Hello! 

Welcome to another edition of PORCH Chapel Hill-Carrboro’s quarterly newsletter, helping you stay up to date on everything happening within our organization. 

Some of the most recent headlines:

– Last month, because of your dedication, our volunteers packed 545 bags of non-perishable food for our Food for Families participants. We are now serving a record number of families. Each of our 660 families (2,525 of our neighbors, including more than 1,449 children) also took home two dozen eggs, a gallon of milk, a large box of fresh produce, and a grocery store gift card. Our Burmese, Karen, and Congolese refugee participants received culturally-relevant produce from Transplanting Traditions along with their milk, eggs, and gift card.

– We’re hiring! Learn about our Development and Administrative Coordinator position and our Food Pantry Market Manager position.

– As our community needs continue to grow, we are seeking more volunteers. Want to learn more? Email sofia@porchcommunities.org.

– We are currently recruiting Neighborhood Coordinators in communities all around Chapel Hill and Carrboro. If your neighborhood doesn't have a Neighborhood Coordinator, would you or someone you know want to help fill this role? This is a great leadership opportunity for students! Prospective NCs can reach out to us at chc@porchcommunities.org. Check out our Neighborhood Coordinator information page, which details what NCs do.

– Want a fun, kid-friendly activity that will help your community? Host a food drive for PORCH! Our online toolkit gives you everything you need to advertise and host an in-person or online food drive! Check out our website for more information.

Read on for more exciting updates. And check our blog regularly to learn the latest developments. Thank you, as always, for being part of the PORCH community!

Best, 



The PORCH Chapel Hill-Carrboro Team 

You can now access our 2023 Impact Report!

A Birthday Food Drive

One of our very creative Neighborhood Coordinators, Andrew, decided to collect food and monetary donations as his 18th birthday approached.

Not only did he collect lots of food, but he also raised nearly $400 to provide food to our participating families. Andrew, you rock!

Our Partnership with 

Diaper Bank of NC

We are so lucky to receive period products from Diaper Bank of North Carolina every month, which go into our non-perishable food bags for families.

Thank you to Diaper Bank and their Period Power Coordinator Mia (pictured with our own Sofia Edelman at far left) for another month of supporting the families we serve!

Volunteer Spotlight

Hunger relief has always been a cause dear to Mary Garren’s heart.

“I learned about healthy eating from my mother,” she says. “We had whole wheat bread, good vegetables.” 

This understanding of the importance of access to fresh, healthy food led Mary to become one of PORCH’s volunteer Neighborhood Coordinators over a decade ago.

Read our feature on Mary.

Summer Food Drive

We love our school community! A huge thank you to the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Public School Foundation and all of our local schools – plus the Lincoln Center – for hosting a food drive all summer long!

Make sure to stop by your nearest school (Monday-Thursday) through July 30 to drop off healthy non-perishables for PORCH!

Shout out to Ephesus Elementary, Morris Grove Elementary, Estes Hills Elementary, and the Lincoln Center for already donating 100 bags of non-perishables to PORCH since the food drive launched!

Help Us Provide More Food for Families in Chapel Hill and Carrboro

The number of families in our programs is at an all-time high of 660. 

Food donations are lowest in summer months, just when families need additional food to feed children who are home on summer break. Without the school’s free or reduced-cost breakfasts and lunches, our families struggle more in summer months to provide full, nutritious meals for their children.

To continue to say ‘yes’ to families requesting food assistance, we have become a partner agency with the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina, through whom we can purchase much-needed items below retail prices to supplement our donation collections. We can stretch a financial donation to ensure greater access to pantry staples and fresh, healthy food for our families over the summer months.

$30 can help us bridge the gap for 2 families. $60 will ensure full bags for 4 families. $100 means 7 families will receive all food categories for every summer food distribution.

Go to our donate page to make your gift online. Click on “recurring donation” if you wish to become a PORCH monthly sustainer. You can also mail a check payable to PORCH Chapel Hill-Carrboro to P.O. Box 16363, Chapel Hill, NC 27516-6363. 

"As a family, we really like the products that PORCH offers us because they are nutritious and keep us fed for several days – it is a great help!"



– a Food for Families participant