Community Outreach Programs: Helping Our Neighbors in Need

More than 600,000 people in Minnesota are hungry, and visits to food shelves have doubled in the past five years. As the demand for food assistance continues to rise, Second Harvest Heartland is working not only to collect and distribute more food to our neighbors in need, but also by investing in community outreach programs that help increase food security for the hungry.

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Outreach
One in three people who qualify for SNAP (formerly called food stamps) don’t access their benefits. Our team of outreach specialists break down barriers through screening and applications assistance, helping connect more people with more food in their time of need.

Meals for Minds School Pantry Program
With funding from Target, we distribute food at schools in high-need areas across the Twin Cities each month during the school year through Meals for Minds. Families can receive groceries for each child enrolled at school.

Summer Food Service Program (SFSP)
During school, approximately 375,000 Minnesota children received free or reduced-price meals. But when summer arrives, only about 20 percent of these kids continue to access similar meal programs. To fill this gap, we team up with the Minnesota Department of Education to help connect kids with summer meals.

Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP)
Each month, we provide a box of nutritious food to income-eligible women, children and seniors 60 years and over, through the Nutritional Assistance Program for Seniors (NAPS) and MAC (Mothers and Children).

Find more information on the programs above or how you can become involved by contacting Second Harvest Heartland here today.