November 2023
Dear Friends,
November is traditionally the busiest month of the year at the ESCCC Food Bank, and so it was.
We began our every-Monday vegetable distribution to the community outside the Patagonia Senior Center on November 6. Demand was good and we welcomed seeing old friends and sharing fresh veggies. These veggie distributions are for the entire community, and will continue until the end of the vegetable season, usually around the end of April. Our supplier, Borderlands Produce Rescue, had an adequate supply of vegetables for our needs this month.
At our November 11, Veterans Day, regular Food Bag Distribution, our volunteers saw many new faces and delivered 86 Food Bags to our clients including tortillas, and eggs. This distribution sets up our clients for the Thanksgiving Holiday with traditional foods that go with the delivery of our Thanksgiving Turkeys a week later.
On Friday, November 17, our volunteers distributed 175 twelve-to-fourteen-pound frozen turkeys to our clients and community partners. At times, the line of cars waiting for turkeys stretched along the food bank driveways and out onto Harshaw Ave. As in the past, things moved quickly, and we exhausted our supply in about 45 minutes. This was despite ordering 25 more turkeys than previous years due to higher demand. We are fortunate to have donors that graciously provided the funds to make the increase possible.
On November 17, the Patagonia Schools can drive netted six full bins of canned and non-perishable food for the Food Bank. This was an All-School drive in which all the students and teachers donated. Their generosity made this holiday season quite a bit brighter for our clients.
We are happy to welcome on board a new community partner, Helping Hands Sonoita, and their food pantry and wellness center. They will assist us with outreach to those residing in the northern part of East Santa Cruz County. The Food Bank provided 10 turkeys for their free Thanksgiving dinner at the Sonoita Fairgrounds.
Fund Raising:
“There Will Be Dust”
On November 18th, the Trail Riders of Southern Arizona hosted the 11th Annual “There Will Be Dust” single-day dual sport motorcycle ride event in Patagonia. TRS raised funds to support the ESCCC Food Bank. Their support over the years has been essential in helping us provide food for holiday meals. The event was a major success with only a few hiccups along the way.
“If Music Be the Food of Love”
The Santa Cruz County Foundation for the Performing Arts presented a benefit concert for the Food Bank on Sunday, November 26th at the Benderly-Kendall Concert Hall, Patagonia, featuring Candy Amato, assistant principal violist for the Tucson Symphony Orchestra, and colleagues from the University of Arizona and the TSO. It was an amazing afternoon. The music was wonderful and patrons made donations of money as well as non-perishable food to the food bank.
Our new website is seeing some traffic as we post our ongoing news. It is an easy way for the community to learn about our services and events and even make a donation.
I would like to express my appreciation for all the community support of the Food Bank. This time of year brings so much joy for our volunteers, clients and supporters alike. Thank you for making our community a place where we all enjoy a high quality of life.
Jim