Weekly Update

Larry Miller
Tom Norman
John Oberlin
Bryan Smith
Charlie Vachris and Judy Long

Hello, Dedicated Volunteers,

I know some of you are worried during this time if you should commit more time to Heart to Heart physically or not. I want you to know that I understand completely if you are unable to volunteer during this time of Social Distancing. There will be no hard feelings if you need to take a step back and be close to family.

Lamar Graham
Heart to Heart Director

Amid the ever-changing news regarding the COVID-19 outbreak, we have established a page on the website where you will find regular updates as they are announced. A link to this page will be on the left side of the menu permanently. We will continue to post these announcements on social media and via email, as well.

Tom Norman

Click above to see the full video and view the entire story about Heart to Heart from NBC Channel 4.

Volunteers John and Sarah Oberlin and Kitty Rohrer serving clients though our drive in system.

Pictured here are Kitty Rohrer and John Oberlin taking care of our clients.

Stuck at home with nothing to do? Read this article for some ideas.

Announcements

Amid the ever-changing news regarding the COVID-19 outbreak, we have established a page on the website where you will find regular updates as they are announced. A link to this page will be on the left side of the menu permanently. We will continue to post these announcements on social media and via email, as well.

Five things you can do to help us at Heart to Heart:

1. Volunteer with us! Click the link below to sign up. If you aren’t able to volunteer physically maybe you can write encouraging cards.

2. Give funds. Please click button below to contribute directly to Heart to Heart. For every $1 we spend at Mid-Ohio Food Collective we can get $10 worth of groceries for distribution to our clients.

3. Take care of yourself. Remember, you can’t pour from an empty cup! Stay informed with accurate information on the Ohio Department of Health website here. If you have questions regarding Coronavirus/COVID-19 please call 1-833-4-ASK-ODH (1-833-427-5634)

4. Contribute food at 1944 W. First Ave in our bin outside the door. Please note:

• We are NOT accepting any food BEYOND the expiration date or BEYOND best used by date. The best times to donate food to our bin are Monday 9-10 am and Wednesday 3-4 pm.
• Due to possible exposure of COVID-19 through the usage of used plastic, paper, and reusable cloth, we are NO LONGER accepting any bag donations.

5. Pray for our world, country, community, and our families. If there was ever a time to pray, the time is now.

If you have any questions about Heart to Heart at this time, please call 614-488-0681 ext. 203

Hello Dedicated Volunteers,

I know some of you are worried during this time if you should commit more time to Heart to Heart physically or not. I want you to know that I understand completely if you are unable to volunteer during this time of Social Distancing. There will be no hard feelings if you need to take a step back and be close to family.

Lamar Graham
Heart to Heart Director

Announcements

Amid the ever-changing news regarding the COVID-19 outbreak, we have established a page on the website where you will find regular updates as they are announced. A link to this page will be on the left side of the menu permanently. When we have a new announcment it will appear highlighted in red to alert you to read more. We will continue to post these announcements on social media and via email, as well. Read the latest announcement from Director, Lamar Graham.

Tom Norman

In the month of February, we served

• 337 Households
• 201 Seniors
• 601 Adults
• 434 Children
• 1,236 Individuals

Click here for the full list of statistics from last month.

The spotlight is on Bob Argo for March. Click here to read the post.

This week was a busy yet productive one as we rolled out our new “Drive-Thru” system. We served 155 households! Normally, we serve between 100-160 households in a week. Thank you for all of your hard work and contributions. Please enjoy photos from this past week and stay tuned for more information in preparation for this coming week.

Preparations of pre-packaged groceries.

New drive-thru service in action.

Mental Health Resources

While we don’t like to think about it, with increased stress comes things like increased depression, increased domestic violence, and increased suicide. Please make sure you have the following numbers available to give people if they need them or if you feel you might need them yourself. Know there is always help, there are people to listen, and you are worth any effort. You matter to God and you certainly matter to us.

• NetCare Crisis Hotline (Mental Health Emergencies) 614- 276-2273
• National Suicide Prevention Hotline- 1-800-273-TALK
• If you are quarantined with an abuser, or someone you know is isolated in a dangerous home situation, please reach out to the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 or chat at thehotline.org.

Additional Resources

Mid-Ohio Foodbank Updates and Resources

As we served this week we seen many people step up in a huge way! Many volunteers came to help us out on what was our first rodeo of our “Drive-Thru” system. We saw many people who were doing their morning run and/or walk stop to tell us thank you for continuing to serve our clients. Our clients were also super appreciative, telling us repeatedly, “Thank you for being here”.

