412 Food Rescue

40% of food goes to waste. 

1 in 7 people go hungry. 

I'm so thankful that people have taken the initiative to change these statistics here in Pittsburgh. I'm thankful that grocery stores, markets and restaurants have a desire to see their surplus food passed on to people who can use it and that thousands of volunteers have come together to make this happen. 

The mission of 412 Food Rescue is to prevent perfectly good food from entering the waste stream.

412 Food Rescue is the only Pittsburgh organization that directly addresses the fact that we waste 40% of our food while 1 in 7 go hungry. Founded in 2015, 412 Food Rescue and its growing corps of over 2,000 volunteers in the Pittsburgh region have recovered over 1 million pounds of food from over 200 retailers and donated to over 250 nonprofits! 

412 Food Rescue is providing huge resources of ending food waste in our community. They are facilitating thousands of pounds of food from stores and restaurants that would typically be thrown away and engaging a volunteer army to move it to organizations that will put it to use.  It's important to note that this is not "food waste". They do not rescue spoiled food, wilted vegetables, expired food or consumer waste. They recover perfectly good, healthy food –mostly fruits and vegetables. Food is donated for many reasons:

• They are approaching their sell-by dates and need to be used within the day or a few days.
• They are not up to consumers’ “cosmetic standards” for food – consumers want the perfect apple, tomato etc.
• They need to be cooked or eaten today or in a few days – e.g. yellow bananas and other ripe fruit, day old bread that are still good, vegetables that are ready to be cooked today or in a few days. All perfectly good but will need to be consumed soon. 

"412 Food Rescue has helped to ensure that no HACP resident will be denied access to fresh, healthy food. Despite major cuts to the federal SNAP program....412 Food Rescue has managed to effectively end hunger in our public housing communities."

Michelle SandidgeHousing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh

My daughter and I recently had the opportunity to do a Food Rescue. It was shockingly easy, close to our home and took less than an hour of time out of our day! We were able to sign up for a pick at a local Giant Eagle and drop off at a family center that were both within 10 minutes of our house. With hundreds of food donors in our region, you can most likely find a location near you as well!

As more food donors come together to eradicate food waste in our city, more and more volunteers are needed! It's a simple task that many of us could add into our weekly schedule. The first step is to download the 412FR app. Go here for  iTunes/iPhone and here for GooglePlay/Android. 

The app allows you to login, see if there are any food rescues needed in your area and allows you to accept the rescue. It's so easy to use! This tutorial explains exactly how to use the app for your rescue. 

 In 2017, 412 Food Rescue is set to hit two million pounds of food rescued and is gearing up to launch its technology in other cities. In less than two years, 412 Food Rescue has been recognized nationally as a leader in food recovery. It is so exciting to see the way food surplus can be distributed in a city and to see other cities getting ready to follow the model that has been initiated in Pittsburgh!

GIVEAWAY:

Want to help spread the word about 412 Food Rescue? Enter our giveaway to win special 412FR swag! Includes a t-shirt, an apron, a bag and stickers (valued at $50).

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Want to learn more about 412 Food Rescue in person? One of the 412FR co-founders,  Leah Lizarando, will be speaking at NextFest Pittsburgh on Friday, April 7. Go here for more information. 

·    See more on the 412 Food Rescue social media channels:

o    Facebook: http://bit.ly/2nTiW6L

o    Twitter: http://bit.ly/2oRkEmY

o    Instagram:  http://bit.ly/2oR0rxF

o    YouTube: http://bit.ly/2nPjU2m

#412FoodRescue 

#FoodRescueHeroes

#EndFoodWaste

Sponsored post in partnership with The Motherhood on behalf of 412 Food Rescue. 

Families For Good Challenge

This past year, we've seen of lot of mess, a lot of ugliness, a whole lot of brokenness in our world. Whether it's the amount of children being orphaned in our own state because of the opioid crisis, the nonstop political battles that are raging, race relations and tensions or the sadness of cancer and car accidents that claim so many lives. It's easy to get discouraged by the bad. But there is GOOD. There are organ donors that step forward and save lives, there are Free Stores, there are caregivers for the elderly, handicapped and foster children, there are people that are doing everyday, mundane GOOD in their communities. It's up to us to step away from the ugly sparring that too often happens on social media and ask what we can do to be part of the GOOD.

