Hey Valley: Get Your Ducks in a Row!

SHELTON - Have a swimmingly good time watching your duck and help support Spooner House from now until June 23. 

The Housy River Duck Race takes place June 24 at 2 p.m. starting at the Derby/Shelton Bridge on the Housatonic River. 

 

The enter-to-win tickets are $5 per duck of which $2 will support Area Congregations Together Spooner House. You may purchase your duck tickets at Spooner House, 30 Todd Road weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Any tickets you purchase will have a corresponding number for your duck during the race. 

 

Last year 150 ducks were sold by Spooner House, which resulted in $300 being raised to help financially with the ACT hunger and homeless initiatives in the Valley.

Each duck ticket will give you an opportunity to win a prize for the first 65 ducks to cross the finish line. The grand prize is $1,000 cash; 2nd place is a 55" LED HDTV, 3rd place is $500; 4th place is an Apple iPad mini; and the 5th place winner receives $250. 

 

The prizes and contest are sponsored by the St. Mary-St. Michael School Development Committee in Derby. The school group has other organizations participating in the ticket selling as well, which means there will be more ducks.

 

 “It is great to be able to support St. Mary-St. Michael School through this partnership as they have been a wonderful supporter of Spooner House throughout the years,” said Susan Agamy, Executive Director at Spooner House.

 

A list of all prizes and winners will be posted on the St. Mary-St. Michael School website at: https://stmarystmichaelct.eduk12.net/. Search for upcoming events.
 

(This is a press release from Area Congregations Together)

Spooner House in Shelton to benefit from philanthropist's challenge

For the 17th consecutive year, Alan Shawn Feinstein will be dividing $1 million among nonprofit hunger-fighting agencies nationwide using it as a spur to help them raise funds from now through April 30.

 

The drive to stamp out hunger is going strong with the Alan Shawn Feinstein $1 Million Giveway to Fight Hunger campaign in full force now. 

Feinstein, a philanthropist  from Rhode Island, has pledged to give away $1 million to hunger relief nationwide. 

Feinstein will add to all contributions received by Spooner House in Shelton during this campaign. 

The larger the contribution received by Spooner House, the more Feinstein funds will be given to help us help others in the Valley. 

This is the 14th year Spooner House has participated in the program. Last year donations totaling more than $31,000 were collected and reported to the Feinstein Foundation from Spooner House. Donations received during this time will make you a partner in the most successful grassroots campaign to fight hunger of all time. 

 

Only gifts of cash, checks or non-perishable food received by April 30 will count towards the Spooner House total used to determine the amount of funds they will be eligible to receive from Feinstein’s challenge grant. 

Non-perishable food donated will be valued at $1 per item. 

The Feinstein million dollars will be divided proportionately among all agencies complying with the food drive formula. There will be a minimum of $250 and a maximum of $35,000 given to participating agencies. 

Complete results from this year’s drive will be posted on the Feinstein Foundation website in August and also will be posted periodically on Spooner House’s Facebook page, www.facebook.com/spooner.house.

 

“Many of us recognize that providing food is the most basic human need, one that has increased even more than normal over the past year,” said Susan Agamy, Executive Director of Spooner House.

“In addition to the continuing difficult economy and expensive cost of living in this area, families have also been hit hard by the extreme cold and snow this winter. Participating in this year’s Feinstein Challenge Grant is more important than ever.”

 

Spooner House has played a critical role in meeting the needs of Valley neighbors for more than 30 years. 

This past year Spooner House provided almost 130,000 meals to more than 6,000 community residents, including men, women and children, senior citizens, veterans, the disabled and others, who may have otherwise gone without a meal. This represents an increase of more than 100 percent since 2008.

 

Checks should be made payable and mailed to: Spooner House, 30 Todd Road, Shelton, CT

06484. 

Donations may also be made via PayPal by clicking on the Donate button at

http://www.actspooner.org/. 

Deliveries of non-perishable food items are accepted at the above location weekdays between 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturdays from

9 a.m. to 1 p.m. 

Donors also may set up a special time for food delivery by calling

203-225-0453.

