The Northside Food Pantry is a food pantry that serves Washington Township residents in…read moreIndianapolis. Based out of Second Presbyterian Church, Northside Food Pantry offers food support to Washington Township residents up to twice monthly and is open three days per week. In order to utilize Northside Food Pantry, you need to take in a bill or some other mail received within the last 30 days indicating your address within Washington Township (zip codes 46220, 46228, 46240, 46250, 46260 or North of 38th Street in 46205 or 46208). Northside Food Pantry utilizes quite a few volunteers for positions such as client intake, client liaison, data entry, car loader, food delivery processing, and off-loading for Nora donations. Northside Food Pantry receives its items from a variety of sources including public donations, area residents, area businesses, Gleaners Food Bank, and others. I had the opportunity to visit the food pantry recently and was impressed with their organization and the variety of healthy foods available including fruits and vegetables actually grown by the children and youth of Second Presbyterian Church. They also offer a variety of personal care supplies including the always needed diapers. I was also impressed that they offered similar personal care items for adults in need. The process has changed due to the pandemic and individuals are actually served in their vehicles. It's an effective, efficient process that seems to work well. Church leaders are actively involved in the church pantry and it's not uncommon to see Senior Pastor Chris Henry driving the Northside Food Pantry truck. I also saw that they even had some books available for the kids! Northside Food Pantry serves approximately 17,000 people annually and over 400 families monthly.

What a fantastic organization and very well organized they continue to need help through money and…read moredonations. As I was there donating from a food drive, there was a continuous buzz of food being loaded onto large trucks coming and going. They often rely on food surplus which isn't happening during the pandemic https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.indystar.com/amp/5218064002 . Everyone was very nice and when I called to donate they had people to unload all with smiles on their face. It took 2 days for Gleaners to call me back; They had someone to talk to immediately. They also said our donation would be back out the door and in someone who needed it's hands within 48hrs!

I really enjoyed volunteering here. It was very impacting. I've never worked in a warehouse before…read morebut I would imagine that it's similar to the assembly line we had. I was at stop 3 so I handed out salad, peppers, or brocolli along with a pack of Starry and a bag from Starbucks. I didnt give 5 stars because some of the bags had old dates. I asked what the dates meant and was told not to worry about it. Many of the families driving through were very grateful and thanked us while the others looked away or didnt say anything at all. I was really happy to serve the community and would enjoy going back.

While, I appreciate Gleaners efforts to help. My first experience has been dulling by the lack of…read moreitems that I can use to add into or create meals.

Working at a food pantry truly gives you life perspective. If you aren't hungry and have a place to…read morego tonight, you're blessed, something I always try to keep in the back of my mind. You'd be surprised as to how many people don't have those luxuries (and yes, even people in Carmel). Families come into the food pantry all day and they're guided through the fruits, veggies, frozen food, frozen meats, breads, and dessert sections of the food pantry. Based on the number of family members they have to feed, they can select different amounts of each food item. The food pantry is often in need of those fresh fruits and veggies (especially in winter when they aren't getting the leftovers from the summer farmers market down the road). Toiletries are also always needed: deodorant, diapers, toilet paper, soaps, shampoo/conditioner, etc. Check their hours, then you can donate foods or sign up to volunteer and it's much appreciated.

We dropped off a few food items for someone in need. Great work team! I'll be back with more items…read moresoon.

I have gone to Anna's House for years. They always make you feel welcome. The staff and volunteers…read moreare wonderful, they treat you with respect and dignity. Produce is something that you don't normally get at a food pantry and theirs is fresher than a lot of stores. They always have a nice supply of it, among many other foods and supplies. Rebecca B.

My organization volunteers here monthly. This is an awesome place to volunteer. The staff and other…read morevolunteers are friendly and inviting. It is a busy day but it goes by really fast and you almost don't realize that you have been there for 3-4 hours. The Pantry has wonderful produce, meats, breads, and other items donated to them to give to those in need in the community. Some of the fruits and vegetables are fresher than some of the items I have seen in store. I love the fact that the food the people get is as desirable as food I would purchase in a store.