 One of the best things we can teach our children is to be part of the GOOD. This can be done by intentionally finding ways that our families can participate in ways to give back in our communities. I was thrilled to be contacted by United Way to partner with them in their first #FamiliesForGoodChallenge. This initiative was launched last Saturday (March 18) at United Way’s annual Be My Neighbor Day event. United Way’s first-ever #FamiliesForGoodChallenge seeks to inspire families to volunteer together and challenge their friends and loved ones to do the same on social media to make a big impact throughout the community.

The goal of the #FamiliesForGoodChallenge is to have the local community log 5,000 collective hours of family volunteerism from now – May 20, 2017. United Way, along with its agency partners, offer a variety of family volunteer activities, including at-home opportunities, for the community to participate in whatever way is most impactful and convenient to them.

“It is United Way’s goal to create meaningful, fun family volunteer opportunities where our community can work together with their families to make a real difference,” said Lois Mufuka Martin, chief volunteer engagement officer. “The challenge is a great opportunity for parents to teach their children the value and importance of giving back. We hope to see people of all ages participating in family volunteer activities through the #FamiliesForGoodChallenge.”

Families who want to participate in the challenge should start by visiting familiesforgood.org, where they can sign up for United Way’s volunteer activities, which include building literacy kits for local children, supporting women in crisis, painting youth centers, cleaning up local parks, building spring cleaning kits for veterans, decorating pots for seniors and more. While these opportunities are available, United Way invites the community to log their hours after participating in any volunteer activity across the city with their family.

Here are some of the opportunities listed on their website:

Community Volunteer Opportunities - Allegheny County

• Build literacy kits that help kids ages PreK-3rd grade increase literacy skills so they can succeed in school - March 31 (2 hours)
• Pick up, paint and plant together at a neighborhood cleanup in Braddock - April 1 (3 hours)
• Build literacy kits that help kids ages PreK-3rd grade increase literacy skills so they can succeed in school – April 22, 9:30-11am (1.5 hours)
• Build literacy kits that help kids ages PreK-3rd grade increase literacy skills so they can succeed in school – April 22, 11am-12:30pm (1.5 hours)
• Paint at Youthplaces to make hallways more welcoming to students - April 29 (4 hours)
• Tidy up a park in Clairton to create a safer community space for kids to play - May 6 (3 hours)
• Join United Way's fitUnited initiative at a Turtle Creek playground for our Day of Action - June 10 (4 hours)

At-Home Opportunities - Allegheny County  (Pick one of the suggested at-home activities or you can tell them what you're doing on your own!)

• Build spring cleaning kits for veterans as a family - At Home (2 hours)
• Put together summer enrichment kits for children in need - At Home (2 hours)
• Brighten a senior's day when you create a "sunshine kit" - At Home (2 hours)
• Assemble safety kits for seniors - At Home (2 hours)
• Host a family book drive for local kids in need - At Home (2 hours)
• Collect flip-flops for women living in shelters and write notes of encouragement - At Home (2 hours)

Additional opportunities for Westmoreland and Fayette counties are also listed.

While at a local volunteer activity, families can join the conversation by sharing their photos and experiences on Facebook and Twitter and tagging United Way of Southwestern PA and #FamiliesForGoodChallenge.

Many of you know that I started the nonprofit, Foster Love Project, to help foster children in Western PA. I am so thankful for all the families that have volunteered together and participated in our holiday bag drive! This has provided a lot of opportunities for my kids to help give back and help in our community.

Whatever mission you choose to take on, I hope you will take the #FamiliesForGoodChallenge! What better way to welcome spring than giving back with your family for GOOD to our community? 

The #FamiliesForGoodChallenge will run through May 20, 2017. 

is post is sponsored so I received compensation or products in exchange for my promotion. All opinions remain my own as I don't endorse companies that I don't value.

