Painting The Bigger Picture Of Hunger In Our Region
client: Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest NC
Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest NC addresses hunger holistically, addressing immediate food needs while focusing on the root causes of hunger in an 18-county region.
This includes distributing fresh and healthy foods, creating partnerships with local grocers and over 470+ partner programs, reducing food waste, providing nutrition education, advocacy, and creating career pathways through the Triad Culinary Training program.
Hunger for Change
Food alone doesnt solve hunger.
With an already existing need that was exacerbated by the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest NC set out on a capital campaign of $12M to consolidate and expand their headquarters and distribution capacity.
Planned facilities in Winston-Salem will address spatial and logistical constraints to accept additional food resources and volunteers, as well as technology inefficiencies, while an additional distribution center in Greensboro has already increased distribution capacity. The campaign also looks to expand the Providence Culinary Training program, leading to increased economic independence for more students.
M Creative helped Second Harvest paint the bigger picture of hunger to their ever-widening circle of partners and donors, engaging their commitment to alleviate hunger and its root causes in our region.
Hunger is about more than going hungry.
Strategic Positioning
You might be surprised whos hungry.
Second Harvest Food Bank
Onsite manager Peabody Griffin loads cargo full of donated goods onto a pallet at the Greensboro distribution center for Second Harvest Food B
The agency intentionally chose to base its operation in a location in one of the citys food deserts so-named because residents living in these areas have limited access to fresh fruit and produce.
It would take a team effort but more importantly, Aft and others say, capturing the attention of people in the city that didnt know that 40% of the food Second Harvest distributes is to nonprofits and agencies in Greensboro and High Point that help to get the food onto dining room tables.
The group ended up raising nearly $2.5 million.
If a Greensboro friend was to call you, its an easier story to listen to, said the Weaver Foundations Kevin Gray of the Bennetts, than one from someone you dont know.
Hungry To Help: Local Couple Raises Money To Help Launch Second Harvest Food Bank Satellite Site In Greensboro
Onsite manager Peabody Griffin loads a box truck heading to a One Step Further facility at the Greensboro distribution center for Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest North Carolina on Thursday. Agencies can pull up to a loading dock at the rear of the building to pick up orders set aside on pallets.
- KENNETH FERRIERA, NEWS & RECORD
Onsite manager Peabody Griffin shows Susan Cox, a program director for One Step Further, food currently available for donation on Thursday at the Greensboro distribution center for the Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest North Carolina.
- KENNETH FERRIERA, NEWS & RECORD
Farmer George Smith hoists a box of overripe bananas to take back to his livestock at the Greensboro center of the Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest North Carolina. Whenever goods begin to go bad at the food bank, they sometimes look for an alternative to throwing things away. “They like ’em, peel and all,” Smith said.
- KENNETH FERRIERA, NEWS & RECORD
Donated non-perishable food is seen at the Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest NC in Greensboro, N.C., on Thursday, June 17, 2021.
- KENNETH FERRIERA, NEWS & RECORD
GREENSBORO The team met around a table on a Sunday morning in early 2020 as coronavirus cases across the country had begun dominating the national news.
Also Check: Where Can I Donate Expired Food
Feed People Not Landfills
America has more than enough food to feed everyone. But our abundance is accompanied by tremendous waste. By some estimates, nearly half of the food grown, processed, and transported in the U.S. goes to waste, as millions of Americans struggle to put food on the table.
It was these contrasting realities that led to the innovation of food banking. Working with retail grocers, farmers, food manufacturers, processors, and others, Second Harvest Food Banks food recovery operations prevent good food from going to waste by instead distributing it to local, food assistance programs.
Ready To Drop Off Food Donations
Your donations of food can be the reason a neighbor in need does not have to choose between keeping a roof over their family’s head or putting a healthy meal on the table.
To help make donating as simple and convenient as possible, Second Harvest Food Bank partners with Goodwill Industries, which has designated locations across our service region to serve as collection points for donations of food from community members like you. To locate the location nearest you, visit their listing here.
We are moving to a new headquarters however, through Dec. 4, 2022, you drop off your donations at 3655 Reed Street, Winston-Salem, NC 27107. We receive donations Monday through Friday, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
When you arrive, please check in at the front office. Our Guest Services staff will alert our Operations team that you are on your way to the back of our warehouse to drop off your food donation. An Operations team member will assist you in unloading your vehicle and can also provide you with a receipt if one is needed.
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The agency and its Everyone Deserves to Eat campaign also chose one of the citys food deserts so-named because residents living in these areas have limited access to fresh fruit and produce to base its operation.
While Second Harvest serves communities throughout 18 North Carolina counties, the satellite distribution center will create a hub in the service area for Guilford, Alamance, Randolph, Rockingham and Caswell counties.
Fortunately we have many partners in this area, said Eric Aft, the CEO of Second Harvest, during a tour on Monday morning.
While the pandemic pushed up the timetable to open, the agency had for years been looking to expand.
For some nonprofits, a steady stream of goods from Second Harvest is what fuels their ability to serve their clientele and, in some ways, provides a lifeline to keep them going. The Winston-Salem-based operation moves tons of donated food to nonprofit organizations that help the hungry, ranging from Greensboro Urban Ministry to the N.C. A& T Aggie Food Pantry.
