Who We Are
We are an independent nonprofit led and supported by people who have a vision to help create hunger-free communities.
Our organization includes a volunteer board of directors and small staff that is supported by hundreds of volunteers. We often don’t know much about each other, but we share a common purpose and together, we make a difference.
Our Mission
Our mission is to provide our communities with consistent and inclusive access to healthy food, with dignity and kindness.
We are focused on meeting a deep diversity of need while managing extraordinary exponential growth.
Mural created by Wellan Montessori middle school students. Green background illustrates increase in food insecurity beginning in 2020.
Twelve years ago a small group of people started Centre Street as a non-profit organization to provide food to anyone in need, in an environment of warmth and kindness.
Trinity Church offered a tiny room for volunteers to stock shelves of food where a dozen families visited every week. In a few years, a larger room became available so the pantry market offered more. Just before the pandemic, the pantry served about 65 households a week, the majority of which were senior citizens.
The pandemic upended the indoor market as a way for people to get food, so the pantry moved outside with a broad choice of pre-packed bags that included fresh food and other items needed for complete meals. The amount of food provided expanded, as did the number of personal care products and diapers distributed. The number of households seeking food quickly grew, as did the completeness and efficiency of the curbside operation, such that today over 200 households get groceries every week. The majority of these households include children.
Our reach and impact is much larger than ever imagined, and yet we are still a small group of people who share the mission to provide inclusive access to healthy food, with kindness and dignity.
“I feel good when I come here. I get what I need and everyone is so helpful.”
—Luis, Senior citizen