Fall Mountain Food Shelf
A FALL MOUNTAIN FRIENDLY MEALS PROGRAM
NEWS ABOUT THE FOOD SHELF
July 29, 2019
Thank you to the Claremont Savings Bank for providing a $1,500 grant toward our Meals on Wheels program! Their gift will help purchase the containers and bags needed for the 22,000 meals we expect to serve this year!
July 12, 2019
We received a generous grant from the Sullivan County Commissioners Office today! They provided $12,000 toward the Fall Mountain Food Shelf's rent and utilities, allowing us to keep providing food for those in need through 2020!
July 5, 2019
Thank you to the Savings Bank of Walpole for donating $500 to purchase food for the Food Shelf! Your gift will go a long way toward feeding those in need in our community.
June 11, 2019
The Food Shelf is participating again this year in the New Hampshire wide 24-hour fundraising drive for the nonprofits that enrich and strengthen our communities.
Beginning at 6 pm this evening and going through to 6 pm tomorrow, June 12, 2019, you can donate through the Food Shelf NH Gives profile page (https://www.nhgives.org/organizations/fall-mountain-food-shelf-a-fall-mountain-friendly-meals-program) and show your support for what the Food Shelf does and help buy food for the people the Food Shelf serves in our communities.
Have you or someone you loved been helped by the Food Shelf in some way? Have you experienced the blessing that the Food Shelf provides to the Fall Mountain community? Take a moment to show your support this NH Gives day. And please help us get the word out! Thank you for your caring and support!
From the website:
"NH Gives Day is a powerful, statewide 24-hour online fundraising event that is designed to build community, connect donors to local nonprofits and generate excitement about the nonprofit sector.
Beginning at 6PM EST on June 11 and continuing until 6pm EST on June 12, Granite Staters will go online to show their support for the nonprofits that make NH so extraordinary."
June 1, 2019
Thank you all for your generous support during our last matching challenge! The Family Foundation has offered us another challenge for our Friendly Meals program between Memorial Day and July 31, 2019. Your money will help to buy food for the over 500 meals & meals on wheels served by our Friendly Meals volunteers every week!
HUNGER CHALLENGE
Please join Fall Mountain Friendly Meals in raising $10,000 between March 1st and April 30th, 2019. The Family Foundation will match donations dollar for dollar up to $10,000 to purchase food for local families!
**Three Ways to Donate**
Donations can be mailed to:
Fall Mountain Food Shelf
P.O. Box 191
Alstead, NH 03602
Made via credit card:
Using PayPal: https://www.paypal.com/donate/…
Or made in person at:
Fall Mountain Food Shelf
122 Route 123
Langdon, NH
Thank you for your caring and support!
May 10, 2019
The Fall Mountain Food Shelf will be closing at 3 today, May 10th, and will open as usual at 10 on Saturday, May 11th. Have a good Mother's Day Weekend!
May 10, 2019
The Fall Mountain Food Shelf will be closing at 3 today, May 10th, and will open as usual at 10 on Saturday, May 11th. Have a good Mother's Day Weekend!
May 8, 2019
Thank you to the Cogswell Benevolent Trust for their grant of $10,000! Their gift allowed us to purchase a safer, more reliable van for the the Food Shelf. We use our van to pick up 90% of the food we receive, so we greatly appreciate their support of us and our community.
May 3, 2019
Thank you to all of our donors! Your generosity allows us to provide nutritious food for those in need in our community.
We are happy to announce the success of our Hunger Challenge - we just received a $10,000 check from the Family Foundation matching your donations!
May 1, 2019
The Fall Mountain Food Shelf will be closed on Saturday, May 4th. We apologize for any inconvenience.
The Food Shelf needs volunteers! If you have any spare time on a Wednesday, Friday, or Saturday, we would greatly appreciate your help. We are open between 10 and 4, so please feel free to stop by!
If you are interested or have any questions, please call us at (240) 753-3684, e-mail us at fallmountainfoodshelf@gmail.com, or come visit!
March 11, 2019
On Tuesday, March 12th, Friendly Meals will be served in the Third Congregational Church on River Street at 11:30. We will distribute the Meals on Wheels to drivers at the Friendly Meals kitchen on Bragg Lane.
