Non-Profit Leadership: A Commitment to the Community

If you’re leading a non-profit, it’s extraordinarily likely you’re working toward a socially responsible goal that will benefit others. The beneficiaries of your labor could be as far away as the other side of the planet or as close as your neighbors.

Perhaps a glimpse at our organization, The Clintonville-Beechwold Community Resources Center (CRC) (out of Columbus, Ohio), may offer some inspiration.

In 2012, through our partnership with the Mid-Ohio Foodbank (MOFB), we began receiving and distributing fresh produce to those in need throughout Central Ohio. The MOFB works across 20 counties to provide food to various pantries.  On each Tuesday evening since then, we have received one to three tons of fresh produce each week.

Our community dinner begins each Tuesday at 5 p.m.; by 6:30 pm the MOFB truck pulls up outside of 14 W Lakeview Avenue, Columbus, Ohio and it is all hands on deck!  Volunteers from all walks of life line up to move the produce inside the building.

Are you local? I would like to invite everyone who wants to see goodwill in action, come to eat, and help out and experience this truly heartwarming community event.  All are welcome, including parents who want to get their children involved in volunteering. And again, perhaps you can take something away from this and apply it your own organization.

On Wednesday morning, with the help of more volunteers, bags of fresh produce are assembled for people in need from all over Franklin County to come and pick up.  Healthy vegetables and fruits are making their way to dinner tables throughout Central Ohio through this effort.

In the seven years since we piloted this program, Mid-Ohio Foodbank has expanded the fresh produce markets throughout their service area.  They also partnered with us to begin direct pickup from retail markets in our area.  We pick up and distribute thousands of pounds of meat, produce, baked goods and dry groceries every week from retailers — like Target and others.  We distribute the food through our Choice Food Pantry.  Because of these efforts, often our pantry distributes two tons of food a day!

In 2013, when representatives from Lucky’s Farmer’s Market, (headquartered at 2770 North High Street) came to town, they immediately became a sponsor of the CRC’s by giving us a $10,000 donation and having us pick up fresh fruits, vegetables and other groceries weekly.  In 2018 they joined the Mid-Ohio Foodbank Direct Pickup program.

In 2017 we received 481,815 pounds of food from Mid-Ohio Foodbank and 77,756 pounds from Lucky’s Market.

Of course, this is just a brief overview of all the work we do to support our community. Please comment on this blog with any questions, and those inquiries will be passed along to us!