This is a press release from Spooner House in Shelton. 

SNAP 101 scheduled at Derby Public Library

DERBY - The Derby Public Library has scheduled a SNAP 101 Presentation for Older Adults at 10 a.m. Sept. 27.

            Have you ever had to make a choice between buying groceries and filling a prescription or paying utility bills?
            Jessica Mahon, SNAP Outreach Advocate, will explain how the Supplemental Nutrition

Assistance Program helps defray the cost of groceries and makes healthy and nutritious foods more affordable.
           AARP and End Hunger CT! have joined forces to provide SNAP application assistance to older adults.

          For information, stop by the Library at 313 Elizabeth St., call 203-736-1482 or visit www.derbypubliclibrary.org.    

DeLauro discusses proposed Farm Bill impact on hungry Americans

House to debate legislation next week

NEW HAVEN - At a press conference Tuesday morning with Connecticut anti-hunger leaders, U.S. Rep. Rosa L. DeLauro, D-3, highlighted the impact of the proposed Farm Bill on hungry families in Connecticut and across the nation. 

The event was held at Cornerstone Christian Church Fellowship Hall in Milford.

                       

The U.S. House of Representatives’ version of that bill will be debated by the full chamber as soon as next week.

“Nearly 50 million Americans, including over 16 million children, are struggling with hunger," DeLauro said. 

"Here in Connecticut’s Third Congressional District, nearly one in seven households are not sure if they can afford enough food to feed their families. Food Stamps are America’s most important effort to deal with hunger at home and ensure families can put food on the table. But the bill we are expecting to debate next week slashes more than $20 billion from Food Stamps, hurting millions of Americans. These hurtful cuts are a dereliction of our responsibilities to the American people, and our moral responsibility to help the least fortunate among us.”

The bill expected to come before the House of Representatives next week would force nearly two million low-income Americans to go hungry, including one million children. It would also kick roughly 210,000 low-income children off of the school lunch program. 

And many more low-income Americans, mostly seniors and working families with children, would lose their benefits due to changes in the relationship between the calculation of Food Stamp benefits and the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP).

Joining DeLauro were Nancy Carrington, President and CEO, Connecticut Food Bank; Lucy Nolan, Executive Director, End Hunger Connecticut; Shonda Hinton, Cornerstone Christian Church; Rev. Dr. Shelly Stackhouse, Church of the Redeemer, United Church of Christ; and Penelope Davis of Orange.

This post is taken from a press release from DeLauro's office.

Murphy to live on food stamp budget for week

Senator to record meals, observations

WASHINGTON—This week, U.S. Senator Chris Murphy, D-Connecticut, will live on a food stamp budget to better understand how the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) works on a personal level. 

U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy

For one week, starting today, Murphy will live on the average state food stamp benefit. 

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which administers the Food Stamp Program, the average monthly benefit in Connecticut is $143.89 per family member, which is $4.80 per day or $1.60 per meal.

“427,000 people in Connecticut rely on SNAP benefits to feed themselves and their families,” said Murphy. 

“Spending some time living on this budget gives policymakers a firsthand look at the realities of maintaining a balanced and nutritious diet on an extremely limited budget. It’s not easy, but it’s important for people in Washington to understand what our constituents who rely on SNAP face every day. Some lawmakers have proposed steep, damaging cuts to SNAP as part of the Farm Bill here in Congress, and we owe it our constituents to face up to the reality of those cuts.”

SNAP is the country’s most important anti-hunger program. 

As of January of 2013, there were 427,000 Connecticut residents in the program, or 12 percent of the state’s population. 

Nearly 61 percent of SNAP participants are in families with children, and more than 33 percent of SNAP participants are in families with elderly or disabled members. About 33 percent of SNAP participants are in working families.  

Murphy will keep track of his meals and post observations throughout the week via Twitter and Facebook.  

This post is taken from a press release from Murphy's office.

Feinstein Challenge to help food banks in Shelton, Ansonia

SHELTON - The drive to stamp out hunger is in full force through April 30 during the 16th annual Alan Shawn Feinstein $1 Million Giveway to Fight Hunger campaign.  