March 1, 2019
After our last successful hunger challenge in 2018, the Family Foundation has offered to match another $10,000 in donations between March 1st and April 30th!
Please join the Fall Mountain Food Shelf in raising $10,000 between March 1st and April 30th, 2019. The Family Foundation will match donations dollar for dollar up to $10,000 to purchase food for local families!
Donations can be mailed to:
Fall Mountain Food Shelf
P.O. Box 191
Alstead, NH 03602
Made via credit card:
Using the PayPal donation button at https://www.fallmountainfoodshelf.org/
Or made in person at:
Fall Mountain Food Shelf
122 Route 123
Langdon, NH
Thank you for your caring and support!
February 13, 2019
With the winter storm, Fall Mountain Food Shelf will be closed today, February 13th, and will open again on Friday. Stay warm!
January 15, 2019
If you have any winter clothes you're no longer using (coats, gloves, blankets, etc...), please donate them to the Alstead Thrift Shop!
We're also looking for a twin mattress for somebody in need, if anybody has one to donate!
January 9, 2019
With the winter storm, Fall Mountain Food Shelf will be closed today, January 9th, and will open again on Friday. Stay warm!
The Fall Mountain Food Shelf and Friendly Meals will be closed if school is cancelled (or road conditions are poor).
January 7, 2019
Happy New Year! We're looking for someone to pick up bread from Keene on Tuesdays and Saturdays (and tomorrow in particular). We have a truck available, so we'd just need a driver. Please either e-mail us at fallmountainfoodshelf@gmail.com or call Mary Lou Huffling at (240) 753-3684.
December 25, 2018
Thank you to the wonderful carolers from Alstead Primary School and Walpole Primary School, and to all those who gave their time and energy this season!
We received many generous gifts this year! We are grateful to our many donors, including the two anonymous donors of $5,000 and $1,000. We would also like to thank the Walpole Boy Scouts for collecting 900lbs of food and $121, and Bensonwood Woodworking for collecting donations and food during their Harvest Hoedown!
November 22, 2018
We had a lot to be thankful for this November!
This year, Cold River Materials reached out and hosted our Thanksgiving box drive. They donated their time and resources, offering their warehouse, vehicles, tables, and employees. Thanks to their generosity, we had plenty of space and help to fill hundreds of boxes. We couldn’t have done it without them. Thank you for all you’ve done for us, and for helping to give families a Thanksgiving dinner!
Another big thanks to Diamond Pizza for donating so many pizzas! They fed almost a hundred hungry volunteers, and gave us enough energy to move all those heavy boxes.
And finally, thanks to all of our hardworking volunteers! Nearly a hundred people of all ages came out to help, and made all of this possible. We hope to see you all again next year!
Adventure Limousine also worked with us to compile a list of all those in need of Thanksgiving boxes. Thanks to their hard work and generosity, the day went smoothly!
And finally, thanks to all of our hardworking volunteers! Nearly a hundred people of all ages came out to help, and made all of this possible. We hope to see you all again next year!
We are also happy to announce the success of our Hunger Challenge! Thank you to everyone who donated, and especially to the Family Foundation which matched all of those donations! That $20,000 will go a long way toward purchasing food for local families.
We also received a generous donation from Claremont Savings Bank, allowing our Charlestown Fall Mountain Food Shelf to purchase a new freezer during the Thanksgiving season!
November 2, 2018
We hope you all had a happy Halloween!
The Food Shelf is looking for a volunteer to pick up bread from Shaw's in Walpole on Saturday mornings. Please e-mail us at fallmountainfoodshelf@gmail.com or call 603-835-2283 if you're available!
October 26, 2018
Today we received a $500 grant from Walmart in Claremont! Thank you for your generous gift, which will purchase a much-needed pallet jack for our warehouse, and food for the local community!
October 20, 2018
This year we'll be distributing Thanksgiving boxes on November 17th at Cold River Materials (1 Scales Lane). If you would like to sign up for a box, please visit the Food Shelf!
October 19, 2018
Please join the Fall Mountain Food Shelf in raising $10,000 between September 3 and November 22, 2018! The Family Foundation will match donations dollar for dollar up to $10,000 to purchase food for local families.
