much  left  for  food  or  staples.  This  helps  me  more  than  you  know.  Thanks  to  the  Food  Basket.”  Another  said  the  Food  Basket  “has  meant  eating  at  the  brink.  You  have  helped  me  immensely.  Thank  you  and  your  staff.”  Or  “This  program  has  been  a  great  supplement  during  hard  times  raising  grandchildren…I  am  so  glad  our  community  helps  as  we  do.  It  shows  that  God  is  working  everywhere.”  

Cape  Henlopen  Food  Basket  Newsletter                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        Winter,  2019                                                                                                                                                                            Vol.  V1,  Issue  1    

2   From  the  Cape  Henlopen  Food  Basket,  we  say  to  our  donors  and  volunteers,       THANK  YOU  FOR  YOUR  SUPPORT!    

 

VOLUNTEER PROFILE: Anne Ratledge        by  Susan  Schranck    From the opening of the Cape Henlopen Food Basket (CHFB) in 2002 until her retirement from the organization in 2018, Anne Ratledge was our volunteer coordinator. And, since the CHFB is an all-volunteer organization, this means that Anne knew everyone and everyone knew Anne. “I really enjoyed all the people I worked with,” Anne commented. “They are all nice people—cooperative people—and I got to know many of their families over the years.” Anne became the go-to person who kept track of the recruitment, the training, the availability, and the contact information for each of what is now an 80-person crew of volunteers. She prepared and mailed to each volunteer a monthly calendar of work assignments. This

juggling act of information management came easily to Anne, a former elementary school teacher in the Cape Henlopen School District. She moved to the Cape District from Delmar after graduating from the University of Delaware, met her late husband, Donald, and raised her two children in Rehoboth. When asked how a Delmar native became a Philadelphia Eagles fan (note necklace!), she smiled and said that her parents were originally from Dover and took her to Philadelphia for shopping trips. Her father was a big Eagles fan. Anne has attended Eagles games at many Philadelphia venues including Shibe Park, Franklin Field, Veterans Stadium and Lincoln Financial Field. She has seen them play on the road in Green Bay, Indianapolis, San Francisco, Denver, and New Orleans. Anne—all the volunteers at the Cape Henlopen Food Basket will certainly miss you, but now the Philadelphia Eagles can have your undivided attention. Thank you for your many years of dedicated service.  

GREAT NEWS and Not So Great:  Thanks  to  the  grant  donors  who  generously  helped  the  CHFB  feed  the  hungry  in  the  Cape  region  this  year:  Walmart  Community  Grant  Fund,  the  Delaware  Kids  Fund  and  SoDelCares.  Their  support  was  especially  important  since  donations  from  individuals  were  down  35%.  

 

Join  Us  at  Buffalo  Wild  Wings  in  Rehoboth  on  Wednesday,  March  27  from  11  AM  to  11  PM.  CHFB  can  earn  20%  of  the  sales  we  generate  at  their  EAT WINGS RAISE FUNDS EVENT. Yummy! Get  a  voucher  from  our  website  (capehenlopenfoodbasket.org)  to  participate!    WANT  TO  DONATE?    Make  a  tax-­‐deductible  donation  to  our  501  (C)  3  organization,  the  Cape  Henlopen  Food  Basket,  PO  Box  168,  37510  Oyster  House  Road,  Rehoboth  Beach,  DE  19971.  Or  to  contribute  in-­‐kind,  you  may  drop  off  food  donations  directly  to  the  Food  Basket.  Items  for  our  “free  choice”  shelves  include:  Condiments,  Cooking  oil  bottles  &  spray,  Crackers/Graham  crackers,  Coffee  and  tea,  sugar  or  other  sweeteners,  Canned  or  powdered  milk  products,  Salt,  pepper,  spices,  Pancake  mix  &  syrup,  Taco  shells  &  sauce,  Cornbread  or  muffin  mix,  Salad  dressing,  Snacks  (chips,  pretzels,  etc.),  Cake  mixes,  other  desserts.