New Free Store in Penn Hills

I love this movement in our city of sharing free resources. So many of us have things in our homes that maybe our children have outgrown or we simply don’t need anymore. But it might be in great shape and be useful to another family. These pre-loved items are finding new homes at Free Stores cropping up across Allegheny County. People are providing mutual aid instead of wasting resources. Free Store Penn Hills is the newest family member in this beautiful chain. Past and present Penn Hills residents are working to eradicate suburban poverty by opening this consignment store without price tags for neighbors in need in the Lincoln Park Community Center.

Starting November 19, 2016, Free Store Penn Hills will be open to shoppers and donors Mondays and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. These hours are aligned with the center’s food pantry schedule, which operates twice per month. Shoppers from across Allegheny County and elsewhere are welcome. The store will distribute everything from clothing and books to toys and toiletries. Donations accepted include, books, book bags, clothing, diapers, home décor, luggage/purses, school supplies, school uniforms, toiletries, toys and games. Due to safety concerns, Free Store Penn Hills is unable to accept cribs, car seats, furniture or other items subject to a recall. Personal items, including bedding, pajamas, toiletries and undergarments, must be in new packaging.

The theme of Free Store Penn Hills is to Love Your Neighbor. This quote is even painted on the store’s back wall! In our family, we try to teach our children to love their neighbors by performing random acts of kindness. For the past 3 years, we’ve participated in the Foster Love Project’s placement bag drive. [Full disclosure: I am also the founder.]  Each year, we love and support children who face difficult challenges in their family life with our volunteer work with Foster Love Project.

Kids that need to be removed suddenly from their homes for safety concerns, often aren’t able to take their belongings with them. And if they do take some belongings, they are often placed in a trash bag. We believe this sends the message of being disposable. And that is why these placement bags are so valuable. Yes, they take time, effort, and money, but the need to show them their dignity and worth is worth it all! They need to know that they are not just a number in the system. My kids have a had a big role in this endeavor whether it's packing bags, hauling bags or delivering packages to foster families.

Free Store Penn Hills also sought to create a space that gave shoppers a sense of dignity and respect. To do so, they teamed up with At Home’s newest store in Pittsburgh located at 3000 McIntyre Square Drive. The 91,000 square-foot retail destination allows customers to affordably turn their house into a home, and the major donation allowed Free Store Penn Hills to create a warm, welcoming space. Fellow Penn Hills alum and HGTV Design Star Finalist Luca Paganico offered his styling expertise.  

Highlights of the store include a children’s corner, where kids can attend story time and participate in arts and crafts classes. They can also interact and add their art to the murals  painted by local artists JaQuay Walker Taylor and Deborah McKenzie. A resource table will be a fixture in Free Store Penn Hills, providing valuable and timely information to the public.

Here’s how your family can commit a random act of kindness.

Attend the Grand Opening

Come out to meet your neighbors on Saturday, November 19th at 10 a.m. at the Lincoln Park Community Center. Following the dedication ceremony, drop off donations, shop the store or enjoy refreshments provided by The Cupcake Crew and Frankstown Road Giant Eagle. The Consumer Health Coalition and Healthy Together Mascot Enroll-o-bot will be on site to help families enroll in quality, affordable health insurance. Children’s activities include arts & crafts, a face painter and stories--books provided by Reading is Fundamental (RIF).

Donate to the Free Store

Free Store Penn Hills distributes everything from clothing and books to toys and toiletries. Solicited donations include books, book bags, clothing, diapers, home décor, luggage/purses, school supplies, school uniforms, toiletries, toys and games. Due to safety concerns, we’re unable to accept cribs, car seats, furniture or other items subject to a recall. Personal items, including bedding, pajamas, toiletries and undergarments, must be in new packaging.

Grant a Wish

On Saturdays, the store will host the Confident Kids Craft Club. They need the community’s support to purchase art supplies. Click here to buy something from their Amazon Wish List.  Free Store Penn Hills will also offer interactive and educational workshops for families, such as financial literacy programs and breastfeeding information sessions. Interested facilitators can contact Heather at dearmomdiary@gmail.com.

Buy a Gift Card

The ribbon-cutting ceremony for At Home’s Pittsburgh store will take place Friday, November 18 at 9 a.m. You can add a gift card to your holiday shopping list to donate to Free Store Penn Hills, or pick up one of the 50,000 unique items to make the holidays a bit brighter for a neighbor in need.