October 10, 2018
We’ll be assembling our annual Thanksgiving boxes on Saturday, November 17th! This year, Cold River Materials has generously offered to host the event.
If you have any pie filling, pie crust mix, stuffing, cranberry sauce, apples, or squash that you'd like to donate, please stop by the Food Shelf!
Sign up sheets for the boxes are available at the Food Shelf!
October 3, 2018
Fall Mountain Friendly Meals is celebrating 30 years of cooking & serving hot meals for residents of Alstead and surrounding towns! Thank you to Mary Lou and all of our dedicated volunteers!
October 2, 2018
Thank you to the town of Langdon for hosting the annual Fall Festival!
Thanks to the efforts of our generous & skilled bakers, we raised $835.10 (and a guitar pick) to purchase food for local families. As part of the ongoing Hunger Challenge, the Family Foundation has matched the donations we received. Thank you for donating!
September 28, 2018
The Fall Mountain Food Shelf, Friendly Meals, and Meals on Wheels are looking for some help!
We’re looking for volunteers to help our Friendly Meals program by cooking, setting up, and serving. We cook and serve about 250 meals every Tuesday and Thursday, so we can use all the help we can get.
The Food Shelf needs volunteers help on Wednesdays, Fridays, and (especially) Saturdays. We're also looking for a substitute driver with a truck or van to pick up supplies on occasion.
We’re also looking for a volunteer to type up and update our current list of names and addresses for the Meals and Wheels program.
If you’re interested or have any questions, please e-mail us at fallmountainfoodshelf@gmail.com or call Mary Lou Huffling at (603) 835-2283.
June 25, 2018
"We need help stocking shelves and helping clients on Wed., Fri., and Sat. We are open from 10 AM to 4 PM. Anytime someone could come and help would be helpful. I appreciate the help."
Mary Lou
MAY 18, 2018
IF YOU MAKE A DONATION TO THE FRIENDLY MEALS PROGRAM YOUR DOLLARS WILL BE DOUBLED!
AN ANONYMOUS DONOR HAS PLEDGED TO MATCH UP TO $10,000 IN DONATIONS MADE TO FRIENDLY MEALS BETWEEN MAY 28 AND JULY 31! WOULD YOU PLEASE HELP US MEET THIS CHALLENGE? YOU CAN DONATE BY CLICKING ON THE DONATE BUTTON ON THIS PAGE, OR SENDING A CHECK FRIENDLY MEALS, 122 NH Rte 12A
P.O. Box 191,Alstead NH 03602
THANK YOU SO MUCH.
APRIL 30, 2018
SUCCESSFUL!!!! THANK YOU! HUNGER CHALLENGE ENDED APRIL 30, 2018
An anonymous donor has agreed to match donations dollar for dollar up to $10,000. Please help us meet this challenge by donating here or in person at the food shelf or by mail. Your donation will be used to purchase food for those of our community in need of a hand up. Just click on the Donate button above and follow the instructions. Thank you!
November 30, 2017
The Fall Mountain Food Shelf recently distributed over 900 Thanksgiving dinner boxes to families of the Fall Mountain region who were in need of a little help.
On November 18th Food Shelf director Mary Lou Huffing and scores of good hearted volunteers, the majority of them high school students, gathered to fill what they called “Thanksgiving love boxes”. The Alstead Fire Station and the Charlestown VFW were the sites of this 35th annual Thanksgiving meals distribution. One hundred dinner boxes were delivered by volunteers directly to the homes of those unable to travel due to poor health. Youngsters from the local high school National Honor Society, Junior ROTC, INTERACT, church youth groups, Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, 4H’ers and others worked for hours setting up tables, filling boxes with food, carrying them and the turkeys to cars and then cleaning up when all was done. Several of the volunteers were Fall Mountain High School graduates home from college. They had volunteered as high schoolers and wanted to continue to be a part of this charitable effort.
