Students from Xaverian Brothers High Schools recently visited Amazing Grace Food Pantry as the service portion of their retreat. The March retreat sends six to ten students from 13 different schools, from four different states to Connecticut for four days to learn about the history and legacy of the Xaverian brothers, and to help educate the students on the founder, Theodore James Ryken. Students hail from Massachusetts,New York, Connecticut, Maryland and Kentucky. While in Connecticut the students studied and stayed at the Holy Family Retreat Center in West Hartford. On the fourth day, they worked at Amazing Grace Food Pantry. Students in photo: Stephanie, Gina, Dimosthenes, Tevin, Brogan, Billy, Robert and Chad Puclowski, a science teacher from Xaverian Brothers High in Westwood, Mass. For more information see www.xaverianbrothers.org, and www.xbss.org.

Thank you Altrusa club members Angela Lambriola, Ellen Paris, (left to right) and Linda Kranyik, far right, for presenting blankets and books from the organization's children's blanket committee to Kathleen Kelly, coordinator at Amazing Grace Food Pantry (third from left).

Highlights from our Christmas party: Over 150 of our guests enjoyed a sumptuous buffet held in the hall at St. Francis of Assisi church. Dave and Tony share a Christmas carol.

Ernie sings at National Homeless Persons' Memorial Day, a service remembering the homeless individuals who have died in Middlesex County this year. The Memorial Service & Candlelight Vigil was held on Friday, Dec. 21 at Church of the Holy Trinity in Middletown.

The eighth annual Durham/Middlefield Community Roundup was held this Saturday with hundreds collecting food donated by neighbors to feed the hungry at Amazing Grace Food Pantry and in the towns of Middlefield and Durham. Scores of teams of five people each were assigned to bus routes in both Durham and Middlefield to travel and make pickups of the food the residents so generously set out. In some cases a parent was the driver and the four students served as runners picking up the food and bringing it back to the vehicle. The food was returned to the gym at Coginchaug Regional High School where another group of volunteers met the vehicles, unloaded the cars and took the food into the gym. Another group of volunteers sorted, packed, and redistributed the food to Durham/Middlefield families identified by the town social service agency as being in need. In addition, the volunteers tried to meet any dietary restrictions of these people. Food remaining was donated to the Amazing Grace Food Pantry in Middletown, a program of St. Vincent De Paul.

Thanksgiving through The Middletown Community Thanksgiving Project
Over 600 boxes were distributed to people in need this Thanksgiving through The Middletown Community Thanksgiving Project (MCTP). MCTP was made up of volunteers from a host of nonprofit organizations, businesses, faith communities and members from the community. A number of food drives held be organizations at local supermarkets brought in tons of food.

Middletown Community Donates 1,243 Pounds of Food During Thanksgiving Day Game
By Ronald Derosa, Middletown Patch
When Xavier and Middletown high schools met for their rivalry football game on Thanksgiving Day, the momentous competition included a food drive coordinated between both schools and Mercy High School.

And, when all the cans were counted, the coordinators of the drive announced last week that 1,243 pounds of non-perishable items were collected and another $1,015 in cash was donated to Amazing Grace Food Pantry, Middletown Mayor Dan Drew and Mercy President Sr. Mary McCarthy said in a news release.
Click to read full story »

Housing the Homeless!
One of the most exciting and fulfilling moments in the life of an organization dedicated to "meeting needs and offering hope" is welcoming homeless folks into a supportive housing program. Last Friday we met with fourteen of Middletown's most chronically homeless and vulnerable citizens who have been living on the streets, in the woods, along the rivers and in shelters for the last 5-15 years. Thanks to a new HUD contract, we were able to offer them a subsidized apartment and the case management support services to increase their chances of remaining successfully housed.

We began providing permanent supportive housing for the chronically homeless in 2008 with 16 units and we have a success rate of over 90% in keeping these individuals housed. With this latest contract, St. Vincent de Paul now has a total of 30 units of supportive housing serving approximately 38 chronically homeless individuals and couples. They live in apartments scattered throughout Middletown and the surrounding towns.

While they all suffer from medical, mental health and/or substance use disabilities, our goal is to integrate them into the community and help them to be good neighbors. Their housing is in many ways a form of healthcare - it provides a stable and safe environment from which they can begin to set new goals for themselves and overcome many of the challenges they faced as survivors of homelessness.

Like with all of our programs and services, we have many community partners involved in our supportive housing too! All of the new apartments have been "adopted" by an area church, synagogue or faith group that will furnish the apartments and turn them into homes. Imagine the joy that a homeless person feels when they receive the key to an apartment fully equipped with furniture, linens, kitchenware, cleaning supplies and even food. Their smiles and tears are what nourish us as we try to find ways to offer hope to others in crisis, others who are homeless, and others who reach out to us in need.

