As the holiday season is approaching, so many people begin to collect food for those in need. At the Madera County Food Bank, you will find a wonderful place in need of your donations. “It is the purpose of the Madera County Food Bank to provide and distribute supplementary/emergency food to our community’s low-income individual, families, and Senior Citizens, in a manner that promotes health, self-sufficiency and preserves recipients’ dignity.” http://www.maderafoodbank.org/ This facility offers so much for our community, when and where, it is needed most.

The “Compassion in Action” clients are referred to the food bank by hospitals, service providers, and ministers, etc… This program offers on-going nutritional support to families who suffer from a long term crisis such as Cancer and AIDS. Their need for food is met at the Madera County Food Pantry when they cannot be met elsewhere. Compassion in Action families will receive approximately 70 pounds of food two times per month. The items donated to the family are individualized to better aid in the recovery of the client.

Another great program is SNAPP (Senior Nutrition and Produce Program). This is a service providing bags of food for low income seniors. Not only do they provide a service, but also a social outlet for our seniors. Seniors 55 and over will be given fresh fruit and vegetables each week. Seniors who are 60 and over can receive additional food once a month. They offer many sites for seniors to come together and package food for those in need. For more information, call (559) 674-1482.