Momtourage friends - How are you committing acts of kindness with your family?

Be sure to follow the Free Store Penn Hills and At Home on social media! Tag your photos using #LoveYourNeighbor

Twitter: @FreeStorePH @AtHomeStores

This post is sponsored by At Home so I received compensation or products in exchange for my promotion. All opinions remain my own as I don't endorse companies that I don't value.

Foster Love Project: Holiday Placement Bag Drive

 

The call came from the social worker....could you take in a 2yo and 4 day old? A 10 minute chat with my husband determined that we would say yes. 45 minutes later they were dropped off on our doorstep with literally no belongings. That's a big change of life in a short amount of time!
In 2015, over 20,000 kids were served through the foster care system in Pennsylvania along. Many of these kids are taken to a foster home with no belongings or a few items thrown into a trash bag. After receiving 7 foster children into our home with similar scenarios, I desired to do something to help aid with the transition of kids that come into care as well as give some practical help to foster families. So in 2014, I launched the Foster Love Project with our first Placement Bag Drive. 

A FLP placement bag contains:

• Duffle bag or large backpack (or zippered diaper bag for infants)
• 2 pairs of pajamas (one summer, one winter)
• Socks
• A small blanket
• Stuffed animal (or small pillow for teen bags)
• Book
• Toothbrush & toothpaste (flouride free for under 5)
• Puff & body wash 

Our placement bag drive will run November 15 - December 15, 2016. This is a wonderful project to take on as a family during the holidays. Share with your kids about foster care and how they could reach out to kids in their school that might be in this challenging transition. Kids love to shop to fill these bags as well!

We are so thankful for the amazing response we've received around our region. We've been able to distribute over 3,000 filled bags to over 20 foster agencies in 10 counties in Western PA. 

Want to know the easiest way you could participate? Shop our online wishlist and the complete bag will be shipped directly to us. You won't even have to leave your house!  Shop our online list here. 

We are also collecting as many gift cards as possible! We share these with foster agencies and foster families when they receive a new placement to help with their practical needs. Restaurant gift cards help relieve the burden of cooking dinner for a few nights and Target/Walmart/Visa cards help with clothing, diapers, wipes, formula, school supplies, ect.... Gift cards can be sent to us via our online wish list here  or they can be mailed to:

Foster Love Project

c/o The Bair Foundation
3755 Library Rd # 3, Pittsburgh, PA 15234

So how can you be involved? Our bag drive will be open November 15 - December 15, 2016. We'll have 25 drop off locations including in Shadyside, Lawrenceville, Robinson, North Hills, South Hills, Monroeville, Washington, Cranberry, Grove City + more! Come over to our event page where you can RSVP that you're participating, post questions and see when we share the best deals around town.

Know anyone who lives in Minnesota? We're doing a drive there as well! See the MN info here.

For local friends, Uno Pizzeria & Grill is graciously hosting a Kick-Off party on our opening drive day of Tuesday, November, 15, 2016. If you bring a filled Foster Love bag, you'll get a $10 Uno gift card (per bag!!). Kids also eat FREE (one kids meal per adult entree). Kids can participate in make-your-own-pizza, a free craft from 5-7pm and each child will go home with a treat bag. AND.......20% of each check who mentions Foster Love Project will be donated to our nonprofit. It doesn't get much better than that, does it? Go here to see our Uno event page and RSVP.

  Thank you to Chick Fil A Pittsburgh who has been a very generous supporter of  the Foster Love Project and are covering the sponsorship of this post. I am taking no profit personally, all monies go directly to help spread the word of help needed for foster youth and foster families.  

Want to learn more about our foster care journey? Read some of my other posts here and here.

Little Shoes Gives Back With Naot

I'm guessing that you love these summer-like days we've been having in Pittsburgh as much as I do! And what is one of the best things about summer? Sandals, of course! As a mom to four, I am singing HALLELUJAH when we can walk out the door in the time it takes everyone to slip on sandals instead of the sock-finding, the shoe-tying, the general shoe chaos!!! :) But if you're also like me, as you get older, comfort of shoes gets more and more important. You realize after spending a day in flip flops that your feet don't love you for that choice! But I'm also not ready (yet) to totally throw fashion out the window, so my summer mission always becomes finding sandals that are comfortable, supportive for my feet, and not totally u-g-l-y! 

