360 Youth Services Housing Director Debbie Carr looks on as Loaves & Fishes CEO congratulates Amari, 360’s first client to receive a certificate of completion of a collaborative program focusing on job readiness skills.

Loaves & Fishes Community Pantry and 360 Youth Services have created a unique partnership to assist young men, ages 18-24, in the 360 Youth Services transitional housing program who lack the credentials and experience necessary to be competitive candidates in the workforce. These youth face many challenges in their quest for self-sufficiency, including unemployment. Since Loaves & Fishes relies on volunteers every day for a variety of tasks at its busy distribution facility, this program provides 360 Youth Services’ clients, who generally have little to no employment experience, an opportunity to acquire important skills they will need when they become employed.Thanks to a newly created employment training program, both groups are receiving the help they need. According to Damir Djidic, Transitional Housing Coordinator for 360 Youth Services, the young men will volunteer 100 hours of community service to Loaves & Fishes over a period of 90 days, usually working about ten hours per week. This allows them to continue their job search or attend school during the rest of the week. Loaves & Fishes has a wide variety of volunteer positions requiring an assortment of skills. “The individuals who participate in this program go through training in all of the volunteer positions that Loaves & Fishes has to offer, with the focus on improving their work ethic and soft skills,” Djidic said. Loaves & Fishes staff provide mentoring and training to the young adults on how to receive donations, stock shelves, and operate warehouse equipment. Clients will receive feedback in the form of three reviews evaluating their progress in learning the skills needed to succeed in the highly competitive job market. At the end of the program, each will receive a certificate of completion and, hopefully, an excellent reference.

Loaves & Fishes Operations Manager, Cary Gilkey and Warehouse Assistant, Alan Loeb congratulate Amari, the first 360 Youth Services Client to complete the requirements for a collaborative certificate program focusing on job readiness skills.

Amari is the first 360 Youth Services client to graduate from the program. He began his volunteer service in January and is now employed. He found his time at Loaves & Fishes valuable in learning about the expectations of an employer. “I enjoyed my work at Loaves & Fishes,” he said. “The people were great and I learned a lot. I want to come back and help whenever I can.” Operations Manager Cary Gilkey praised Amari’s growth throughout the program. He said the young man “had a great work ethic and got along with everyone well.” Gilkey added that staff and volunteers are looking forward to working with the next clients in this partnership. Charles McLimans, Loaves & Fishes Executive Director/CEO, also is pleased about the partnership. “The job market is extremely competitive and these youth lack the credentials to succeed,” he said. “This innovative partnership with 360 Youth Services aligns with the part of our mission that focuses on empowering people to become self-sufficient. In return, it provides Loaves & Fishes with additional motivated volunteers.” Ron Hume, 360 Youth Services Executive Director, agrees. “Our young adults face many challenges in their efforts to be independent, including unemployment. If we can provide them with the skills they need and have a positive experience in the workplace, then we have set them on a path to be successful.”

from the Chronicle of Philanthropy:

“The number of Americans who are too financially strapped to pay for food has grown to an unconscionable number, but still the problem gets little attention in the news and elsewhere.” Read article here.

Dear Congressman Foster:

Loaves & Fishes has a vital interest in advancing the Farm Bill. We serve over 600 low income households every week, and see the first-hand struggles they face. Over half of our clients are households with children, a particularly vulnerable time to face hardship. We also serve many individuals with disabilities, seniors living alone, veterans, and single mothers – all struggling to pay their bills. The provisions of the Farm Bill play a key role in supporting these vulnerable families, and we now have an opportunity to make needed improvements that will help our community end hunger. Loaves & Fishes supports the following revisions.

•Increase the commitment to SNAP benefits included in the Farm Bill, due to the rise in families needing support. The need for supplemental income for nutrition is increasing in DuPage County, and in most large cities and urban areas. It is also a safety net that could be among the most effective when economic or natural disasters strike.
•Allow for the adjustment of the benefit allotment in a timely and relevant manner. The formulas used to calculate SNAP benefits for a household do not take into consideration the high costs in certain areas that consume income. Minimum benefits ($16 per month) are inadequate compensation for families who must depend on this support.
•Improve administrative capability for handling the increase in demand. Many of our families needing support face long wait periods and substantial difficulties in meeting with case workers.
•Strengthen parts of the Farm Bill that would support nutrition education components for our populations at risk, particularly young families. The challenges of food insufficiency can lead to eating behaviors that result in chronic illness and disease, which negatively impacts everyone’s health care costs. Families and individuals must learn and understand healthful eating patterns and dietary considerations under restricted income circumstances.
•Secure provisions of the Farm Bill that moderate the cost of milk and dairy products, which are primary sources of calcium vital to early childhood development.

Thank you for your interest in protecting the families who experience sudden or chronic food insufficiency in the DuPage Community. We look forward to working with you in support of the economic needs of our area.

(l-r) Executive Director/CEO Charles McLimans and Congressman Bill Foster view refrigerated section.

(l-r) Board Member Brian Bolliger, Charles McLimans, Congressman Foster tour the sorting area of warehouse.

