Winter 2016 Good Cheer Newsletter

GOOD CHEER GAZETTE Winter 2016

Vol. 13, No. 3

Dedication to the mission When you work for a non-profit, you are not trying to get rich. The wealth you gain generally comes in the satisfaction that the work you are doing is creating a greater good for your community. For one Good Cheer staff member, experiences in her life drive her to make a better life for her neighbors.

As a child, Rita Tulloch grew up in the South in a family who resembled many of our Food Bank clients. Her family was hard working but lived in an area that employed mostly seasonal workers. During her childhood, there were not many social services available for families in need, so they learned to make do and often to just do without. This childhood was full of many happy memories as well as hard times. Like the parents of children at Good Cheer Food Bank, Rita’s parents tried to shield their children from the adult challenges.

As Rita grew up, she brought with her one gift from her childhood and that includes loving others as her mom had loved her. It was not lost on Rita and her sister that their mother went without to keep her kids fed. At the end of a summer spent working in the fields chopping cotton, Rita and her sister took their wages and bought their mom a new dress and shoes. Rita still remembers the joy her mother felt in this simple gift. It is the same look Rita sees in the eyes of mothers as she helps their kids find new clothes during our Back to School Bag Sale where families get to shop with a special gift certificate.

“We have food on the table

in the biggest time of hardships and every holiday we are able to have a wonderful meal.

We are so beyond grateful to Good Cheer and we do all we can to give back by buying from their stores or donating reusable items.”

- Good Cheer Food Bank client

In the past 18 years, Rita has served thousands of families in many capacities at Good Cheer. With every event where we are able to directly

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IN THIS ISSUE DEDICATION TO THE MISSION FAMILY SUPPORT PRINCIPLES DRIVE HOW GOOD CHEER OPERATES CHILD’S CHANCE TO GIVE: THE MAGIC OF GIVING YOUR DONATIONS MAKE GOOD CHEER THE PLACE TO SHOP! Happy holidays from Good Cheer staff and volunteers!

Good Cheer Food Bank & Thrift Stores | Creating a Hunger-Free Community

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FAMILY SUPPORT PRINCIPLES 1. Staff and families work together in relationships based on equality and respect 2. Staff enhance families’ capacity to support the growth and development of all family members— adults, youth, and children 3. Families are resources to their own members, to other families, to programs, and to communities 4. Programs affirm and strengthen families’ cultural, racial, and linguistic identities and enhance their ability to function in a multicultural society 5. Programs are embedded in their communities and contribute to the community building process 6. Programs advocate with families for services and systems that are fair, responsive, and accountable to the families served 7. Practitioners work with families to mobilize formal and informal resources to support family development 8. Programs are flexible and continually responsive to emerging family and community issues 9. Principles of family support are modeled in all program activities, including planning, governance, and administration

All programs at Good Cheer are rooted in Family Support Principles.

Family support principles drive how Good Cheer operates Good Cheer’s mission is to create a hunger-free community. The foundation of how we go about achieving this goal is called the Family Support Principles.

The basic tenants of Family Support Principles are the equality of responsibility and respect between the server and the served. When we serve our Food Bank clients, we begin with a respectful greeting. With this foundation of respect, people are often relieved from the worry of feeding their families without feeling like less of a person.

The basic tenants of Family Support Principles are the equality of responsibility and respect between the server and the served.

When we begin our relationship with a client being mindfully respectful, the client has the opportunity to maintain or rebuild their own sense of self-dignity. When you have been self-sufficient your whole life and a catastrophic event happens like a major medical issue or job layoff, it can be hard to figure out where you fit in again. Our clients often comment on how they waited till they were so desperate to come into Good Cheer Food Bank because they did not want to be seen as needing help. Their first impression is usually one of relief that they are treated as equals and with respect. It is often their first step in a more positive direction.

Good Cheer Food Bank was created to feed families who need help. Our criterion for carrying out that mission is pretty simple. You must live on South Whidbey to utilize our shopping model. We don’t ask for any personal information other than the names of household members and ages along with your address. This stems from the foundation of respect that implies you will only be using the Food Bank if you need to use it. Our experience in the last 54 years has been just that, people in need come until they are back on their feet. Then, they go back to their lives where they were able to help themselves and others.

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Good Cheer Food Bank & Thrift Stores | Creating a Hunger-Free Community

Donate Food.

Help Good Cheer.

With colder temperatures and rainy weather, many folks on South Whidbey are vulnerable.

