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Kids First Registration
The summer Kids First Program provides free food to Wakefield families with school-aged children who need extra help affording groceries. The program will run on Tuesdays in July and August, with distribution occurring every other week.
Groceries
The Wakefield Food Pantry is consistently stocked with a variety non-perishable foods such as pasta, cereal, beverages, and canned foods as well as a very large amount of perishable foods such as meat, dairy and a variety of fresh produce.
The pantry is set up like a small grocery store and guests are able to freely choose which items they want. Wakefield residents can shop twice a month and receive a generous supply of groceries. Guests should bring proof of residency (e.g. utility bill or addressed mail). We also welcome anyone that works, worships or is referred to us by a local social service organization. Please bring referral to your first visit.
For ideas and recipes on using our non-perishable food,
check out: http://cansgetyoucooking.com/
Additional Food Programs
Several times per year additional programs provide even more food than usual since some segments of the population are underserved by established meals programs, most notably children, seniors, and those who are disabled. Our Programs — Kids First, Supplies for Seniors, Holiday Baskets — work to alleviate that problem, allowing the Wakefield Food Pantry to reach out to those groups directly by taking an active role within the communities we serve. We also partner with Veterans groups, Boys and Girls clubs, and support community dinners.
Holiday Meal Support
The Holiday Seasons of Easter, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Chanukah can be difficult times for our clients and their families. The pantry tries to make the holidays a little less stressful by providing food supplies for a complete holiday dinner, including dessert.
Kids First Program
The Wakefield Food Pantry offers a special program called Kids First which provides food to families with school-age children during the summer months. Many families receive free or reduced-price breakfast and lunch during the school year but help is not available during the summer when school is out. The Kids First Program provides additional kid-friendly food items to help replace those meals.
Support of Boys & Girls Club
The Wakefield Food Pantry provides healthy snacks to the Wakefield Boys & Girls Club on a regular basis. During the summer months, the pantry provides bags of groceries to families in need through the Boy & Girls Club.
Supplies for Seniors Mobile Market
The Wakefield Food Pantry provides mobile pantries for our senior and disabled clientele. These programs are held on the second Thursday and Friday of each month at and for the residents of Wakefield’s Harts Hill and Crystal View housing facilities. We offer a monthly selection of fresh fruits and vegetables in addition to a variety of other nutritious food items and essential household supplies, utilizing a team of volunteers who organize and distribute the items to these clients.
Do you know someone who could benefit from this program? Have them contact the resident coordinator for their location:
Harts Hill – Julie Souliotis jsouliotis@mves.org or 781-324-7705
Crystal View -Beth Greenberg wakehabg@rcn.com or 781-245-7328
Wakefield’s McCarthy Senior Center Quick Stop
The Wakefield Food Pantry provides a service to the Wakefield seniors that visit the Senior Center to help them obtain food and other supplies when money or time is tight. The Quick Stop is a pantry located at the Senior Center stocked with non-perishable items such as pasta, canned soups, and vegetables, snacks, canned meats and tuna along with household goods such as paper products.
Veterans Program
Working with the Veterans Services Department of Wakefield, the pantry provides household paper products and toiletries to supplement the food that is given out monthly to veterans.
Community Meal Assistance
If your community group feeds the hungry, from time to time we may have surplus food items that we can share with you.
For additional information on any of these programs, just Contact Us.