City Councilwoman Goldie Wells, whose district encompasses the new Second Harvest site, called the agency an ally and advocate for area families.
We want to get rid of that phrase food desert, Wells said.
For Second Harvests fiscal year, which ended in June 30, 2020, this equated to 10.8 million pounds of food or 8.4 million meals in Guilford County alone.
Second Harvest Food Bank Opens Mobile Unit
Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest N.C. and United Healthcare partner for a new mobile food pantry. Photo courtesy Second Harvest Food Bank.
Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest N.C. and UnitedHealthcare unveiled a new mobile food pantry partnership and teaching kitchen at a ribbon cutting event in Greensboro on October 18.
And on Monday, November 14, the mobile pantry will make its community debut at Hall Tower Apartments on North Church Street, a Greensboro Housing Authority senior living facility.
This work really requires a lot of collaboration, so having our partnership with UnitedHealthcare is amazing, said Kina Charles, Director of Nutrition Services at Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest N.C. Anything that we can do to increase access to healthy foods is a plus. We recognize that one significant barrier for many people, especially seniors, is transportation. Reaching those who cant reach the brick-and-mortar food banks is the driver.
While in the community, the mobile food bank will provide fresh produce, teach kitchen demonstrations, distribute educational resources, and conduct minor health screenings like blood pressure checks. Volunteers will also be on hand to sign people up for county-led Food and Nutrition services, like SNAP .
Second Harvest serves as the primary source for food for a network of more than 500 local food assistance programs serving communities throughout 18 Northwest North Carolina counties.
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Food As Medicine: Cooking Matters Learning Circle
- Date: 06/27/2022 6:30 PM – 7:30 PM 06/27/2022 6:30 PM
Food is indeed medicine, and it is time to treat it that way. Did you know researchers are isolating compounds found in fish and apples that can inhibit cancer tumors ability to grow new blood vessels? Or that nuts can protect our chromosomes and help cells stay healthy longer?
Join us for hands-on practical cooking demonstrations, recipes, and small steps to improve your familys health. Learn how you can save money, too. Join Greensboro Public Library and our partner Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest NC for this four part series beginning Monday June 13 and meeting every other week . Participants will learn how to plan and budget for healthy, affordable, and delicious meals. To register, email and indicate Food as Medicine in the subject line or call 336-373-5810.
GSO Learning Circles provides free courses to the Greensboro community. Course material will be presented with a facilitator to provide assistance, but there will be no teacher or expert. We learn together. Circles are based on peer learning, community and equity for creative and sustainable learning communities. This project was originally funded through a grant from UNCG Communication Department to create resilient communities. for more information on learning circles, email
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Second Harvest Food Bank Of Northwest North Carolina
People dedicated to helping the hungry gathered around tables at Wake Forest University’s Innovation Quarter in Winston Salem, N.C. to discuss ways to deal with hunger in the region. Photo: Courtesy of Patricia Furnish.
Attendees moved from table to table as they tackled difficult questions related to the issue of hunger. Photo: Courtesy of Patricia FurnishTaking a bite out of hunger
The non profit Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest North Carolina works to reduce hunger in northwestern North Carolina. According to its website, the food bank:
- Acquires and distributes food to supplement the food needs of faith and community-based organizations
- Advocates for the rights of hungry people
- Educates the public about hunger
- Pursues partnerships with like-minded organizations.
Last week, Second Harvest partnered with 160 advocates to exchange ideas on how to combat hunger in the Winston Salem, N.C. area.
At Wake Forest University’s Innovation Quarter in downtown Winston Salem, academics, corporate leaders, small business men and women, politicians and people from organizations helping the poor sat across from people who had experienced what it was like to go hungry. They shared ideas on how to deal with the problem.
Organizers called the event Feeding Change: An Interactive Community Conversation on Hunger.
Speed dating 2.0
Going from table to table, like civic minded speed daters, they:
See Second Harvest promo
The need is real.
What’s next?
Second Harvest Food Bank Of Northwest North Carolina Receives $75000 Through Bank Of Americas Covid
Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest North Carolina recently received a $75,000 donation from Bank of America to address food insecurity in the Triad. The donation is part of a unique program to encourage bank employees to get boosted, while supporting the overall health and well-being of the community.
Celebrating the program and donation today were Greg Cox, President of Bank of America Triad Eric Aft, CEO of Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest NC and Michelle Schneider, Chief Philanthropy Officer of Cone Health.
The contribution is part of the banks longstanding efforts to address hunger relief and strengthen local communities. Since the onset of the pandemic, Bank of America has previously provided $115,000 to Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest NC in support of hunger relief efforts. Nationally, Bank of America committed $10.6 million to local hunger-relief organizations through this latest effort.
Eric Aft, CEO, Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest North Carolina
Greg Cox, President, Bank of America Triad
One of Second Harvests beneficiaries and a partner in hunger relief is Cone Health MedCenter for Womens food market where clinicians prescribe nutritious foods for patients in need. Bank of America also has a strong partnership with the Cone Health MedCenter for Women and is pleased to continue that support through this latest initiative.
Michelle Schneider, Cone Health
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