“We were blessed to have the New Hampshire Food Bank donate all of the turkeys, about 1000 of them.” said Mary Lou. Potatoes, carrots, turnips, cupcakes and apples were also donated by the New Hampshire Food Bank. She went on to name many other generous donors. United Methodist Church of Contoocook donated 5000 pounds of Maine potatoes. “Every year they have a potato project and we are only one of several food shelves they supply each year.” stated Ms. Huffling. Many generous local people and the Monadnock Food Coalition gave cash donations to make purchases of food for the boxes. Mary Lou expressed her gratitude for all the donations they received to fill the boxes with good food.
Pete’s Stand of Walpole donated two truckloads of butter nut squash. Alyson’s Orchard supplied a truckload of apples. Walmart of Claremont gave the Food Shelf a generous discount on the purchase of cans of cranberries and pumpkin filling as well as pie crust and stuffing. Bimbo Bakery donated loaves of bread.
At noon, Diamond Pizza of Walpole and Charlestown House of Pizza delivered dozens of pizzas to the volunteers working at the Alstead Fire Station and the Charlestown VFW in appreciation for all they were doing.
The recipients were constantly expressing how very polite, caring and considerate were the students and adult volunteers. It was a demonstration of commitment and enthusiasm for the care of one’s neighbors. “They all so love doing this work.” commented Mary Lou.
She expressed her gratitude to the Town of Alstead, the Alstead Fire Department and the Charlestown VFW for allowing this 35th annual charitable event to take place in their facilities. “This event touched the lives of so many people in such a wonder way.” stated Mary Lou.
September 10, 2017
Great news! We have received $4,000.00 from NH Charitable Foundation from the Ira S and Gertrude S Hubbard Memorial Fund. The generosity of the Hubbard family and all of our benefactors is the means by which we exist to do our work. Our all volunteer Fall Mountain Food Shelf, Friendly Meals and Meals On Wheels is so very grateful for this gift which will feed many families in need of a hand up.
August 27, 2017
On Saturyday, August 26, 2017 at 11:00 a special food distribution for anyone in need was made available through our partnership witht the NH Food Bank, a Catholic Charities organization. Everyone was welcome.
June 2, 2017
On May 2, 2017 representatives from Wells Fargo Bank, John Flint and Dan O'Conner delivered a check in the amount of $5000! The money was donated by the bank to purchase food. Joel Eaton and Lu Beam gave these gentlemen a tour of our facility and explained the nature of our mission, the people we serve and the many volunteers who make the work possible. Dan and John were impressed to learn how many families are helped in a year and were very supportive of the way the work is organized. Wells Fargo has done much charitable work over the years. We are very grateful they are so eager to support the work our volunteers do.
May 2, 2017 Wells Fargo check presentation
Lu Beam, Joel Eaton Food Shelf volunteers and Dan O'Connor of Wells Fargo Bank
April 2, 2017
Mary Lou Huffling was recently informed that the Wells Fargo Bank Foundation has granted the Food Shelf $5,000 to be used for the purchase of food! A check presentation is planned for the near future. We are very grateful for this support. It's good neighbors like Wells Fargo that strengthen our belief in the goodness of people. More news on this grant later!
March 19, 2017
Fall Mountain Food Shelf Director Mary Lou Huffling has been contacted again by an anonymous local family that has offered to match dollar for dollar up to $10,000 every donation made between now and April 30, 2017. Every dollar raised will be used to purchase food for those in need of a hand up.
Donations can be made here by clicking "DONATE HERE" on the above menu bar or by sending a check to
Fall Mountain Food Shelf
PO Box 191
Alstead, NH 03602
or
Come by in person to
Fall Mountain Food Shelf
122 NH Rte 12A
Langdon, NH 03602
Past news below:
OUR THANKSGIVING MATCHING FUND DRIVE WAS A SUCCESS!
A generous local family matched your gifts. Because of your generous gift of money we raised over $20,000. This will buy food to help those in need of a hand up.
A LOT OF HELP FROM OUR FRIENDS
Thanksgiving dinner for over 1000 people was prepared and distributed between our Friendly Meals / Alstead Fire Station location and our Charlestown food shelf. Organizations such as the Boys and Girls Club, Junior ROTC, National Honor Society, and area high school students assisted with filling boxes for delivery to those who would otherwise not have a Thanksgiving meal. Our director, Mary Lou Huffling said of these youthful volunteers, " It was wonderful to see how much the young people helped. It meant so much to have them here." Also helping was the faithful, indefatigueable core of Fall Mountain Food Shelf and Meals on Wheels volunteers.