I was very excited to be introduced to Naot Shoes for several reasons. 
#1: comfort
Our uniquely engineered insoles are a blend of natural latex and cork that are designed to replicate the shape of the foot, just like the footprint we leave when walking the sand. Yes!
#2: Style choices 
With hundreds of shoes from which to choose, I can definitely find a pair that fits my style. 
#3: Giving back
This weekend they are hosting a #NaotGivesBack event at Little Shoes in Squirrel Hill. They shared, "This event allows us to combine two things that we love, fashion and helping those in need. Everyone invited to attend the event will be able to contribute to the Squirrel Hill Community Food Pantry just by simply trying on shoes. Try on a pair of Naots, we will donate a pair to those in need. If you buy a pair, we will donate two pairs. It's fashion for a cause!"

I'd like to invite you to stop by Little Shoes during their 3-day event this weekend! Simply by trying on a pair of shoes you can give back to our community!

The mission of the Squirrel Hill Community Food Pantry is to end food poverty in their community by addressing the immediate food needs of those who are struggling with hunger and giving Food Pantry clients the help and support they need to address the underlying cause of their food insecurity. 

Naot Gives Back Event Details

Littles Shoes, 5850 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15217

April 21 and 22 from 9:30 AM – 9:00 PM and April 23 from noon – 5:00 PM

I'm excited to try out their sandals, but even more thrilled that we can all support these donations simply by stopping at Little Shoes this weekend and trying on a pair of Naots! It really doesn't get any easier than that, does it? The more the merrier, so grab a friend to tag along as well. This section of Forbes Ave. is lined with great places to eat, ice cream shops and a Carnegie Library location, so it's a great place to meet up!

You can share your favorite pair on social media with #NaotGivesBack. 

twitter: @naotfootwear / facebook.com/Naotfootwear

What number is YOUR favorite?

Thanks to Naot Footwear for sponsoring this post. I was given products in exchange for my review. All opinions remain my own as I don't endorse products that I don't love!

In the Spirit of Giving: Chick-fil-A

As the month of November rolls around, we are often freshly reminded about the importance of giving. Although I fully believe that giving back should be on our minds year round, this annual month of reminders is not a bad thing! As I have worked with some of the business side of Chick-fil-A this past year, one thing that has continually stuck out to me is how generous they are as a business. Whether it's from the corporate level or the local stores, a spirit of generosity seems to encompass the entire company. We experienced this personally as my family attended a lot of Chick-fil-A events this past month and they fed our family of 6 multiple times. This means a lot to a mom! And I simply wish every restaurant had a play area because they are magical resources for parents. :)

An amazing cake as we said "Happy 10th Birthday!" to the South Hills location!

 But nowhere has it been more apparent for me than with their generosity towards my charity, the Foster Love Project. Maybe you participated in it for the first time last year or maybe this year is your first time hearing about it. The Foster Love Project was created after seeing multiple foster children arrive at my door with either nothing or a few items thrown in a trash bag.

The FLP is an initiative to provide Placement Bags for kids that come into care and provide a bag, pajamas, stuffed animal, blanket, soap, toothbrush and other goodies to show love and compassion to kids on some of their hardest days.

We were so thrilled for over 1,300 bags to be donated last year!

Because foster children usually come with very short notice, we also asked for donations of gift cards for both restaurants and Target/Walmart that could be given to foster families during those times of crazy transition. Again, Chick-fil-A was beyond generous in donating over $1,000 worth of gift cards! It was such a pleasure to be able to send the gift of meals to foster families throughout the year. 

I am thrilled that several local Chick-fil-A locations have offered to be drop off locations for the Foster Love Project this year! So if you live or work near the Washington, South Hills or Waterfront locations, they will be ready as a donation site from November 16 - December 18. Go here for complete details. 

Thank you, Chick-fil-A, for continually making efforts to give generously and continuing to inspire all of us to find ways to give back in our communities.  

#CFAPITTMoms

This post was sponsored by Chick-fil-A. All opinions remain my own as I don't endorse companies I don't love. :)