AFFILIATES:
Hunger Relief
No one can escape the poverty maze while hungry. Hunger takes all their energy. Hunger prevents people from looking for jobs. Hunger keeps children from being able to learn. Hunger tears families apart.
Regular Pantry
SECOM’s Regular Food Pantry serves as one of 12 "key pantries" in the ACCESS (All County Churches Emergency Support Services) Kent County-wide food pantry network. Our support pantries enable SECOM to offer convenient locations to customers throughout its service area.
We’ve given the Pantry the feel of a friendly neighborhood grocery store. Patrons "shop" for the foods that their household will use. Cultural background often affects the types of foods a person might choose. At each visit patrons receive enough food for two to three days for their household size based on Federal Nutrition Guidelines. The Food Pyramid is used as a "shopping list". Patrons may be assisted in their shopping by either a English or Spanish speaking volunteer or staff member.
Over 70 tons of food per year is distributed to the community.
Service is provided Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 9:00 am to 11:30 am and Wednesday from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm.
Evening Pantry
For the working poor of Kent County, SECOM provides an evening pantry. Every Tuesday from 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm we make our pantry available to individuals whose working schedule does not permit them to shop earlier in the day. (They must bring a current check stub to show eligibility.)
Seventy five percent of evening pantry participants surveyed indicated that they had no other food pantry session or location to serve their immediate needs without taking time off from work. We accept anyone whose regular pantry for their area does not offer an evening service.
Nutritional Options for Wellness (NOW) Pantry
Nutritional Options for Wellness is a program of Spectrum Health’s Healthier Communities Department. The purpose of the NOW program is to help Kent Counties’ low income residents manage chronic diseases through improved access to healthy foods, health information and community resources.
On Mondays from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm NOW patrons have exclusive use of the pantry and are assisted in selecting foods specially chosen for their dietary needs.
Infant and Child Pantry
Research shows that preschool and school-aged children who experience severe hunger have higher levels of chronic illness, anxiety and depression, and behavior problems than children with no hunger.
Begun in 2007, the Infant and Child Pantry serves low income families with children below the age of five. The unique needs of infants and young children necessitated SECOM initiating this program.
On the first and third Thursdays of the month at noon educational opportunities are available for parents and children.
Michigan State University Extension Program offers to the parents a class on nutrition and other information about foods upon request.
Child care is provided to allow parents uninterrupted time to learn and shop.
Some of the class opportunities offered include interactive activities for parents and children. All children will experience learning activities while in the child care area.
Real earnings have dropped significantly for high school drop outs in the past 30 years. Providing learning opportunities for young children can improve their ability to get an education and escape poverty.
Following the learning hour families select food, supplies and other items as available from the Infant and Children's Pantry.