Congressman Foster discusses the VITA Program with Volunteer Leader, Tom Wcisel and Charles McLimans

Congressman Foster speaking with Charles McLimans and Volunteer Leader, Dick Fowler.

Congressman Foster receives a Day Without Hunger T-shirt.

Congressman Bill Foster is pictured with Loaves & Fishes staff and volunteers.

As the U.S. federal government approaches the January 1 “fiscal cliff” deadline, there continues to be discussion around closing tax “loopholes” in an effort to increase tax receipts.  As has been discussed previously, the charitable gift deduction has gotten swept up into this conversation.  It would appear that there are 4 ways in which the charitable gift deduction could be limited or reduced come 2013:

1. Place a dollar cap on all allowable deductions – including charitable gifts;
2. Reduce the value of the charitable deduction for upper-income folks by limiting their deductions to the 28% bracket rather than than the higher 2012 marginal tax brackets of 33 and 35% (which will be 36 and 39.6% respectively if the Bush-era tax cuts are allowed to expire);
3. Place a 2% of adjusted gross income floor for the charitable deduction coupled with with a 15% cap (or they may use some other percentages);
4. Allow a 12% tax credit in lieu of a charitable deduction.

There is no doubt that difficult decisions will need to made in the coming weeks, months, and years to reshape the U.S. economy and fiscal environment.  But this is far from the first time our country has had to make similarly difficult decisions.

December 7, 2012

By: Susan Frick Carlman

This might sound like a broken record, but the Loaves & Fishes Community Pantry has broken its own grim record. Again.

During November, the Naperville hunger relief agency fed 1,972 families in need, some of whom turned to the pantry more than once during the month. In all, the nourishment needs of local residents were met 11,153 separate times over the 30-day period, an increase of nearly 10 percent over the volume the pantry saw in the same month last year.

Charles McLimans, the food pantry’s executive director and CEO, said he has been looking at the numbers, and there are glimmers of hope.

“The good news is the percentage change in new families seems to be going down,” McLimans said.

While the increase in November 2011 was 143 percent over the previous November, the pantry nonetheless is seeing large numbers of new faces come through the door. In all, new family enrollments are up 71 percent over 2011.

“It’s still pretty high,” McLimans said.

And families need ongoing help with groceries for longer periods than they did in the past, he added. The pantry’s operators have reported that one in five children in DuPage County is food insecure, meaning they lack the assurance of three daily meals — a condition that hinders kids’ communication, reasoning and recall skills.

At several times over the days leading up to Thanksgiving, volunteers and pantry workers saw more than 200 families come through in a single four- or five-hour distribution session, pantry spokeswoman Jody Bender said. During the holiday week, 996 families came in for help putting food on their tables.

“The Thanksgiving season typically heralds one of our busiest months of the year, but this November shattered all previous records,” Bender said in a news release this week.

The pantry has faced an additional challenge in recent weeks, after it was notified of the withdrawal of an expected $15,000 donation from a community group that usually helps cover the expense of holiday meals.

The sting has been eased slightly by stepped-up fundraising efforts through the H.O.P.E. (Help Other People Eat) campaign. McLimans said the fundraising goal was set at $115,000 to accommodate the shortfall, and when November ended, the sum collected was $53,530.

“It continues through the end of December, so it seems to be that we’re on track to hit our target,” McLimans said. “We’re very hopeful that we can.”

Edward Hospital contributed 500 turkeys to the pantry, and the Naperville Park District’s Nov. 17 Turkey Shoot Golf Tournament, which yielded a $1,105 donation, and its Pennies for Pies fundraising campaign, which generated 130 holiday pies, also have been helpful, he said.

While unemployment numbers have begun to improve nationally, McLimans said there hasn’t been significant movement locally, and many jobs that have been lost are unlikely to be refilled.

“The job market is still very slow,” he said, noting that the pantry’s employment support program maintains a waiting list.

Delia Corona of West Chicago smiles as she loads groceries at Loaves and Fishes Food Pantry on Wednesday, December 5, 2012. Corona said it would be hard to feed her four children without the help of the pantry, which had busiest month ever in November and is at less than half of its fundraising goal of $115,000 to provide holiday meals for its bulging client base. | Jeff Cagle~For Sun-Times Media

Ways to give

Some 2,000 local families are expected to turn to the Loaves & Fishes Community Pantry for assistance during December. Partnerships with local food stores, farms, churches, businesses, schools, civic groups and government agencies enable the pantry to stretch its food dollar a long way. For that reason, a $25 donation covers a complete holiday meal for eight people.

And like most food relief organizations, the pantry also appreciates food donations. At the moment, stocks of canned vegetables and soup are relatively secure, but the shelves are quite short on canned peaches, applesauce, mixed fruit and raisins; and carbohydrate-rich foods such as oatmeal and other cereals, pasta, rice and crackers. The pantry’s supplies of protein foods such as tuna, chicken, beans, chili and stew are beginning to dwindle as well.