Feinstein, a philanthropist from Rhode Island, has pledged to give away $1 million dollars to hunger relief nationwide. 

Feinstein will add to all contributions received by Spooner House during this campaign. The larger the contribution received by Spooner House, the more Feinstein funds will be given to help us help others in the lower Naugatuck Valley. 

This is the 13th year Spooner House has participated in the program. Donations received during this time will make you a partner in the most successful grassroots campaign to fight hunger of all time. 

 

Only gifts of cash, checks or non-perishable food received by April 30 will count towards the Spooner House total used to determine the amount of funds they will be eligible to receive from Feinstein’s challenge grant. Non-perishable food donated will be valued at $1 per item. 
The Feinstein million dollars will be divided proportionately among all agencies complying with the food drive formula. There will be a minimum of $250 and a maximum of $35,000 given to participating agencies. Complete results from this year’s drive will be posted on the Feinstein Foundaton website in August.

 

“Many of us recognize the vital need in our community that providing food is the most basic human need, one that has increased over the last several years,” commented Susan Agamy, Executive Director of Spooner House. “In addition to the continuing difficult economy, high unemployment rate and expensive cost of living in this area, families have also been hit hard by recent storms, including Superstorm Sandy in late October and Blizzard Charlotte just last month. Participating in this year’s Feinstein Challenge Grant is more important than ever.”

 

Last year Spooner House raised $35,522 in cash and nonperishable food donations during this campaign. This past year, Spooner House provided almost 190,000 meals to community residents, including men, women and children, seniors, veterans, the disabled and others, who may have otherwise gone without a meal. This represents an increase of more than 150% over the last four years.

 

Checks should be made payable and mailed to: Spooner House,30 Todd Road, Shelton, 06484. 

Donations may also be made via PayPal by clicking on the Donate button at http://www.actspooner.org/.

Deliveries of non-perishable food items are accepted at the above location Monday through Friday 

between 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. 

Donors may also set up a special time for food delivery by calling 203-225-0453.

  

In Ansonia, donations for Spooner House’s Kathleen B. Samela Memorial Food Bank may be brought to the office at Christ Episcopal Church, 56 Cliff St., 9 a.m.-1 p.m. weekdays or call 203-734-2715 to arrange for drop offs at another time.

 

The $1 Million Giveaway to Fight Hunger is an effective, grassroots effort to fight hunger in America .  Founded in 1991 by Alan Shawn Feinstein, a philanthropist from Cranston, R.I., the Feinstein Foundation is dedicated to charity endeavors focused on the alleviation of hunger and the significance of the values of caring, compassion and brotherhood in the community service sector.
Feinstein’s past $1 million challenges to fight hunger have raised a record $1.5 billion for over 3,000 agencies nationwide. Feinstein has a simple goal; he believes no one, not one person, should go without adequate food.

 

Non-profit Area Congregations Together, Inc. was formed in 1979. Today, Spooner House is operated by ACT and devoted to helping clients establish self-sufficiency in an atmosphere of respect and dignity. Area Congregations Together, Inc. is a partner agency of the Valley United Way.

This information is taken from a press release.

Helping Hands of the Valley needs a hand

Shelves are bare at food pantry in Derby

Shelves in the food pantry.

DERBY - Cindy Barbian, manager at St. Vincent De Paul thrift shoppe and food pantry, said she has never seen their supply of non-perishable food items so low.
The nonprofit reopened last week after being closed for the month of August. On Thursday when I visited I saw there was a real shortage of staples such as soups, pastas, rice, cereals, canned fruits, and tuna. Barbian said the only item of which they have plenty at the moment is canned vegetables. But that stock will also start to dwindle as more and more families contact the organization.

The phone has been ringing off the hook, Barbian said. A lot of families are looking for food assistance, and the organization does not have much to give.


Barbian has put the word out that any donation would help the organization to assist the needy. She   is asking residents to keep St. Vincent De Paul Helping Hands of the Valley in mind when they go grocery shopping, and to pick up a few extra items to donate.

It would mean a lot to those who are truly in need.