"Hunger is not just an issue for the homeless or those struggling to find work. It is found among those who are underemployed, seasonal workers, veterans and the elderly. Every day, suburban families make tough choices between paying for food and paying for housing, utilities, medications or medical care, childcare, transportation and education."
The United Way of Tri-County launched its Food Security Initiative in 2011 not only to help people meet their nutritional needs, but also to ensure all individuals are better able to reach their full potential. When families achieve food security, children can concentrate during school, adults perform better at work and seniors maintain independent living. These factors all help people and communities thrive.
FOOD PANTRIES
UWTC’s three food pantries serve residents of
Framingham,
Marlborough and
Greater Clinton. In 2021 UWTC met the demand to make more healthy food available to low-income families by providing over 3.2 million pounds of nutritious food to people in need. Clients can visit our food pantries each month to receive healthy food including non-perishable items, fresh produce, dairy, eggs, bread and frozen meat.
HOT MEALS
7 days per week in Framingham Framingham and 5 days per week in Clinton, UWTC cafés serve hot meals to anyone in need. In 2022 UWTC served 104,381 prepared meals to-go to our neighbors in need. In 2023 Guests once again are able to sit together to enjoy a three-course meal and are waited on by volunteer servers. For some it is a way to stretch their budget and access a hot meal. For others, meals offer a social outing and time to connect with friends in a welcoming environment.
METROWEST CROSS DOCK
Through our partnership with the Greater Boston Food Bank, the United Way of Tri-County helps other food pantries access more food locally for their clients. Every week the Greater Boston Food Bank delivers food to UWTC's framingham
cross dock for pickup. In 2021, 30 MetroWest agencies used this program and received 1,732,295 pounds of food. This helps keep shelves stocked in local food pantries that lack the staff or volunteer time, vehicles and financial resources to make frequent trips to Boston to pick up food.
FEED-A-FAMILY
UWTC runs its Feed-A-Family campaign from October through December to provide holiday meals to families in need in addition to their regular monthly groceries. UWTC knows a holiday meal represents a time for family and friends to come together and we want all families to experience the joy of this tradition. In 2020 UWTC provided over 2,500 families with a holiday meal and all the fixings through our food pantries.
