Thank You To Our Faithful Volunteers

How would you like to spend an hour each week sowing into the needy, poor and homeless? If you could spare 1 hour a week the West Orange Food Pantry can use your help. We are always looking for volunteers to help us in the pantry and bookstore. If interested please call Millie at 407-905-9339 for more information. It's a wonderful feeling to give of your time to someone else.
Remember . . .whether you are young or old . . . you can volunteer at the Food Pantry!

Thank You Volunteers! We couldn't do it without you!

What Your Donations Can Do . . . .

Due to all the generous people and business owners who have donated money to the West Orange Food Pantry we were able to purchase a huge semi truck full of pallets of food.The food arrived last week! A big thank you to all the volunteers that came and helped stock shelves! You are all a blessing. For those of you who have not had a chance to volunteer . . . we are always looking for willing vessels who could sow a few hours each week at the pantry. The shelves are now stocked with all kind of food and household items.If you would like to sow into a ministry that is helping the needy and homeless . . .remember the West Orange Food Pantry! Through the generous donations from many . . .we are making a huge difference in the lives of many!
This gentleman who we have named "The Cookie Man" . . .brings cookies once a month to the pantry. What a treat and a blessing!He is getting ready to retire and he is prayerfully considering donating his truck to the pantry. What a HUGE blessing that would be!

Remember, to please bring in any clothing items, furniture, appliances, bedding etc. . . we will proudly take your donations and bless them to families who are in need.

Also, with the start of school closely approaching we are making back to school kits for the needy children in the community. As you purchase your kids supplies or perhaps you don't have children but would like to make a difference in the lives of a child . . the next time you head to Wal-Mart, Target, K-mart or the Dollar Stores . . . purchase some extra supplies for these chidlren. Your generosity will bless others and make the beginning of school easier for these wonderful kids!

GREAT DEAL ON CLOTHES

WHERE CAN YOU GET THIS JACKET FOR 25 CENTS?! OUR THRIFT STORE IS GROWING. THE CLOTHES PROVIDE A TREMENDOUS VALUE FOR LOW INCOME FAMILIES TO BUY WITHOUT A FINANCIAL BURDEN. ALL OF OUR CLOTHES ARE .25!

FREE PASTRIES

We give away many free pastries to all of our customers!

Free Bread

We give out several hundred loaves of bread for free to those in need and several other non-profits. Many homeless people are given free food. We only ask that they participate in volunteering in our warehouse for a few hours to participate in the solution of making a difference

Giving something you can't get back - Your Time

Paul is a faithful volunteer that comes in on an on-going basis to help in the pantry. Thank you for being a great volunteer!

Making a difference from the beginning

Judy has been our most faithfull volunteer since the beginning. She brings food to the pantry every week from publix. She also takes food to needy senior citizens in a nursing home as well. WE LOVE YOU!!!!!!!

Huge Sale Wednesday, June 27th, 2007

Come one . .Come all to the West Orange Food Pantry tomorrow Wednesday, June 27th. We are having a HUGE sale. Tell your neighbors, friends and anyone who could use some deals on some great items. The thrift store is coming along nicely. We now have the clothes on hanging racks and it is so much easier now for customers to see what is available! Remember the Pantry Thrift Store when giving away your clothing items. Good job Millie and crew!
These refrigerator's are for sale for a $50.00 donation I believe. Remember, if you have any applicances, furniture, beds, lawn equipment hanging around your home not being used. Donate it to the Pantry and the sale of these items go to buy food for the needy in the community!

Medicade and Food Stamps

Once a month this group of ladies come to the pantry to help people signup for medicade and food stamps. This is a free service they bring to the pantry for the community to have access to.

The One Man Band

This is a picture of Frances with his One Man Band. He comes to the Pantry about once a month and plays his music as a service to the pantry. Thanks Frances for your generosity!

