Food Pantry

Meeting Minutes of January 13, 2011

PRESENT: Cyndi Alden, Frances Jane Addor, June Wiggins, AnnElissa Leveque, Barbara Merrill, Jan Files, Gail Dransfield.

BALANCE: Income Paid Out BALANCE ENDING
12/31/2009 2010 2010 12/31/2010
$5,113 $2,841 $ 3,164 $4,790

OLD BUSINESS:
1) Re-shelving and keeping the pantry floor less cluttered. Volunteers are asked to re-shelve any bags left for over 7 days. **New - Place the bag tags on the yellow pad under a paper clip. AnnElissa will take care of notifying Jen, noting the non-pickup on the index card and yellow tab.

2) Please staple a note on each bag stating recipient’s name and the total number of bags included in that order. This will help Cyndi and Jen know who gets what.

NEW BUSINESS:
1) Expired foods. The USDA web site states that expired foods are safe for consumption. The church council has restricted us from distributing any expired foods and from selling these items, even labeled as expired, at any of our coffee hour sales.

Barbara Merrill will contact Preble St., St. Johns pantry, the Root Cellar, Woodfords and other pantries to understand how they handle expired goods.

Any expired foods should be placed in the large box in the pantry. Our volunteers are encouraged to take whatever they can use. AnnElissa will throw away any foods left in that box at the beginning of each month.

2) Reminder: Include a listing of area pantries with new requests. These blue forms are in the folder on the desk.

3) Gail will pull all index cards of requests earlier than 2008. All requests from 1/2009 until the present will remain in the index boxes.

4) There will be a sale of the “Odd and Exotic” items during the coffee hour on Feb. 13. Any and all volunteers please come before the 10 o’clock service to set up the sale and then help with the sale and clean up.

Cyndi will put an announcement of this sale in the 1/24 Beacon and in the bulletin.

5) Preble Street is holding a meeting of representatives from the greater Portland food pantries on Jan. 21 from 12 - 2 at Woodfords Congregational church. Jan Files has volunteered to go. Barbara Merrill, Gail or Purdy will also attend.

6) Next meeting May 12, 2011 4 o’clock Laity Room.