Please consider adding a few items to your grocery list for those facing food insecurity this season.

Langley Middle School students donated 818 pounds of food to Good Cheer Nov 10!

Donation ideas: soups, chili, or special items for Christmas and holiday meals (jello, stuffing mix, evaporated milk)

Family support principles drive how Good Cheer operates continued from page 2 The result of working from these principles of mutual respect and responsibility shows in our donors and volunteers. Many of our most loyal volunteers and donors have received the services of Good Cheer Food Bank at some point. These same folks will come back and bring a check or will begin to volunteer after they have retired because they never forgot the kindness of the people at Good Cheer.

They want to pay back the kindness as much as the benefit of the nourishment.

Food drives scare away hunger Good Cheer is grateful to all of the community members, organizations, churches, schools, and businesses who make charitable contributions, hold food drives, and donate food, items, materials, and time. Your dedication and hard work sustains those who need help from time to time.

Girl Scouts collecting food for Good Cheer at local stores.

We love our community and the many original ways you think of to support your neighbors.

Last month, local Girl Scout troops stood outside The Star Store in Langley and The Red Apple and Clinton Food Mart in Clinton on a sunny Saturday to ask shoppers for nonperishable donations. After the day was done, 918 pounds of food were collected for Good Cheer by and throughout our community.

Langley Middle School held their annual food drive on November 10. A school assembly gathered hundreds of students and over 1,200 food items and cans to scare away hunger. The middle schoolers held a friendly competition where they arranged the cans of food into artistic and creative designs before loading the 818 pounds of food into the Good Cheer-mobile for the Food Bank.

You can help too! Bring your food donations the Food Bank Monday through Friday from 9:30 AM to 4:30 PM.

THANK YOU! Scaring away hunger with cans of food, smiles, and lots of heart.

Good Cheer Food Bank & Thrift Stores | Creating a Hunger-Free Community

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Dedication to the mission continued from front page

support a family, Rita is the first to volunteer whatever she can to make these moments special and filled with dignity. When we hold Child’s Chance to Give, Rita will hold back some special items that she knows will help a child see that same look in their momma’s eye when she opens it Christmas morning.

Imagine Rita and her husband, a young couple, with their little boy sitting at the table. Her husband was a A little love can go a long way. roofer, between roof projects, and unsure when the next paycheck would come. There is a choice to be made about what to have for dinner that night and what to have for dinner the next night. The young boy is asked which he would rather have tonight and which he would like for tomorrow night. The choice is between a can of corn and a can of beans. After the second night, there would be no choices left.

Son, if you could choose what you would want for dinner, what would it be?

This young couple did not want to let on to their families about their current plight. For the parents, it was a time of great anxiety. It is one thing to not eat. It is another to not be able to provide for your child.

As they sat eating the one can of food, Rita said, “Son, if you could choose what you would want to have for dinner, what would it be?” The son said he would love oatmeal with brown sugar. The dad said he would like a bologna sandwich and Rita said she would love a peanut butter and grape jelly sandwich. These dinner dreams helped push off the fact that they had only one can left.

Now, here is where you get a glimpse into how a family feels when a caring neighbor sees a situation and steps in to help without needing any credit. The angel at the doorstep allowed Rita’s family their own miracle to hang on till life turned around. This angel-neighbor stopped by that very night.

In the morning as Rita and her husband woke with only one can of food, they opened the front door to start this challenging day of looking for work and sending their son off to school. Imagine their surprise when they found a box on their doorstep. Even more surprising was what food was in the box. The box contained oatmeal, brown sugar, bread, bologna, peanut butter and grape jelly.

They wondered aloud if someone overheard and then they settled into feeling grateful for the fact that someone chose to help them. This simple gesture lifted their spirits and was just enough food to tide them over till the next job came in and they were able to purchase what they needed. This experience stuck with Rita Tulloch and she has been paying it forward ever since she arrived at Good Cheer many years ago.

An angel’s gift left on the doorstep of a neighbor in need.

Some people turn away from their past and learn little from their experiences. Some are able to grow up and return all the favors, large and small, that were given along the way. Rita knows what it is like to be the child in school who does not have the new clothes at the beginning of school and when we have the Back to School Bag Sale for families who need help, Rita makes them feel like they won something—not just a handout, but a hand up.