Middletown's South Fire District collects food for Amazing Grace Food Pantry

South Fire Dept. organized "Stuff a Truck" food drive at Stop and Shop in Middletown recently collected 3000 pounds of food! Click to read full story >>

St. Vincent dePaul of Middletown feeds body and spirit at Thanksgiving dinner
By JEFF MILL, Middletown Press
Lydia Brewster was running perhaps the most popular dining room in the city on Thursday, and she couldn't have been more at ease or more pleased with how the meal was progressing. Brewster, the assistant director for community services at St. Vincent dePaul, was overseeing the annual Thanksgiving Day dinner for more than 130 guests at the Main Street facility.

Dinner was served from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., and there was a steady stream of guests entering the modest facility to enjoy turkey, green bean casserole, potatoes, stuffing, rolls and the choice of apple or pumpkin pie. Actually, feeding in excess of 100-plus people a day is not unusual for Brewster or for St. Vincent dePaul, whose motto is "Meeting needs, offering hope." Click to read full story>>

Middletown Warming Center To Open Daily Starting Nov. 18
By SHAWN R. BEALS, The Hartford Courant
St. Vincent de Paul Middletown and downtown churches will open a nightly warming center throughout the winter for the city's homeless people beginning Nov. 18.

Councilman Joseph Bibisi said First Baptist Church, First United Methodist Church, the Church of the Holy Trinity and South Congregational Church will each host the warming center for a portion of the winter. The common council was set to contribute $2,500 last week, but St. Vincent de Paul was able to raise enough money to fully fund the program, Bibisi said. "The community came through big time," he said.

St. Vincent de Paul Director Ron Krom said he is expecting about 15 to 20 people a night. Two winters ago St. Vincent de Paul opened the soup kitchen dining room as a warming center and last winter the Mayor's Task Force on Homelessness organized the program at three local churches."We don't consider it a shelter," Krom said. "We don't provide beds. We don't provide meals. We provide a place for people to be safe and out of the cold. We were worried people might freeze to death outside."

First Baptist will host from Nov. 18 through the end of December, the Church of the Holy Trinity will host during January, South Congregational will host during February and First United Methodist will host the warming center in March. The council provided $4,000 last winter to fund the center. This year, St. Vincent de Paul received a $10,000 grant from the city health department and got donations from Middlesex Hospital, St. Pius X Church, River Valley Services, Seasons Federal Credit Union and the Liberty Bank Foundation, Krom said. The warming center will be open nightly from 9 p.m. to 7 a.m. Each location will provide an area for seating and hot beverages, and sometimes snacks. Bibisi said the Eddy Shelter at Connecticut Valley Hospital, run by the Connection, Inc., will be open daily for showers, and on Fridays for laundry. The city has purchased more than 200 bus passes to provide transportation for anyone who needs to get to either the warming center or the Eddy Shelter.

In the past, officials have opened city hall and the police department as daytime warming centers. In extreme cases, the city opens the emergency shelter at Middletown High School to lodge large groups of people over night.

The Middletown Community Thanksgiving Project (MCTP) made up of volunteers from nonprofit organizations, businesses, and faith communities is gearing up to feed over 600 families who do not have the means to purchase a Thanksgiving meal this year. A number of supporters were out at the second of two food drives at Stop and Shop. Kate Gingras and Melissa Briere from Liberty Bank and Matt Plourde from the Middlesex United Way (in van). Monetary donations are being accepted to purchase necessary food and non-food items essential to this effort. If you wish to contribute, checks can be made out to Middletown Community Thanksgiving Project and send to MCTP, c/o Fellowship Church, 1002 Saybrook Road, Middletown, CT 06457.

For more information about volunteering or contributing a donation, please contact Lara SantaMaria at Fellowship Church at 860-346-1181.

Several gathered to learn how to cook with pumpkin, facilitated by Wesleyan University Students from the Housing and Hunger Program. The young couple in the foreground are evacuees from New Jersey due to super storm "Sandy". They came to Cromwell via the Red Cross and discovered Amazing Grace Food Pantry on Friday. They returned for the Cooking class facilitated by Wesleyan students on Saturday, Nov. 10th. Photos by Pat Hickox.

Middletown Community Thanksgiving Project Gearing Up to Feed More Than 500 Families
The Middletown Community Thanksgiving Project (MCTP) made up of volunteers from nonprofit organizations, businesses, and faith communities is gearing up to feed 535 families who do not have the means to purchase a Thanksgiving meal this year.

If you are unable to purchase Thanksgiving dinner for your family this year, registration for Thanksgiving baskets will take place on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. at Amazing Grace Food Pantry, 16 Stack Street, through Nov. 14. There will be no registration on Nov. 12 in observance of Veterans Day.

Those who wish to register must provide proof of Middletown residence and ID for each family member. Acceptable proofs of residence are utility bill, driver's license or state identification, lease agreement or rental receipts. Acceptable forms of identification are driver's license, birth certificate, medial card, or DSS or housing listing. No social security cards will be accepted.

Monetary donations are being accepted to purchase necessary food and non-food items essential to this effort. If you wish to contribute, checks can be made out to Middletown Community Thanksgiving Project and send to MCTP, c/o Fellowship Church, 1002 Saybrook Road, Middletown, CT 06457.

