Catonsville Emergency Assistance

Neighbors Helping Neighbors

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Sponsoring a Food Drive

Sponsoring a Food Drive

Thank you for wanting to join the fight against hunger in our community.  Your efforts are essential to CEA’s mission of helping our neighbors in need.  This section can guide you through having a successful food drive.

Getting Started

  • Decide if you or your group will partner with any other groups or businesses.
  • Identify a person in charge.
  • Before you pick a date contact CEA by email at info@ catonsvillehelp.org so we can schedule the receipt of your food and make sure it we have staff/volunteers on hand to receive it.
  • Determine how long the food drive will be. It can be as short as one day or as long as one month.
  • Decide on a collection method. Medium size boxes are ideal as they can easily be transported. Check with local grocery stores as they may have boxes you can use.
  • Set a goal for pounds of food you’d like to collect.

Publicize Your Event

  • Once you’ve gotten the details nailed down, it’s time to start getting people interested your event.
  • Use our flyer template. Just click here and here for two flyers you can customize and distribute on line and in person.
  • Use email and social media to let people know about the drive and as a way to distribute the flyer.

Get Creative for Your Food Drive

  • Give out empty grocery bags to food drive participants and ask them to fill them.
  • Use a holiday such as Valentine’s Day or Halloween as the reason for a food drive.
  • Have an event such as a birthday or anniversary party and have participants bring food.
  • Have a hunger awareness day and give some information about hunger as you kick off the drive. See the Maryland Food Bank and Feeding America for good information.

Keep a Few Things in Mind

  • Remind people to only donate items they would eat or use.
  • Please ask for healthy and nutritious food items that are not more than one year old.
  • Here’s what we cannot use: rusty or unlabeled cans; perishable items; homemade items; open items.

After The Drive Is Over

  • Bring the food to CEA as you have scheduled.
  • If your group would like to give an additional hand and sort the food you’ve collected that would be a huge help to CEA. Click here to see a list of how we sort and organize the food on our shelves.  You can sort it before you bring it, or consider arranging with CEA to have some folks come here to sort the food.
  • Thank the coordinators and participants.
  • Share your success! Tell others in a newsletter and post photos on social media.

And THANK YOU for your support.

WHAT WE DO

Neighbors Helping Neighbors

Catonsville Emergency Assistance serves greater Catonsville residents with emergency food, eviction prevention, and utility turn-off intervention. We rely on a generous community of donors. CEA operates frugally and uses donations responsibly to help our Catonsville neighbors in need.

• FOOD ASSISTANCE

Our current needs for food include: canned beans • canned vegetables • canned fruit • pasta sauce • pancake mix • pancake syrup • coffee • tea • sugar • cake mix • pudding • jello • dessert mixes • rice and pasta side dishes • jam/jelly • peanut butter

• WE URGENTLY NEED THE FOLLOWING ITEMS !!!!

Pancake Mixes • Muffin Mixes • Pasta Sides • Peanut Butter • Potato Sides • Mashed Potatoes • Rice Sides • Cake Mixes • Brownie Mixes • Frosting • Peanut Butter • Canned Chicken Soup • Snacks (cookies, crackers) • Canned Meats (Spam, corned beef, ham, salmon) • Pancake Syrup • Granola Bars • Canned Fruit • Canned Corn • Canned Meals (Chef Boyardee, Stews, Chili) • Tomato Products (especially diced tomatoes, tomato paste

• UTILITY CUT-OFF INTERVENTION

Energy costs can place a severe and continuing stress on a family’s budget, and sometimes, the BGE bill just can’t be paid. We provide utility turn-off assistance help to income-eligible residents within our service area. Last year we helped 22 families keep their utilities on. There are always more requests than we have funds to help. Donate now to help.

• EVICTION PREVENTION ASSISTANCE

Families facing immediate eviction because they are behind in paying their past due rent have a limited number of places to turn for help. We provide assistance to income-eligible residents within our service area. Last year we helped 36 families remain in their homes. The need is great for this short-term relief service. Donate now to help.

•Additional Donation Sites

*Narcissus Salon, 28 Bloomsbury Ave., Catonsville has graciously agreed to accept dry and canned food
donations for CEA. Their hours are: Monday 12 -8 p.m., Tuesday – Thursday 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., Friday 10
a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Space is limited so a 1 or 2 bag donation is all they can accept.

*Hair-M Family Hair Care is also accepting can and dry goods donations during their business hours of 9 am to 6 pm Tuesday through Saturday. Please note that the salon at 1701 Edmondson Avenue is actually on Dutton Avenue (at Edmondson) next to Scittino’s. Because space in the salon is limited please keep donations to one or two bags.

*The Catonsville office of Orthopaedic Associates of Central Maryland (OACM) is our newest drop off site for your food donations. OACM is at 910 Frederick Road in Catonsville, and they will accept dry and canned food donations for CEA during their office hours Monday–Friday: 8:30 am to 4:30 pm. Space is limited so a 1 or 2 bag donation is all they can accept.

*J. W. Trueth and Sons Meat Market. They are located at 328 Oella Ave.

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