It seems unique to be able to come across a coupon for this store. I had one for a discount off an…read moreitem, so I decided to visit when school was not in session and hoped to find sale items. They shortened hours on Labor Day. From the outside, the place seems small with bigger items typically outside to grab drivers' attention. They have a variety of (new and used) merchandise including furniture. It is like a Goodwill store but more organized. I was told that the items were donated, and they do not have sales. I bought a lap desktop with folding legs and section holders; it would be so helpful especially when I tend to find writing utensils that have fallen between the couch cushions. Also, a green long-sleeve dress shirt caught my eyes so I had to go look at it, which happened to fit me; how could I resist buying this name-brand, attractive shirt! I used that coupon for the shirt, so I got more savings than for the desktop. There seem to be a couple of spots I would like to try to wash out of the shirt. So both $5 or less. Sold! When I got home, I realized that maybe the shirt was new because there was a spare button attached. I will see if the ink on the sleeve comes out. I think the store changed its name to Noble Cause (but still led by the Society of St. Vincent de Paul) and did change their hours to M, T, Th, and F 9-3 with Wed. and Sat. only to serve from the Society of St. Vincent de Paul's food pantry. I would return when and if convenient but definitely if I get a coupon.

I am a avid thrifter all across central Indiana and this used to be one of my favorite places. They…read morehave hard to come to hours for the working person, but when I did come I used to spend $100 or more but today I was really disappointed to see their prices have gone way up. As a reseller the China and dish prices were so high nobody could get them in the hands of a collector at a decent price. Please revisit that and try not to compete with goodwill. I also noticed that usually the place is packed but this time hardly nobody was there and it may be the prices. Since it's hard for me to get here because of no evening hours if it continues I won't be back on a regular basis, it's sad because money goes to a decent cause but things need to be bargain prices not boutique.

Partnered with this organization with Big Brothers Big Sisters, and I must say what an amazing…read moreevent it was. The idea behind it is amazing. I love that they ship the food packets across the world, but also keep some local. There was clear organization and explanation for the packing process. Due to the variety of jobs, any one at any age could volunteer here. I would love to come back and help with future packing.

My friend had introduced me to this organization a couple of years ago. On Thanksgiving evening we…read morewent and "packed" as many boxes as we could for people in Haiti. Pack Away Hunger has public packing events that you can form a team or just sign up individually. They also have sponsored packing events that are closed to the business, church, or civic groups. You just have to show up and they will train you on what you need to do. It's simple and easy to do. They will have stations that you will be assigned. I've sealed the bags, scooped the dried vegetables and I've also weighed the bags. They have other jobs like stacking the bags in boxes, scooping rice, and opening the bags. It's really a smooth process. It's a great way to help people out that are suffering from malnutrition and hunger. The lack of nutrients creates serious health effects in men, women and children. That's why each one of the Nutri-Plenty bags has rice and a dried vegetables with lots of nutrients added to it. The Nutri-Plenty bags are stacked into boxes and then shipped all over the world. If you get the chance to help pack it really is amazing to see how many the team can pack in one event. They have Instagram, Facebook and Twitter pages as well as a website if you want more information on when the next public pack event will be. We packed almost 8,000 meals in one event. It's a great cause that will help so many!

Indiana Diaper Bank is a nonprofit that collects diapers and distributes them to the community…read more Did you know: 1 in 2 families in Indiana struggle to afford diapers! Diapers cost $100 a month per child! No government programs help cover the cost of diapers! 57% of parents missed work because they didn't have diapers to send to daycare! These facts are straight from Indiana Diaper Banks website. I have been volunteering with them for about four months now. When I am there I open large packs of diapers and bundle them into packs of 25. We put a slip of paper in each pack telling the size. On their website you can sign up to give money, give diapers or give your time. They need all three. A lot of companies organized to come in as a group and volunteer for a few hours. I really enjoy volunteering with them. And know I am helping families that need a little help.