As we finish out a year that included the loss of Rita’s husband Bill, we are so thankful to have Rita managing our Good Cheer Two Thrift Store. Her example of treating every customer, client, and stranger with dignity has a ripple effect on all of us. We are honored to share our mission of helping people with someone who has known both sides of this mission. Our stories are not who we are but show why we are who we are. Thank you, Rita for showing such compassion over the years.

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Good Cheer Food Bank & Thrift Stores | Creating a Hunger-Free Community

At Child’s Chance to Give, volunteers and staff help children find the perfect gift for their loved ones and then help wrap them up with festive wrapping paper.

Child’s chance to give: the magic of giving In early December, Good Cheer Thrift Stores open up in the evening for a special event called Child’s Chance to Give. On this evening, children of Food Bank clients are paired up with a personal shopper. They are given a Good Cheer gift certificate to spend on gifts for their caregivers and people they love. The children shop for everything from special blue glass vases to a new coat for their mom or a stuffed animal for their baby brother.

This event involves a group of volunteers who act as the personal shoppers and gift wrappers and help wrap every gift. Anyone who has volunteered will tell you the satisfaction of helping the kids truly warms your heart. In a small space of time, you will find out why a little boy needs to find tools for his uncle so they can build something together. When two teenagers combine their gift certificates so they can have enough to buy an espresso maker for their mom because they know she cannot afford to go out for her lattes anymore, you cannot help but believe in this next generation.

After finishing their shopping, the children help wrap gifts. As their personal shopper helps write the tags, someone else helps wrap the gifts. These volunteers are so great at involving the children in every part, including picking what wrapping paper would be best. If you were to peek in, it looks like happy mayhem, and it is.

As the children shop and wrap, the caregivers enjoy treats and relax. If you asked them why they bring their kids out for this event, you will hear about the struggles of grandparents and aunties who are raising these children while their parents are lost to addiction and other struggles. You will hear parents feeling thankful that their kids can Helping find a special gift know the feeling of giving as well as receiving. You for a special someone. will hear the gratitude from these adults trying to shield their children from the challenges of every day, especially during the holidays.

Child’s Chance to Give is built off the foundational year of Good Cheer. Good Cheer’s first Christmas included handing out holiday boxes of food, clothes and gifts to families on South Whidbey. With Child’s Chance to Give, we continue to honor our roots of providing happy moments to construct a better future.

If you were to peek in, it looks like happy mayhem—and it is.

Providing happy moments and holiday spirit.

Good Cheer Food Bank & Thrift Stores | Creating a Hunger-Free Community

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KITCHEN HAPPENINGS Preserving, processing, and putting by food.

Behind Good Cheer’s processed foods is an entire team.

Thanks to the dedicated volunteers who pick up and pick through grocery rescue produce from Haggens and Safeway every week and the staff and volunteers who peel, chop, and cook with love, the Food Bank kitchen team has processed over 2,800 pounds of dried fruit, frozen fruit, sauces, pickles, guacamole, dried herbs, mixed cut fruit, purees, salsas, and roasted or blanched veggies this year!

The frozen greens and veggies that were blanched or roasted will stock the Food Bank this winter with healthy, hearty, and nutritious options.

Thanks to all!

DID YOU KNOW? Good Cheer offers free furniture pick-up. Call 360221-6494 to schedule yours!

Our donation center, (2812 Grimm Road in Langley), is also open Monday-Saturday 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Thank you for nourishing friends and families in need on South Whidbey.

Do good and score great deals when you shop at Good Cheer Thrift Stores!

Your donations make Good Cheer the place to shop!

Good Cheer depends on donations to fund the Good Cheer Food Bank. The quantity and quality of donations this year has been a huge part of the success of our Good Cheer Thrift Stores. When you bring in your clothes, giftware, small appliances, jewelry and other goods, you are donating to Good Cheer Food Bank’s ability to serve our families in need and provide our community with two great resources for everyday shopping.

Not only do your donations feed South Whidbey, your donations help families in our community get back on their feet. Good Cheer works with Helping Hand and the SW Homeless Coalition to supply a formerly homeless family with the basics for their new home. At the beginning of the school year, Good Cheer works with Readiness to Learn to provide children with new clothes for the new school year so they can go to school feeling like a student ready to learn. Your donations to Good Cheer are recycled into hope and opportunity. Not bad South Whidbey, not bad.

Once you donate your goods, a group of volunteers and staff, sort, clean, and price your items. We distribute the inventory to the stores every weekday so every day there is something new at our stores. If you volunteer to help sort, price, and donate at Good Cheer, you will get a 25% discount at our Good Cheer Thrift Stores. You can treasure hunt while volunteering!

