Why I Don’t Donate to Food Pantry’s
Over the years I have met hundreds of amazing people that work at organizations that give back to society. What I have learned along the way has made me stop donating to food pantry’s and toy drives. The cold hard truth that is seldom ever mentioned is this. The organization that receives all your hard earned donations may be just tossing them in a dumpster at the end of the day.
Many times organizations receive items they can not use or have too much of the same thing. The items sit on the shelf and expire before getting handed out and end up being thrown away. A while back a “representative” from a local organization on the North Shore contacted me to ask me to tell my readers to stop donating a large list of specific products. They stated they did not need or want this items and that they had started tossing them in the trash because they just did not have the need for them.
Years ago a local real estate agency was having a teddy bear drive for children in crisis. The thought of a child not having a teddy bear to hug and hold tight when everything else in their world was falling apart pulled at my heart strings. I went out and purchased a few teddy bears for their collection box and started to looked for other ways to help. I was able to locate a way to get a large supply of teddy bears (for free). I decided to reach out directly to my connection at the children’s organization that was receiving the teddy bears to arrange a direct drop off. I was told that they had received so many bears that they did not need anymore and that because they received so many that they had just tossed the last collection in a dumpster.
You all have seen stories of Toys for Tots doing toy drives for children in need and every year they are always saying they don’t have enough toys. Although that may be the case in some locations I know first hand that is not the case in all locations. One year a police station in NH had amassed so many toys from the toy drive that they realized they had more than needed. Instead of giving the kids in need a few extras or sharing with surrounding community’s one of the higher ups at the police station decided to provide a full fledge Christmas to her brothers family. She hand picked the best of the toys, including electronics, bikes and Legos and delivered them to her nephews prior to giving them to the intended recipients.
Although these three instances may not be the norm it has changed my outlook on things and made me come up with my own personal philosophy which is simply just this, start close to home. Next time you have items to donate start in your own neighborhood. Look for a senior citizen in your neighborhood to share with. Most seniors are living on very limited income and often have to choose whether to turn the heat up or skip a meal. Look for a veteran, a young mom or a struggling family trying to make ends meet. Start your generosity closest to home and watch it spread out from there. Chances are you have neighborhood around you filled with people that could use some help. Some may be to proud or stubborn to ask for help from local organizations but would be ever so grateful for your random acts of kindness. Your kindness and generosity given personally and one on one can be life changing for all involved.
Don’t get me wrong. I believe food pantry’s are a great resource for people in need and are often run and supported by wonderful people. However, I do believe it only band aids something that could be a long term problem in some circumstances. If all the agencies could invest some of their fund raising efforts to actually teach each member how to use coupons, budget and shop wisely they could see a higher rate of overall success. Donating to a pantry or collection drive helps provide a temporary fix to a problem that may not heal any time soon. Taking the time to help a neighbor will do much more than that. Once you start helping someone one on one that needs help you will see what the power of generosity can do , not only for them but for you. Paying it forward is the ultimate coupon high and once you get a taste of it you will want more. You will find yourself wanting to do more give more and teach more. This is an empowering change that you may not be able to experience at a local pantry drop off location. You will be hands on with individuals in your community. You will be able to start teaching someone that is struggling find ways to provide for themselves. The person receiving your donations may eventually be able to learn how to provide for themselves and eventually be able to pay it forward. The ultimate full circle.
You have the power to change the world.
“Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.”
If you do decide to donate to a collection drive our food pantry here are some tips;
Go direct to the source.
Although many organizations hearts are in the right place when they start a food drive or toy drive there may not be the need for the items they are collecting. Before donating or starting your own collection drive find out what agency the items are being donated to and call that agency directly to get the facts.
Here are some questions you may want to ask:
- What there specific needs are
- Is there anything they are not accepting
- What do they do with the excess donations
- Are they a non profit
- Do they plan on doing any classes to help teach their client
I have been considered low income status the majority of my life. I grew up in a low income family in Chelsea, MA. I struggled as a young divorced single mother in my early twenties and I continued to struggle to make ends meet once I remarried. Brian and I had 4 kids to feed and not much income coming from his paycheck. Coupons have changed my life. If I had only known then what I knew know life would have been that much less of a struggle. Help somebody that is struggling by sharing what you know now!
I just hate when certain charities ruin it for others! We always donate to our local domestic violent shelter. I agree when donating it is good to do your research!
Hmmmmm, I think that food pantries who are throwing food away should have a plan B – like opening their doors and selling their excess food so that they can earn money to run the organization, purchase the items they DO need, AND to help educate the people who come to them for food.
Remove the band-aid, and help people grow.
