 |
||||||||||
|
||||||||||
|
OPERATIONS |
|
|
Volunteers are the Heart and Soul of CORA.
How CORA
serves the community:
It Takes a Village: Collaborating Organizations
Our Commitment: It is
CORA’s belief that it is our obligation as citizens of this
community to combat hunger, whatever its cause, and to do so in a
nondiscriminatory way.
Volunteers are the Heart and Soul of CORA. Until 2007, and for
18 years, CORA was an all-volunteer organization. Today, three
part-time staff and more than 300 volunteers -- women, men and young
people – work together to accomplish our mission. This past year our
pantry volunteers contributed more than 4000 hours to transport
food, sort food contributions, stock our shelves, and directly serve
clients along with performing a host of other tasks.
Volunteer time for The Snack! program totaled
1750 hours. For information on Volunteering
for CORA, go to our
Volunteer Page.
How CORA
serves the community:
The Food Pantry:
CORA was founded in 1989
as the Chatham OutReach Alliance, Inc. (CORA) with the mission of
providing emergency food to those in need throughout Chatham County.
This new community alliance served 53 families in its first year. In
fiscal year 2011, CORA Food Pantry distributed 158 tons of food to
4284 Chatham County, NC families. Families in need may visit the
pantry up to six times in a 12-month period. Families receive
food in sufficient quantities for 21 nutritious meals for all family
members. Unlike many food pantries, we allow our clients to “shop”
and select their own food in pre-determined quantities based on
family size. Volunteers assist clients with their selections. This
gives them a sense of control and empowerment and helps to foster
self esteem during a time of great difficulty. Forty percent of
those we serve are younger than 18.
The SNACK! program:
In 2009 CORA began
the SNACK! program to help fill the gap in childhood nutrition in
the county over the summer. Almost 4000 school children (49%) in
Chatham County receive subsidized meals at school with no reliable
substitute during the summer breaks for this critical nutrition. The
SNACK! program provides food for 10 meals and healthy snacks per
week for the 10 weeks of summer for up to 1000 children.
BackPack: During the school
year, children who receive subsidized meals at school often need
nutrition support on weekends and holidays. BackPack programs are
locally organized, independent grassroots programs that provide
meals for these children at such times. CORA does not run a backpack
program, but supports several of these grassroots programs in the
community by making lower cost food purchases on their behalf, by
stewarding charitable donations, and by subsidizing new and small
Backpack programs.
It Takes a Village: Collaborating
Organizations: CORA closely collaborates with more than 22 Chatham County
agencies whose mission it is to help individuals and families
overcome various crisis and emergency situations and to identify and
verify the need for emergency food assistance. Among these
organizations are the County Department of Social Services, Chatham
County Schools, Hispanic Liaison, Chatham Family Resource Center,
Family Violence and Rape Crisis Services, Chatham Council on Aging,
Salvation Army, numerous churches and civic groups, and other local
food pantries.
How We Are
Supported: Seventy per cent (70%) of our support comes
from in and around Chatham County, North Carolina. Hundreds of
private individual donors, churches, local businesses and civic
groups contribute to CORA. We are an agency of Chatham County United
Way and receive funding from Chatham County government. In the past
year, we have received grants from Carolina Meadows Retirement
Community, the Arthur Carlsen Fund and other funds of the Triangle
Community Foundation, 3M Foundation, Food Lion and the Mary Duke
Biddle Foundation. The annual Chatham Hunger Walk, held the first
Sunday in November each year, is CORA’s primary fundraising
event. Chatham Empty Bowls is held in the spring and features local
pottery and food from local restaurants. This past year, the Hunger
Walk and Empty Bowls together raised over $45,000. Donated Food: A little less than half of all food distributed is donated to CORA. Food drives account for about 15% of the food we distribute (down 5% from last year). 26% comes from the USDA TEFAP program (The Emergency Food Assistance Program) of the federal government. 8% comes from local grocery stores. Click here for information on organizing a food drive.
Purchased Food:
CORA is a partner agency of the Food Bank of Central and Eastern
North Carolina, and we buy food through the Durham Branch of the
Food Bank. We also purchase food at a discount from Lowes Foods of
Chatham Crossing, M.R. Williams Food Wholesalers in Henderson, N.C.
and Project Preserve in Tennessee. During the growing season many
local farmers contribute a great variety of produce to the pantry. USDA is an equal opportunity provider and
employer.
|
|