As prepare for this coming week we at Heart to Heart would like to say to you, our wonderful volunteers and stakeholders: Thank you for being here. All of your support makes it possible for us to give our clients high-quality service.

We have received several inquiries about how folks can best help out during this uncertain time. These are some things you can do:

1. Give of your time volunteer with us! Click the link below to sign up. If you aren’t able to volunteer physically maybe you can write encouraging cards. We have lots of students who helps us with this throughout the year. Often our youth will write and/or draw fun, simple, cool, and witty ways to encourage our clients.
2. Give funds. Please see this link below to contribute directly to Heart to Heart. For every $1 we spend at MidOhio Foodbank we can get $10 worth of groceries for distribution to our clients.
3. Take care of yourself. Remember, you can’t pour from an empty cup! Stay informed with accurate information on the Ohio Department of Health website here. If you have questions regarding Coronavirus/COVID-19 please call 1-833-4-ASK-ODH (1-833-427-5634)
4. Lastly, pray. Pray for our world, country, community, and our families. If there was ever a time to pray, the time is now.

Thank you for your support as we get through this challenging time together.

For now, we plan to remain in our altered state of operation unless we are ordered to close our doors. In that event, we will inform the public via our website and social media platforms.

Cookie Donation

Kristin Unalan of Girl Scout Troop 1444 donated 107 boxes of cookies on Wednesday. This troop of third-graders are from Barrington Elementary in Upper Arlington.

Friends and family of Mary Garvin

Baby Quilts

This is photo of the Veda Hendricks family was taken at the pantry on Thursday. Christian is 4 months old and received baby quilt from the quiliting group today. They were so grateful.

Voter Registration

Pictured here are Deb Linville and Sally Kriska getting clients registered to vote on March 17.  Not only were they helping new voters register, but they assisted with change of address forms and checked polling locations for several clients. In just two weeks, they were able to help 34 clients.

Staying Healthy

We encourage everyone to review these basic tips for the prevention of illness:

• Wash your hands frequently—with soap and water and for at least 20 seconds.
• Sneeze or cough into the crook of your elbow or a tissue, not your hand.
• Wash immediately after coughing, sneezing or blowing your nose.
• Feel free to “bump elbows” or bow to one another, rather than hugging or shaking hands.
• Avoid touching your face, especially your mouth, nose and eyes, with
  unwashed hands.
• Regularly disinfect surfaces frequently touched including keyboards, desktops, elevator buttons and door knobs.
• Use hand sanitizer.
• Avoid close contact with someone who is sick.
• Stay home if you are sick!

Prevention at the Pantry

At Heart to Heart we are doing our part to prevent the spread of viruses. At the end of every day, volunteers wipe handles, chairs, light-switches, keyboard/mouse, etc. with alcohol-based sanitizing wipes.  We have also provided alcohol-based hand sanitizer in each of the rooms we regularly use.

We are asking and encouraging all volunteers who have a fever or feel ill to stay home. You should remain isolated at home until you are symptom/fever-free for 24 hours without the use of medication.

Donation Request

We would love to be able to send each client away with a dispenser of alcohol-based hand sanitizer. Please drop off these contributions at the donation stations at both church locations, or inside the annex building.

Mid-Ohio Foodbank Order

Click here to see the order we anticipate next week!

Thank you

Thank you to all our volunteers, donors, and community partners for their support of our mission.

Mary Garvin
Tom Unger

New Looks

There’s a new look on the Mid-Ohio Foodbank website. They have recently updated their image to reflect their expanded focus and this article in the Columbus Dispatch explains the change.

Likewise, you may have noticed our slight branding update at Heart to Heart. Our logo now includes the words “a first community mission” in order to maintain our connection to the church.  Members of First Community started the roots of our ministry in 1986.

Student Volunteers

Sara Hager’s class from Grandview Heights visits Heart to Heart to help us weigh donations, organize and stock shelves.

Mary Garvin
Merydeth Tipton

Friends and family of
Daryl “Nick” Hodge

You are TEE-rrific!

Thank you to the 38 volunteers who joined us for dinner on Wednesday evening. We were glad to serve you and share in some fellowship. Lamar shared the pantry’s annual report and some cooking class footage with the group which we will be sharing with you all soon. Here are some photos from Wednesday!

Heart to Heart Sunday

Thank you to everyone who attended the Open House last weekend after Sunday worship services.  We had sixteen guests visit the pantry. We are also grateful to the volunteers who helped last Sunday, including those who provided cookies for the worship hospitality tables.