Good points! People and organizations should not waste any resources. Before throwing stuff out, they should have at least asked homeless shelters if they could use the food and toys. Poor people in third world countries would have been thrilled to receive them.
I’m glad you also mentioned about giving time to help others. Giving and generosity are not limited to only money and things.
This is very interesting information. I always assumed that any food I donated to a pantry would get used. Thanks for these great tips. I want to make sure my donations help someone.
I used to donate to a lot of places. I stopped. If I see a homeless person, I will give them some food or clothing… but other than that. I do not give to a center and let them choose. I do the choosing.
I agree with reaching out within your community. I too am single mother who has had her fair share of struggling. Lucky enough for me I did not have to worry about how I was going to put food on the table, because of couponing. Not only did I not have to worry about where my next meal was coming from, I was able to help others. It is so POWERFUL to be able to help others!! I wasn’t able to give them $100, not even $20 out of my pocket, but I could give them $100 worth of product without it even looking like I took anything from my pantry!
Thank you for helping others think about donating to people who they know, or people in their community!
I only donate to two local charities. I know how they use it and they provide workshops and such.
I’m so sorry you’ve had these experiences! I teach in an inner-city school, and have to say…..I’ve seen families receive amazing help from food pantries!
Food pantries and other charities themselves should really make it more clear if there are certain items they are no longer accepting. It would be a shame for any items donated to go to waste.
Rather than just outright not donating to food pantries, I think it is a much better idea to follow the tips you mention or actually visit a local organization and get involved and see how they handle donations and all the good that they do. While it is great to work at long-term solutions, that doesn’t mean we should let people, especially children, starve in the meantime.
I stopped giving to our food bank when I learned that they were giving donations to the jailed work release center. My brother was a work release inmate and had to pay $100 a week for room and food. Donated food should go to those who truly need it, not inmates that are already paying their way.
Great tips, you are right you must go to the source to make sure it gets to the right place.
You have a very honest perspective. It is nice to read something like this.
All valid points. I’m so glad you posted this.
This was an eye opener! I dont like doin mass drives either. I knew of a church drive that gather all these items and had so much bread evidently my dad’s friend took some loafs home for himself and brought a bunch home to my parents. I thought it was pretty tack of him because he wasnt in need and neither was my parents but he took for the sake of taking and I didnt like that one bit. I also feel this way about Goodwills and Salvation Army’s. I rather give my clothes to someone who is really going to use them and give for FREE and not let it be taken to be resold for profit. I am with you all the way on this post!
Wow, this post made me totally sad, it’s sad that you confronted such a lack of integrity in the organizations that reached out to you, it’s good that you are cautious but I hope you continue to do amazing work in your community, not all CBO’s are like that.
Wow this is interesting to know. I donate when I can but we have a large family and every little bit we get we need. So I haven’t donated in a while. Now I’ll be thinking twice. Any extra online I get I send to my fave charity (roww) it’s not local but u truly believe in it and know it does good.
This post definitely made me think. I definitely agree we should be doing more than just band-aiding
I had a family member that adopted a family for Christmas. When he was taking the gifts to the house, he was frustrated to see the able bodied dad sitting there watching a big screen tv. And the family member had none of the wonderful things the adopted family had.
I think it is just important for the person to check into the organization they wish to donate before they do. I live in a small town and one of the church’s has a food pantry. They never have enough food for those who need it. The church my husband and I attend has a program where they help the local town folk.
I hear stories like these all the time. People just need to understand that nationwide organizations aren’t the same from city to city or state to state.
A phone call to your local DHS is a good place to start to locate families in ‘your backyard’ who are in need. While they aren’t allowed to give out personal information, they can point you in the right direction.
We donate to our local food bank every month. We go directly to the place and bring in the food ourselves. I have heard of people picking threw toys at toy drives before.
I pick up a lot of toiletries for a local charity that helps the high school kids.
What a disappointment to find out these charities just throw things away. They could turn around and re-donate, or find other places to share with. Thank you for bringing light to this and advising people to check out charities before donating.
We donate to our church food pantry and our ladies group at church donates items to a local battered woman’s home. We have 4 kids and I am a stay at home mom. A few years ago our neighbors would call us over and have a trunk load of food to give us. Some of it was old like cereal, but I don’t mind eating old cereal usually. When I asked why we were getting this food that we never asked for we were told that a food pantry a couple of towns over get so much food they don’t know what to do with it. So the people that help think of people that don’t ask for it, but would benefit from it. We really appreciate everything we get and even pass it on to some people we know that are struggling if possible.
That is awesome! I love that they think of other people to give to and help them vs tossing away items!
Thanks for sharing this!
You’re welcome. I just want people to be aware and informed.
That’s wonderful!