Community Cultivator's

The ministry team from Community Cultivator's stopped in at the pantry to share what their ministry does with Ken. This ministry is so neat! They go to the homes of people in need of landscaping up keep and do it FREE of charge. The team wanted to know if Ken knew of anyone who might be in need of their service. Ken mentioned that he knew of a lady who had loss her husband. She attends Sorrento Baptist Church. She was alone with her children and didn't have anyone or the funds to help her with her yard and landscaping.So, they made an appointment to go to the women's home along with a respresentative from her church. Here is part of the Community Cultivator Team along with a Ralph who is an Elder in her church and the women they will be helping. They met at her home so they could take a look at everything that needed to be done.This will be a total blessing to this family.

The team will be there in a few weeks to work wonders to her yard and landscaping! What a blessing!

Spread the Word!

Hello everyone!

This is Emily and I am going to start weekly updates for the WOFP. I stopped by the pantry on Monday and was so excited to see all the exciting things happening there. Here is an update:

These boxes all hold clothes. Many of them hold BRAND NEW clothes that our friend Samantha had donated to her and she in turned donated them to the pantry.
Here is Millie holding up one of the new outfits. The pantry is going to be putting together back to school gift boxes for needy children. We need donations such as gift cards to Wal-Mart or Target, any new school supplies, backpacks,clothes and bed or bath linens etc . . . . . Please bring or send all your donations to the West Orange Food Pantry. Make a difference in a life of a child!
The pantry is in also need of furniture. At this time we are NOT taking any knick knacks but we do need furniture or appliances. We have three families that we are trying to house and we need to help them set up their household. Please feel free to forward this information to anyone you know. Also, the pantry will come and pickup the items for FREE. In the future when you have items you do not want anymore . . .. please think of the WOFP :-)
While I was in the pantry looking around this man handed Millie a cash donation. What a nice surprise! Thank you for your generosity!
Also, if you look in the above picture you can see we have been working hard on the thrift store. We now have all the clothes up on racks and everything is so organized. Thanks Millie and the WOFP crew for working so hard to get it looking so good.

We still need donations of clothes, furniture, appliances, toys and cash donations. Also, if you are unsure if we will take certain items please call Millie at the number listed on the blog and she can give you more information. Help us spread the word of all the great things going on at the WOFP!!!!

CHURCH FOOD VOUCHER

WE ARE WORKING WITH SEVERAL CHURCHES IN THE AREA AND NOW SENDING OUT FOOD VOUCHERS TO OVER 30 CHURCHES IN ORANGE COUNTY. EACH CHURCH STAFF GIVES THE VOUCHERS TO THOSE IN NEED AND THEY COME TO THE PANTRY TO RECEIVE FREE FOOD. WE ADD THE NAME OF THE CHURCH ON EACH VOUCHER.

$10 WORTH OF FOOD

THIS IS WHAT $10 CAN GET YOU AT THE FOOD PANTRY. WE HAVE SEVERAL OTHER ITEMS THAT WE GIVE AWAY FOR FREE ALSO.

FREE HAIRCUT

ONE DAY A WEEK, OUR VOLUNTEER STACEY WILL BE GIVING HAIRCUTS TO THOSE IN NEED. SHE IS USING HER TALENTS TO HELP THOSE LESS FORTUNATE. THANKS FOR YOUR DEDICATION

ANOTHER GREAT ORGANIZATION

THE CHRISTIAN SERVICE CENTER SUPPLIES HOT MEALS TO HUNGRY PEOPLE IN OCOEE EVERY DAY AND AFTER SCHOOL CARE AS WELL. WE ARE NOW SUPPLYING BREAD TO THEM. THEY FILL A GREAT DAILY NEED.

OUR PARTNERS

PASTOR MARK WITH BREAD OF LIFE MINISTRY IN OCOEE. THEY SUPPLY FOOD FOR US AND WE ALSO SUPPLY THEM. THEY ARE A GREAT ORGANIZATION! WE HAVE A GREAT RELATIONSHIP WITH THEM.