Have you shopped in the Good Cheer Thrift Stores lately? We have spent a lot of time arranging our stores so you can find items easier and keep finding new ways to reward our frequent shoppers. We know you like a good deal and like doing good while shopping. Check out our two Thrift Stores for more specials and see how we are working to serve you better too.

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Good Cheer Food Bank & Thrift Stores | Creating a Hunger-Free Community

Your donations make Good Cheer the place to shop! continued from page 6

FRESH FOOD ON YOUR TABLE

Langley Good Cheer Thrift Store is located on 2nd and Anthes Avenue in Langley.

When you walk in, you will feel like you have walked into a lovely boutique. You are greeted with jewelry and fine giftware. As you go further into the store, you will love the fashions available in clothing along with your favorite authors in our book section. Around the corner, look for the linens, housewares, and most likely that one bolt you need to finish off a home project.

Out at Ken’s Korner Shopping Center at Langley Road and Highway 525, you will find our newly expanded Good Cheer Two. With all of the donations of furniture, we expanded to showcase our wide variety of furniture available. When you walk into Good Cheer Two, it will feel like walking into a department store. You will find a wide variety of everything from clothing to hardware. Looking for a new dining set or the perfect lighting fixture? Look here first. Check out the white board as you walk in the door. Every day has at least one big deal.

With your continued support of our Thrift Stores, we are able to concentrate on helping your neighbors while you can shop for new treasures. When we recycle what we have, the world is already a better place. If you have not checked out our Thrift Stores yet, please do. You will be so impressed by how generous your community is. Thank you Good Cheer Community.

DONATING + SHOPPING = Feeding Your Neighbors

through Good Cheer Food Bank

Your donations preserve and maintain community assets Alongside providing food to those in need and deals at our Thrift Stores, taking care of our assets is a priority at Good Cheer. This past July, the Food Bank received a fresh coat of paint. Thank you to all who helped make this happen, and a special shout out to Jerry Bacon, Good Cheer’s Board Facility Committee Chair, who led the Board in this endeavor.

Pumpkin Puree (Yield: 2–2.5 pounds puree) One 4–6 pound pumpkin Salt, to taste Heat oven to 400° F. Slice a small piece of skin off one side of the pumpkin so it lays flat. Split the pumpkin in half lengthwise.

Scoop out the seeds and fiber with a large spoon.

Sprinkle the flesh with salt and lay the halves flesh side down on a baking pan. Roast until a fork easily pierces the skin, about 30 to 45 minutes.

Let the roasted pumpkin halves cool for 1 hour.

Using a spoon, remove the roasted flesh from the skin and place into the bowl of a food processor or blender.

Process until smooth, 3 to 4 minutes. Store in the fridge for up to 1 week or freeze for up to 3 months.

Good Cheer Food Bank & Thrift Stores | Creating a Hunger-Free Community

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GOOD CHEER BOARD OF DIRECTORS Marilee Seligson, President Bob Olson, Vice President Rob Anderson, Treasurer Bob Green, Secretary Jerry Bacon John Lawson Tom Nack Vincent Nattress Kay Stanley Kathryn Stevens Kelly Turner Bill Watts Laura Weeks

Good Cheer Food Bank & Thrift Stores PO Box 144 Langley, WA 98260 www.goodcheer.org

Executive Director Kathleen McCabe

Good Cheer Food Bank and Donation Center

Langley Thrift Store

Good Cheer Two

2812 Grimm Road Langley, WA 98260

Item donations accepted: 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM Mon—Sat (360) 221-6494

114 Anthes Ave Langley, WA 98260 (360) 221-6455

11042 State Highway 525, #132 Clinton, WA 98236 (360) 341-2880

Food donations accepted: 9:30 AM - 4:30 PM Mon—Fri

Both Thrift Stores open 9:30 AM - 5:00 PM, 7 days a week

Food Bank Hours: 9:30 AM - 4:30 PM Mon, Wed—Fri 12:00 PM - 7:00 PM Tues (360) 221-4868 Websites:

www.goodcheer.org

Facebook:

@goodcheerfoodbankandthriftstores

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www.goodcheergarden.wordpress.com @goodcheergarden

E-mail: Instagram:

foodbank@whidbey.com @goodcheergarden

Good Cheer Food Bank & Thrift Stores | Creating a Hunger-Free Community