Wow, I had no idea. That makes me feel so disheartened about the donations we have given over the years.
You do have good points. I donate though, to the food banks. The thought of a child being hungry compels me in ways I can’t even explain.
Its better to donate directly to those you know are in need. It goes beyond the organizations, I live in a public housing bldg. A local food pantry delivers grocery bags to those who sign up. Most of these people are already on food stamps. When i walk thru the garbage chute rooms (collecting grocery coupons from the recycle bins)i find a lot of food in the bins. Bags of rice, canned veggies and even whole turkeys, all trashed!
I guess I can understand tossing perishable items. But why would you toss teddy bears and toys. What about next year?
This just reminded me of when I was working in a school district there were children that received free hot lunch and the families didn’t have the money to purchase snacks for them to bring to school. This was way before my couponing days but I would take my money and purchase snacks for the children I worked with. Our school supplied peanut butter crackers that they could have for snacks but all the other children in our school knew that those were the free snacks. I didn’t want the children I worked with that were already seen different because they were in the special ed program to be looked at as the ones getting the free snacks. I would purchase snacks like the other children brought to school, maybe they weren’t the most nutritious but to see the smile on their faces was priceless when they knew they would have a snack that the other children would look at and think oh lucky you have that today for a snack. Our school district isn’t a poor school district either and they do not receive any state funding like a lot of schools do. I can only imagine what it is like for some school districts and how many children probably go without even having a snack and watching the other children eat a snack while they watch. If food pantries have donations they can’t use they could consider donating to schools.
This makes me sad thinking of donations getting thrown away. I don’t rarely donate food but I do donate unwanted clothes and household items to the Goodwill.
I think specifically asking the organizations what they need is a good idea. I can understand if say they are overloaded on SPAM and desperately need some fruit or veggies, how that would be difficult to aid their charities. Good information to have!
My great-aunt volunteers at the local church back in the town I grew up, and she said the volunteers are always taking food home or throwing it out because there’s too much and not enough poor or homeless people to make it worth while anymore. Most of the people in that town know how to work the system and they get double or triple the food stamps / monetary help that they should via fraud, so the food pantries aren’t as big of a need anymore.
I hate to see food get thrown out. I don’t throw out anything not even table scraps. We feed the scraps and old food to the chickens.
:/
Good stuff. If you truely believe that the homeless, single parents, disabled and other low income families do not go to these pantries to get help. If you truely feel your donations are being wasted, try donating something they always meed. Your time. They always need volunteers.
You bring up some good points, Kathy. For the same reason, I do not donate to the Red Cross. My late uncle was a WWII Veteran and I remember him telling me about how the Red Cross charged military members for coffee in Europe. He was put off by that.
That being said, I found a local organization in NH who I donate to. They are an organization that greets troops coming through NH on their way to or from the Middle East. I donate care package items, when I can. As everyone knows, couponing isn’t what it used to be so my care package items with coupons are not as plentiful as they used to be. So I buy things at the Dollar Tree or Wags clearance shelves.
I also make Christmas stockings for this organization and they send them to troops overseas.
This organization has a wish list of items on their website for care package items. I would suggest, if anyone wants to donate, check the wish list on most websites for charities and they will give one an idea of what they need, to avoid waste and getting too much of one thing and not enough of another.
I have to speak out in opposition to this article. I am the food director for our town food pantry. We are a group of volunteers who started our pantry because our town did not have one and people were in need. We have a 100 families in a town of 4000 people who qualify for and have signed up to use our services. Many of these people are children and seniors.
We do not throw food away! Occasionally someone will donate something so outdated and beat up we can’t use it, otherwise we use all the food we get.
We rely on the generosity of our town to take care of our neighbors in need. Our townspeople have really stepped up and an unintended result is a new sense of community for those in need and those who want to help.
Please research the organizations in your area before choosing not to support them. Good people are relying on you.
I totally get what you’re saying. I donated to a local organization a few years ago when I started couponing and they are really grateful. It felt good to do it, especially since I wasn’t even working and I was able to share all that simply by couponing. Along the years, though, I have stopped doing it and just help people I know. There are so many people that could use a hand: friends, neighbors, family members. It’s true that many of them kind of got used to receiving stuff for free and don’t really want to do the extra work to learn how to coupon and that bothers me a bit. Every day I hear oh we don’t have enough money, I need food for my kids etc etc, but when I try to teach them how to coupon they are like: oh I don’t have the time or I keep forgetting to use my coupons or other excuses.