Diamond Pizza donated 21 family size pizzas to sustain these workers. The NH Food Bank donated the turkeys, vegatables and apples. The Monadnock Food Coalition donated stuffing and gravy. An anonymous donor provided 1000 cans of cranberry sauce.The Fall Mountain Friendly Meals organization has been doing this for over 30 years. Isn't it wonderful what a caring community can do?
Fall Mountain Friendly Meals at 122 NH Rte 12A, PO Box 191, Langdon, NH 03602
Thank you for your generosity.
SOME BACKGROUND INFORMATION: In 2016, in response to changes that inevitably occur in the life of any organization, several stake holders of the Fall Mountain Food Shelf community formed a Food Shelf Advisory Board. Concerned and helpful representatives from Langdon, Alstead, Acworth, Charlestown and Walpole have been meeting once per month to tackle the challenges that lie ahead. Chaired by Langdon Selectman Lou Beam, much progress has been made and the future looks bright.
The greatest challenge is under control. After nine year of free utilities and rent for 4800 square feet of space in the Langdon Municiple Building at 122 NH Rte 12A, the warrant article enabling this arrangement expired on December 31, 2016. For the first time in over 35 years the Fall Mountain Food Shelf will be taking on the cost of rent and utilities. The Food Shelf and the Town of Langdon have entered into a lease agreement. To generate the funds necessary for rent and utilities while minimizing the demand on funds for food, personal hygiene and household essentials, new sources of income are required. A fund raising sub-committe has been formed and is lead by our own Myrna Harrington. She along with some experienced grant writers submitted requests for grants for these new operating expenses and the Sullivan County Commisioners' Fund has responded favorably. They have awarded a $7500 grant to cover the rent, heat and electricity for the first six months of 2017 and may be able to assist further come July 1, 2017 when their fiscal year begins.
Another part of the fund raising effort involved our participation in a one day, state wide fund raising event sponsored by the NH Center for Nonprofits on June 7, 2016. The event was entitled NH Gives. A significant component of this fund raiser involved the use of social networking. It is our hope that many of our supporters will send us an email with their contact information in order that we invite you to participate in the 2017 NH Gives event. You can do that by going to our contact page to send us an email or quick note with your contact information. We raised $2,898 from this event. Many thanks to the very generous donors. This money will buy many meals for people in need.
In addition to raising funds for food and home essentials, we have raised enough money to install an energy efficient walk- in freezer. Grant applications were submitted for assistance with this important project and they were met with positive results! The following foundations donated a combined total of $19,000 toward the walk-in freezer; Masoma Bank, Claremont Savings Bank, The Bishop's Charitable Assistance Fund and an anonymous donor. The New Hampshire Charitable Foundation offered a $5,000 Challenge Grant which was met by the Cogswell Benevolent Trust! We have now installed the walk-in freezer. The walk-in freezer will replace the many old, inefficient chest freezers now in use. A single large freezer will save thousands of dollars in electricity over a period of time. It will increase storage capacity and floor space. This 12 ft x 12 ft 7 ft high freezer was assembled at the Food Shelf and can be disassembled to be moved elsewhere if ever the need arises.
The Food Shelf recently took receipt of two relatively new but used "reach in coolers". When Rite Aid in Claremont closed they donated the coolers to the Claremont Soup Kitchen who in turn offered them to us. A band of volunteers procured a truck and moving equipment to transport the coolers to Langdon. They will be used to store more fruits and vegetables than was possible before. Now we can accept a generous offer from Sullivan County Commissioners' Office to recieve vegetables grown at the Sullivan County Correctional Facility.
In addition, an anonymous donor provided the funds necessary for two large commercial refrigerators. The unit at the Alstead Fire Station where Friendly Meals are served and where Meals On Wheels are distributed for delivery, had failed. A similar unit at the Fall Mountain Food Shelf had also failed. These critical refrigerators have now been replaced with brand new units.
The above grants and donations are just a portion of the funds required to provide meals for people in need. We continue to depend on the generous financial support of the people of the Fall Mountain region. Your donations of food, money, and volunteer time make this program possible. Really.