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PORCH Views – July 2023
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:

– We are seeking Food for Schools sponsors as we prepare for the 2023-2024 school year. Food for Schools provides supplemental food to kids in the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools who are hungry and struggling to concentrate in the classroom. Through this program, PORCH Chapel Hill-Carrboro provides each school with more than $1,000 worth of snacks in a school year. Learn more on our website.

– Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools and the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Public School Foundation are accepting donations of non-perishable food and like new school-age books through July 30. Drop off your donations at your school's main office or at Lincoln Center (750 S. Merritt Mill Rd.).

– We are currently seeking 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. You can pass along the link to our Neighborhood Coordinator information page, which gets into the nuts and bolts of what NCs do; it includes this very handy video. 

– This month's Food for Thought messaging urges elected officials to protect SNAP from further restrictions as they work to renew the farm bill. It's easy to write a postcard. Get all of the details on our website.

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 
Meet Erin Riney, PORCH's New Executive Director

Our board is delighted to announce that Erin Riney has joined PORCH Chapel Hill-Carrboro as executive director!

Erin brings her visionary leadership, passion for food justice, and community-building skills to this position.

In addition to prior non-profit advocacy work and numerous volunteer roles, her past experience includes over 15 years as a community college educator and student champion. Chief among her many projects include collaborating with students to create Durham Technical Community College’s robust campus food pantry and spearheading the creation of interconnected holistic student supports for student parents and those experiencing housing insecurity and other basic needs challenges. Erin also led a statewide alliance of other college pantries, created the college’s civic and community engagement office, and wrote a college success textbook that has been utilized by community colleges across the state to help first-generation students navigate higher education. 

A resident of Chapel Hill since 2004, Erin is passionate about developing inclusive, equitable solutions to engage and support our Chapel Hill and Carrboro neighbors. 
RTI's 2023 Community Partnership Program

Because of a generous grant from RTI’s 2023 Community Partnership Program, PORCH provided fresh, healthy food to 65 families/260 individuals last month.

Partnerships like this amplify our impact. RTI has supported PORCH’s hunger relief efforts every year since 2020. We are proud to have RTI employees like Chris Buchholz, Josh Bashara, and others involved as active volunteers. Thank you, RTI team! 
UNC Freshman Raises $800, Shops for PORCH Through Instacart

With no car and no extra storage to speak of in his dorm room, collecting pounds of food from friends and family wasn’t really a possibility for UNC student Jake Dedmon, even though he liked the idea of helping neighbors who struggle with food insecurity.

And so he decided to raise funds, then grocery shop for PORCH online, so that the non-perishable items would be delivered directly to us as the team held our monthly food sort at Extraordinary Ventures. Excellent work, Jake! Learn more on our blog.
More on Our Partnership with
Diaper Bank of North Carolina

We are thrilled to count the Diaper Bank among our partners. If a family is struggling to put food on the table, then they are struggling with other essentials: cleaning supplies, hygiene products, household items, medical bills, utility expenses, rent payments, and more. 

Since 2022, the Diaper Bank – the largest in the United States – has offered 300 period packets (called flow kits) to our Food for Families participants each month. A flow kit contains 10 pads and 10 liners. These products cannot be purchased through government programs such as WIC and SNAP but are medically necessary. As the Diaper Bank’s website says: “We believe that dignity is not a privilege.” Learn more on our blog.
Pitch In to Help Us Provide More Food for Families This Summer

For many in our community, summer is filled with worry that they won't have enough food to feed their families.

Children are out of school and have less access to free and reduced breakfasts and lunches. To help ease their concerns, PORCH is increasing the fresh food and the grocery gift card amounts our families receive. 

Please help us meet these increased needs by making an additional donation or becoming a sustainer at a higher level. We will put your funds to immediate use. Every dollar matters – you can donate online. 

  • $15 will provide additional food and an increase in the gift cards for one family for one month this summer
  • $50 will provide additional food for one family for the whole summer
  • $100 will support a newly enrolled family for one month

Every month, with your support, PORCH provides more than 550 families, including more than 1,300 children, with a 35-pound box of fresh produce, eggs, milk, a grocery gift card, and a bag of non-perishable food. This summer, we expect additional families to apply, and we want to enroll them immediately. 

Your generous contributions to PORCH have made a huge difference in the lives of our families.

  • 79% of our families report income at or below the poverty level, and 76% are worried about getting enough food for the whole family
  • 97% of our families say that PORCH food allows them to provide healthier food to their whole family
  • On average, PORCH food feeds a family for 9 days each month, enabling them to use their money for other basic needs

Your donation, no matter the size, will help ease the summertime worries of our neighbors in need. Thank you for your compassion and support.

Go to our donate page to make your gift. 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. 

Don’t forget to claim any matching funds from your employer. This can double your impact!
PO Box 16363
Chapel Hill, NC 27516