According to the Center for American Progress, “Inequities in socioeconomic and daily living conditions generate adverse outcomes that persist throughout the lifespan, but the birth through age 6 period can serve as a unique opportunity for intervention; in these years, children’s susceptibility to influential early experiences can be harnessed to support long-term wellbeing.”

At SPFC, we rely on volunteers to serve people and feed compassion! We recently celebrated them with a Volunteer Appreciation Night at our Skyway Warehouse. Lynn's Catering provided scrumptious goodies as a treat, and our volunteers received their new volunteer t-shirts thanks to Vampt Co.

Volunteers work hard to ensure our neighbors in need at the We Help FRESH Pantry Indoor Choice location are greeted with a smile, routed quickly through the intake process, and have fresh produce, meats, dairy, and food staples organized and ready to be taken home. They ensure our drive-thru locations operate smoothly, organizing and loading fresh food into vehicles. Volunteers sort and pack items that go home to the families in our FRESH Sprouts Program.

Our neighbors in need are provided for by volunteers at our Health Center with specialties in cardiology, gastroenterology, neurology, otolaryngology, infectious diseases, podiatry, hematology, orthopedic surgery, physical therapy, and chiropractic.

Volunteer dentists, dental assistants, and hygienists serve our community through our Dental Center.

At SPFC, we have volunteers who assist in every aspect of our mission. We could not serve the volume of our neighbors in need without our amazing volunteers!

Thanks to funding from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), our new Skyway warehouse space is under construction, and we've recently hosted a few hard hat tours for our food program funders and supporters, such as Pinellas Community Foundation, Pinellas County Juvenile Welfare Board, and our elected officials.

Our current food bank, the Jared S. Hechtkopf Community Food Bank (Jared's), has served as our base in distributing food to over 115 partner sites throughout Pinellas County this past fiscal year. In 2019, Jared's Food Bank distributed 11.3 million pounds of food. Last fiscal year, the number nearly doubled to over 20 million pounds. We are currently space-constrained.

As we prioritize the equitable distribution of food throughout the community, an additional 28,000 square feet of warehouse space at Skyway will facilitate our ability to curate and organize donations for our community partners.

The health of a community depends on community members' helping to bridge the gaps of necessity. We appreciate the many ways our partners and community members help us provide for our neighbors in need.

Thank you, Temple Beth-el, for your continuing commitment to service with SPFC. Your volunteer efforts produced over 500 mobile meal kits, which are distributed twice a month by our We Care Community Outreach and the We Help FRESH Pantry to residents experiencing homelessness. 

Keeping in theme, Raymond James Cares packed and delivered an additional 200+ mobile meal kits as part of the Raymond James Cares Month.

The Raymond James Cares program encourages advisors and associates to make a difference in their communities. While the firm supports community service

efforts and charitable giving throughout the year, May is dubbed "Raymond James Cares Month" to inspire a collective effort and impact. From holding back-to-school and food drives for children and families in need to beautifying parks, homes and beaches, Raymond James advisors and associates are busy during Raymond James Cares Month. We are grateful they chose to make a difference to those we serve!