About the Food Angels
Begun in 1996 by Pamala Joy with the purpose of retrieving
food which would otherwise have gone to the landfills, and
redirecting it to the people in need, this project has grown
each year to include both more recipients and more donators.
Starting with a once a week food pick-up for the Northwest
Seasonal Workers, within a year or so collection became a
daily event and the food was distributed to other organizations.
Hundreds of people have been involved with the project over
the past sixteen years and tons of food have been kept out
of landfills.
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| Pamala Joy,
Director of the Ashalnd Food Angels in her distribution
center. |
The Ashland Food Angels could not function without the hard
work of our Volunteers who collect food each morning and evening
from various sources, including The Market of Choice, Shop
'N' Kart, the Ashland Community Food Store, New Sammy's Bakery,
organic farmers (in season), and caterers, as well as from
individual gardens and orchards. Food is sorted, reboxed and
delivered to a variety of organizations, such as the Ashland
Food Bank, the Senior Center, Headstart and DHS, who distribute
the food to low income individuals and families in the Rogue
Valley. Food Angel Volunteers work with both the recipients
and the food donors to educate and encourage increased awareness
regarding recycling, as well as understanding of those in
need.
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| Ashland
Food Angel Volunteer hard a work in the cold storage room. |
Pamala Joy continues to hold the main focus of the project,
with continued support from regular volunteers. She acts as
a coordinator between the volunteers and donors and distribution
groups, ensuring that each group is served in the best possible
way. She enlists, trains and supports volunteers, keeping
track of daily pick-ups and deliveries, serves as a network
source for connecting people to services when needed, answers
requests for food for special events, and insures that food
is distributed fairly and according to the needs of each group.
The population served by the Food Angels includes students
of all ages, particularly those connected to Ashland High
School, HeadStart preschool and SOU, homeless people, Native
Americans, Mexican Americans, special needs people, seniors,
single parent families, those with disabilities, and people
with low incomes.
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