Food, Agriculture & Nutrition

Nothing showcases how you can help a farmer, their family, and a community transform quite like the story of Agatha and her community of farmers. Agatha is a mother of nine and a farmer in Burkina Faso. There is a strong, caring energy about her that people gravitate towards, which is why she has become a leader in her community. The ability to lead her community's improvement has always been there. But with Groundswell International's support, she has been able to turn that ability into action through a Groundswell-introduced fellowship, community-farm and water-well initiative.

Throughout our 5-county service area, we come across some of the most giving people who are connected to Central California Food Bank's mission.

Meet Jim, a veteran, who volunteers at the Hanford Salvation Army's monthly Neighborhood Market. Jim has been volunteering in Kings County for many years and feels a great responsibility to give back to the Salvation Army because of the resources they provide to the people of Hanford and veterans such as himself.

We look forward to the Fall season at Open Pantry Community Services, Inc. (OPCS) because it is a time for some of our most exciting and fruitful events! On November 21 – November 23, we will hold our Mayflower Marathon at the MGM in Springfield. The Mayflower Marathon is one of New England's largest annual food drives, which raises enough food to feed thousands of families across Springfield and the Western Massachusetts region through the winter. In addition, on Thanksgiving Day, we will hold the Stuff the Pantry 5k run fundraising event.

1 in 7 residents of Helena struggles with hunger. 1 in 5 Helena children don’t know where their next meal is coming from.

Access to clean water can be life changing! But in the rural villages of Tanzania, the water available is not safe to drink. Contaminants including bacteria, protozoa and virus are present and contribute to diseases such as cholera, diarrhea, dysentery, hepatitis A, typhoid, and polio. When children and families do not have clean water, they often miss school and work.