News from “the shop downstairs”

As you know, we share the First Community Annex building with several other ministries of the church. Most notably, the Tri-Village Trading Post which occupies the bottom floor and is a constant source of support and community for us. Here is a message from their director, Rebecca Wolfe:

Each year Trading Post volunteers choose area organizations to gift with money for their programs.  This year Choices and Huckleberry House were selected to each receive $5,000 from Trading Post.  Choices is Franklin County’s only domestic violence shelter helping protect those who are in need of escape from their domestic situations.  Huckleberry House helps youth ages 14-24 with issues facing them such as abuse, violence, neglect, poverty, and homelessness.  Many of these youth are those who have aged out of the foster care system with no place to go.

In addition, Trading Post gave back over $6500 to First Community Mission Council for the sale of items gleaned from the Garage Sale. All this, and the church received $59,000 in support of general ministries and mission efforts.

Thanks to all who donate, volunteer and shop – we are making a difference at Trading Post.

Beverly Minister
Kitty Rohrer
Jim Schilling
Merydeth Tipton

Due to vacations in the department, this post will take the place of the Saturday posts from February 8 and 15.

Recap from Lamar’s Vacation

I met with some movers and shakers in Guyana who are into the arts, eco-tourism, journalism, radio, and technology amongst other various fields. We sat down and had an intimate dinner and talked about life. Where we are from, our families, what’s important to us, etc. I must say outside of my time in Mississippi, I have never sat down and talked with such open people. They opened up shared things that I thought were very personal. Experiencing domestic violence, losing a loved one and more. It was so refreshing to be around such like-minded people, who were truly themselves, although they hold degrees and many titles. There was something truly human about them and how deeply they felt about life.

From left to right: Racquel, Sonia, Stan, Mia, Anthony

This is my new friend Emanuel (the human) and his not-so-friendly friend Sun Kar (Black Caiman). Emanuel is from 1 of 9 of the indigenous tribes that were first to be in Guyana. Awesome and interesting guy.

…and this ladies and gentlemen is Turtle Mountain! 984 ft and a sight of beauty to behold. Trees so green when the color forest green was created, I’m sure this is the picture they had in mind. Absolutely stunning. Lastly, if you look hard enough you can see the Essequibo river running east and west between the tree lines.

Hunger Hoedown

Thank you to everyone that supported us at the Hoedown last Friday. We appreciate your contribution whether you donated, volunteered or participated! We will give you fundraising results next week, but in the meantime, please enjoy these photos from the event.

Young Donor

We would also like to extend our thanks to Ethan Young, nephew of Steve and Sandra Young, our regular volunteers. Last week at the Hoedown, Ethan made a generous donation of $200 in memory of his grandfather, David. This money was earned from the sale of the matchbox cars that his grandfather had collected and left for Ethan when he passed away last year. This kind gesture shows that Ethan will continue the family’s legacy of giving.

Happy Birthday, Jill!

Our original director, Jill Thomas (pictured below) was born on Valentine’s Day, February 14.  After several years as Project Adelphos, over time the ministry grew and became known as Heart to Heart due, in part, to Jill. Also, the goal of the ministry was originally to connect individuals one-on-one. While we no longer use that model, we continue to promote the idea of community, connection and love.

Happy Valentine’s Day

Residents of Powell Senior Living spent an afternoon crafting beautiful homemade Valentine’s Day cards for the clients of Heart to Heart to deliver to their loved ones. Special cards made with lots of love!

MOFB February Order

Our February order from Mid-Ohio Foodbank totaled $993.33. Click here to view what we picked up on Monday.

January Stats

In January we served 441 Households over 8 service days. Read more about our January Statistics in the blog post.

Kroger Community Rewards

Time Period November 1, 2019 to January 31, 2020
Households participating: 274
Total donation for Heart to Heart: $ 1,177.54

Help provide for a family in need while shopping for yours. Follow this link to learn more about enrolling in the Kroger Community Rewards program benefitting Heart to Heart.

Recent Donations

Pepperidge Farm at 1174 Kenny Centre Mall has donated for the first time and we are looking forward to working with them in the future. Their donation totalled 220 pounds. Thank you to Marcy Miller for setting up this partnership.

We also received a donation from the Big Lots at 1451 W. Fifth Avenue. It included 106 pounds of dairy products and 204 pounds of dry goods.

Tri-Village Rotary club met bright and early Monday morning at Heart to Heart. They had been holding a competition to see who could solicit and contribute the most donations for us. In total, they brought us 2,901 pounds of food!