Recently a woman posted in a local Facebook group that she just moved and has no money to feed her kids until she gets her food stamps. She said she was very embarrassed to ask but she had to for her kids. 9 out of 10 people sent her to church or told her to call one place or another. I found it very upsetting that in an area where people call themselves good Christians, almost nobody offered to help. I don’t go to church, but I believe in helping people. I spent $40 at the grocery store on milk, bread, cereals, eggs etc and then gave her about $100 worth of stuff from my stockpile. She thanked me and said she would get in touch with me to learn how to coupon. Never heard back from her again. I thought she would at least message me when she got home and looked through the bags to say hey, that was very nice, thank you. I sure hope she didnt use her kids as an excuse and made up a heart condition just to get some free groceries.
I stopped donating to the local church toy drive when I learned that the volunteers who sorted and passed out toys walked away with a few hundred dollars worth of donations for EACH of their kids. This info came to me from a friend who volunteered there just to get the ‘perks’! I don’t mind the volunteers getting a little something for their time if there’s some excess, but I found this ridiculously excessive and frankly, it made me a bit sick to my stomach. When I used to donate, I expected my donation to go to a child in need, not to overstuff the tree of someone who didn’t actually have need. I now do what someone else mentioned and only ‘donate’ to individuals I personally know or a friend-of-a-friend type deal, and only when there’s been some sort of crisis, like a fire or medical disaster that’s hit them hard.
I donate to young adults. Most of them are struggling. If I give them a basket of toiletries or laundry / cleaning supplies it saves then a good portion of their monthly budget. Extended family members, their friends and neighbors. I often take them to my “store” downstairs and let them choose. Many of us have seniors or disabled family members and that is a great place to start.
Hi Kathy! I too am a “Chelsea MA girl” who just happened to come across this page. I was born at the Chelsea Memorial Hospital on Bellingham Street, lived on Cottage Street for 15 years and graduated Chelsea High School Class of 1978. Married 31 years to the same man and three children later, I now live in the quiet suburban town of Wilmington. I was a devoted couponista until the last few years since my children are all now adults, technically. Couponing can make or break a tight budget, and I commend you for your good work. Good luck to you in all of your endeavors!
With hugs from another Chelsea girl,
Robin
Hi Robin!! Welcome to the site!! Love having a Chelsea girl here!!
I grew up on Clark Ave but I lived in Wilmington for the first two years of my life!!
I totally disagree with your theory of NoT donating to food pantries. I have volunteered at the Food care center I’m at for over 10 years. We never ever have leftovers from a day our pantry is open in fact we run short of food items daily. Just yesterday 12/01/2017 we serviced over 500 ppl! That is a lot of ppl and food, yes we get donations from the local businesses but never enough for the daily average of 209 ppl.
So please please donate to your local food pantry, church or organization that is helping your community out you may never know it maybe needing their assistance one day and be denied food due to not having enough!!!
I work in community mental and behavior health and I teach clients couponing. I’m one of 12 children and we learned at a young age. I donate to our clients without them knowing it’s from me. We signed up 15 kids for toys for tots and there was nothing new. I thought it was all throw away old used toys. I went shopping and purchased toys for the kids on Saturday. What I did find out was that the newer toys we see on the news for toys for tots primarily go to military service children and foster children. I think going forward staff will all donate $5.00 per paycheck and we will do our own Christmas toy shopping. I think it’s a shame that less fortunate children were excluded from getting new toys or even a bicycle. This was my first experience of actually seeing what children were receiving and why they received the used toys. I will no longer donate to them.
I am leery of donating to organizations. I guess I always think of scenarios where the people at the organizations–food pantry–toy drives–pick the best for themselves and pass on the leftovers. It is hard to be able to tell which organization is the most deserving.
Sooo—I donate to friends and neighbors that are struggling, instead of a tip I provide workers at my home with a bag full of goodies, and for Christmas I give my co-workers goodie bags. I also provide goodie bags to college bound students.
I love to give and I love to shop. I am always looking for items my kids can use and friends need. Once in a while I sell my stock (minimally) for no more than the cost of the item plus tax. But I find that my friends and neighbors are so thankful that they give me gift cards and/or money and/or more coupons so I can continue shopping the way I do.
I will donate to the local thrift store (clothes and house items)that are still usable but nobody I know needs. I also will donate to a local food pantry food that will expire before I can use it.
I find shopping to be my stress reliever (most of the time).
There’s always the other side of the story. I remember during Hurricane Katrina there was a severe shortage of fresh water in New Orleans. The Red Cross was asking for donations so I tried to give them 12 Gallons of drinking water that I had purchased at my local Dollar Tree. They didn’t want the water. They wanted CASH donations. Turns out they keep a good share of the money they receive as donations for advertising, paying their staffers, other business expenses and extremely generous executive bonuses. I guess it’s tough to skim much money off the top of donated drinking water. Some of these charities have simply become professional panhandlers.