STUART FRITZ

EVERY TIME STUART COMES IT IS WITH A TRUCKLOAD OF FOOD!

Stuart Fritz

SOME OF THE FREE FRUIT AND VEGETABLES STUART BRINGS TO US 2 TO 3 TIMES A WEEK.. WE GIVE ALL THE FRUIT AND VEGETABLES AWAY.

OUR PARTNERS

This is Stuart Fritz. He gives us bread, pastries,fruits and vegetables every week. They go very quickly because we give it away. He just called us out of the blue one day and said he wanted to do this for us because he believes in us. We cover his gas and he blesses us tremendously. He was a customer of mine 10years ago in Nations Bank. Funny how God brings people together.

RON AND CINDY'S NEW HOME AND MARRIAGE!!

Ron and Cindy have moved in their new home! Before they moved in, they decided to get married on Easter Sunday. They wanted to 'do things right' before they moved into their new home.

NEW FOOD!!!!!!!

We have some great food suppliers. Our newest food supplier is Bannana box groceries. This new supplier has a tremendous amount of mixed food that needs to be sorted and placed on the shelves. This food is excellent!!!!

Good People Giving Back

Donna and Orlando are members of the food pantry. They decided instead of selling their van for $600.00 they donated it to the pantry to give to a needy family. Runs great and AC is Cold!!! Thanks for helping to make a difference!!!

Desperatly Low on Food

We give away food to many ministries and families , while also offering food at a tremendously discounted price. This give us the unique problem of running out of food very quickly. We are looking for several other good suppliers as well as our current one, to help us meet the need.

OUR FIRST HOMELESS FAMILY SPONSORSED

Ron and Cindy are the first couple we will sponsoring for 6 months. We will house them, put them through financial counseling and get them self sufficient. We have been working with them for sometime. Now Ron has a job, attends a church and is very active volunteering in the pantry. They live in a tent nearyby the pantry and are very good people. We help all types of families. They just have to want to get ahead and follow the program.

FREE FREE FREE !!!!

MARCH 26th will be offering the following additional services twice a month for free!!!

Medical checkups .
Cholesterol Screening.
Other Medical Screening.
Info on how to become a legal US citizen.
Job placement.

We will miss you Freddie!

Our warehouse manager Freddie is leaving for the US Navy. A man of great character, Freddie would feed the homeless on his days off. We could only afford to keep him part time but he worked more than 50 hours a week anyway. We will miss your dedication Freddie!!!!

The working poor need help.

In 2004, the most recent data available, 17.6 million people lived in a working-poor household. This translates into 8.2% of all American families lived below the poverty level even though there was a family member that worked

According to the most recent survey on hunger and homelessness , 40% of adults requesting emergency food assistance were employed. In addition, 21 of the 24 cities surveyed cited unemployment as a determining factor of hunger in their communities

60% Of all American's live paycheck to paycheck.

5 HOMELESS FAMILIES

We are looking to take 5 homeless families off of the streets, provide them financial counseling, pay for rent and electric for 6 months. After that time they will be self-sustaining. Thanks to Living Waters Church for providing the funding for 4 of the families. each family costs $5000 to house. Next year it will be 9 families !!!!!

FREE BREAD!!!!

Everyone who comes to the pantry gets, free fresh bread, pastries and fruit when available. As you can see, it goes very fast. We also give away bags of assorted food almost every day to those in an extreme need. We have been giving away alot of clothes lately to our homeless visitors because of the cold.

STAFF SPOTLIGHT

Dave is one of our full time volunteers. He works in our warehouse 45 hours a week and gets paid by food. He lives in a tent not too far by. Recently, Dave received a small amount of money he has been waiting for The first thing he did with the money he received was give a donation of $500 to the pantry! He said he wanted to give a little back to the pantry. Now he attends church. Sometimes bad things happen to good people. We are working on housing for him and a job.