Food donations can be dropped off between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. Friday; 8 a.m. and noon Saturday; and on Sundays by appointment.

Volunteers age 18 and older are always needed for tasks that include sorting, stocking, greeting and food distribution, among others.

Monetary donations can be made through the agency’s website, www.loaves-fishes.org, or mailed to Loaves & Fishes, 1871 High Grove Lane, Naperville, IL 60540. For more information, call 630-355-3663.

All of our guests have been incredibly grateful to receive these gifts generously given by others, especially each of you. I am grateful for the opportunity to be a part of such a wonderful, vital mission, and to see the core values of Loaves & Fishes and the power of community in action every day.

Best wishes and blessings to you and your family this Thanksgiving.

Charles McLimans
Executive Director

November 15, 2012

By: Erin Patti – Financial Advisor

Jody Bender is the Community Relations Director at Loaves & Fishes Community Pantry; she loves to gather everyone together in order to provide for the well-being of others.  Day after day, she observes the generosity of Naperville in every donation received.

“I remember thinking to myself, ‘How is there poverty around here?’”

Jody has always been a community servant, but her service career began as a volunteer in her children’s schools. She spent many hours in Neuqua’s LMC and worked to coordinate Market Day orders. “Naperville seemed so idealistic. Everyone seemed carefree, well-to-do, cultural, and upscale.” Upon her decision to return to the workforce, she responded to a blind advertisement for an Administrative Assistant Position that turned out to be at Loaves & Fishes. 9 years later, she can now tell you, “It’s surprising to see who comes in; people with advanced degrees who lost jobs. About 45% of visitors are children, and we’ve been able to help many more single moms.”
Read entire post.

This time of year we hear a lot of rhetoric and debate about taxes from politicians and pundits. One topic missing from this debate, though, is a discussion of the tax credit programs that greatly benefit low-income families, mainly the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and the Child Tax Credit (CTC). These two refundable tax credits have helped millions of hard-working families stay out of poverty and weather the still-recovering economy. Yet at the end of the year, both tax credits will expire if Congress does not take action. The EITC and CTC are not your run-of-the-mill tax relief. These credits are some of our country’s most effective anti-poverty tools. Below you will find information on EITC and CTC and why these programs are a lifeline for so many families.

Earned Income Tax Credit: The Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) is a federal tax credit for low-and moderate-income working people. It is designed to encourage and reward work, as well as offset federal payroll and income taxes. According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP), “In 2012, working families with children that have annual incomes below about $36,900 to $50,300 (depending on marital status and the number of dependent children) may be eligible for the federal EITC. Also, working poor people without children that have incomes below about $13,900 ($19,200 for a married couple) can receive a very small EITC.” In 2009 (the most recent year where data is available), around 27 million working families and individuals received EITC. The majority of EITC recipients only get the tax credit for one or two years before moving onto higher income levels. EITC provides a step up for working families and helps them pay for necessities. Research shows that most EITC recipients use the money to repair homes, pay for mortgages, medicine, and groceries, and sometimes gain additional education and training to boost their employability and earning power. In 2011, EITC kept 5.7 million people out of poverty, including 3.1 million children. The EITC reduces poverty by supplementing the income of workers with low wages and earnings.

Child Tax Credit: The Child Tax Credit (CTC) helps working families offset the cost of raising children. It is worth up to $1,000 a child (17 years of age and under), and when combined with the EITC, it provides a particularly powerful anti-poverty tool. The CBPP states, “Taxpayers eligible for the credit subtract it from the total amount of federal income taxes they would otherwise owe. For example, if a couple with two qualifying children would owe $4,600 in taxes without the credit, they would owe $2,600 in taxes with it, because the credit would reduce their tax bill by $1,000 for each child.” In 2010, the CTC prevented approximately 2.6 million people from falling into poverty, including about 1.4 million children.

Allowing the EITC and CTC, along with improvements to the programs made in recent years, to expire would have a serious effects on low- and moderate-income families:
• 8.9 million families, including 16.4 million children, would be harmed if earnings below $13,000 are no longer counted toward the tax credit.
• 3.7 million families, including 5.8 million children, would lose the Child Tax Credit entirely.
• 6.5 million families, including 16 million children, would be hurt by the expiration of the EITC improvements. Congress must not allow these important programs to expire. These credits are some of our country’s effective anti-poverty tools.

Below are two additional resources you may find helpful:
• Bread for the World’s Q&A on Tax Credits for Low-Income Families.
• National Women’s Law Center will be holding a webinar on October 23rd to discuss the EITC and CTC and how local organizations can get information on these tax credits to families in need.

Some of you may have forgotten that months ago we started with a patch of dirt…

Faced the hardships of slugs…

Lack of nutrients in the soil…

And usually found the rain gauge on empty…

You probably pondered with other gardeners about our chances…

But you kept going, planting, watering and weeding…

And you blew right through my “goal” of a ton of produce, hitting 2000 pounds by September 1st…

And you have helped others to grow their own AND CONTRIBUTE TO OTHERS WHO MAY BE LESS FORTUNATE…