My co-workers and I signed up to provide breakfast for the youth. The website is very user-friendly. You provide 3 dates that are open (breakfast or dinner only) and someone from the Eddy House will send an email to let you know which date you are confirmed for. Our Team ordered a variety of breakfast sandwiches from Truckee Bagel. We also pitched in to provide apple and orange juices, fruit cups, and cookies. If you prefer, you can prepare the meals yourself, as long as there's enough for 30-35 youth. If you need ideas on what to prepare, you can email The Eddy House for suggestions.
I found the place easy enough, and there's parking, which to me, is always a plus. When I got there, I called their number, a couple of people came out to receive the meal. Because of Covid, we were not allowed to enter the place, so that's pretty much it. I requested some pics to share with my co-workers and they provided pics of when the food was set up.
Around this time, I learned that whoever signed up for the Christmas dinner slot had to back out, so my husband and I requested his company if they'd be willing to donate for the meal, which they generously did, even though it's very last minute. Basically, the company provided the funds and left it to my husband and me to figure out the meal itself. We worked with Cherry Bomb Catering to provide the youth a complete meal of ham, bread, salad, mashed potato, dessert, and a variety of drinks donated by them. Kimmie Candy also generously provided several types of chocolates to round up the Holiday treats.
My husband and I donated socks, hats, scarves, and gloves to give as gifts. A note on gifts: The Eddy House actually refused some of our presents (scarves). They said they had a surplus. It's great that a non-profit has had too much donation that they actually had to refuse gifts, so if you're considering making a donation in kind, you might want to check their needs first, before doing so. I believe these are also listed on their website.
We again dropped off the meal and the presents with a couple of staff/guest (not sure) in the parking lot. They do not have a cooking facility, and they only had 3 microwaves to heat/warm food up, so consider this when you think of donating food.
Overall, it's a blessing to be able to donate to a local non-profit organization. But because of Covid, it all felt very impersonal. I was also a bit disappointed that I wasn't able to get a picture of the food donated by my husband's company (a huge Yelper fail). I requested photos from The Eddy House, but have not received any. The photos would've gone nicely with the thank you note my husband and I sent to the company. The Eddy House did put out a blanket Thank You post on their social media account, and I used that instead. read more