If you wish to make a donation of a non-perishable food item, the Middletown Community Thanksgiving Project is holding two Fill-A-Bus events, Saturday, Oct. 27 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Price Chopper in Middletown and Saturday, Nov. 10 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Stop & Shop in Middletown.

Baskets will be available for pickup Tuesday, Nov. 20 between 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. at Fellowship Church, 1002 Saybrook Road.
For more information about volunteering or contributing a donation, please contact Lara SantaMaria at Fellowship Church at 860-346-1181.

Partners in the Middletown Community Thanksgiving Project are Community Renewal Team, Cross Street AME Zion Church, DianneAnnelli.com, Fellowship Church, Heritage Commons, Liberty Bank Foundation, Middlesex County Community Foundation, Middlesex United Way, the Middletown Interfaith Community, Middletown Kiwanis Club, Middletown Police Department, Middletown Public Schools, Middletown Rotary Club, St. John Roman Catholic Church, St. Luke's Eldercare Services, St. Vincent De Paul Middletown/Amazing Grace Food Pantry, The Salvation Army, Wadsworth Glen Health Care Center, and Wesleyan University.

Amazing Challenge Soup Supper Raises The Ladle and $11,767 Toward Our Goal

Big thanks to everyone who served and donated at our recent 2012 Amazing Challenge Soup Supper at Fox Parish Center of St. Francis of Assisi Church. Staff, volunteers, advisory board members, donors and guests gathered to celebrate our community's commitment to share its food, by making and serving soup and desserts for the annual kick-off fund raiser.

A total of $11,767, a bit more than last year, was raised towards the goal of $45,000. The City of Middletown will give $22,500, or fifty cents toward each dollar raised for Amazing Grace Food Pantry.

Celebrity soup servers included Mayor Dan Drew, Former Mayor Seb Giuliano, Sen. Paul Doyle, Rep. Matt Lesser, Sen. Len Suzio, Sen. Candidate Dante Bartolomeo, Rep. Joe Serra, Common Council members Grady Faulkner and Phil Pessina, Police Chief Bill McKenna, South District Fire Chief Steve Krol. Other servers included Frank Kuan of Wesleyan, Cynthia Clegg of Community Foundation of Middlesex County, Rev. Marybeth Marshall and Willard & Kathy McRae, NEAT's Izzy Greenburg, Bobbye Knoll, Sr. Mary McCarthy, Patti Vassia, Betsy & David Morgan, Justin Carbonella, David Sizemore, and James Mastroianni.

Over a dozen different kinds of soup, five gallons each, were made by restaurants, churches and friends, including Puerta Vallarta, Blackbird, Red House, Green Room, Belilli's of East Hartford. The South District Fire house, South Church South Congregational Church, First Church of Christ Congregational, Faith Lutheran Middletown and friends Betsy Morgan, Lydia Brewster, and Leslie Roberts also made soup. Cookies were donated by St Sebastian Church, St John Church Cromwell, St Pius X Church, St Mary of Czestochowa, St John Church Middletown, and various friends.

Breads were donated by Price Chopper, Southside, Taste of Italy, Panera and Fusion. Connecticut Rental lent soup warmers.

Wonderful volunteers included South District Fire, and high schools including Xavier, Mercy, Coginchaug, Middletown High School and Wilson Middle School. Wesleyan University and Middlesex Community College also helped. Music was provided by Back Swamp band. Roger Aliaga was the kitchen supervisor, and the Advisory Board for Amazing Grace Food Pantry organized the entire event.

Amazing Grace Food Pantry is serving between 900-1000 households each month and continues to serve new folks every day.

Community Cooking Classes
at Amazing Grace Food Pantry
16 Stack Street, Middletown
November 10, 2012 at 12:00 P.M.

Wesleyan University Students from the Housing and Hunger Program will present an interesting, free class on holiday cooking with pumpkin.

No cooking experience is necessary and healthy ingredients will be provided free of charge.
The classes are free and attendees will be given ingredients to cook with at home. Call 860-347-3222 for more details.
Pictured: Matt Donahue, Lizzie Williams, and Songyi Wang prepping vegetables for a savory chili at the October 6th class.
Lizzie Williams, Alexa Crawford, Marisa Guerrero, Songyi Wang, and Matt Donahue. Front row: Marissa Schnitman and Savannah Morehouse

Rocky Hill High School students recently volunteered in the Soup Kitchen and Amazing Grace Food Pantry as part of their school's annual "Lend A Paw" day. Student "Terriers" have been participating in the state's Day of Giving for 10 years. The program's goal is to provide volunteering opportunities to students in hopes that it will become a regular part of their lives. An estimated 300 students at about 25 different locations participated statewide this year.

Thank you to members of the St. Pius Peer Ministry Team with Father Sam Fuller who collected 995 pounds of food and $230.00 in gift cards for Amazing Grace Food Pantry. As part of their "We are All in this Together" program launched on Saturday Sept. 29th, the youth held a food drive at the Middletown Price Chopper and at St. Pius X Church, Middletown.

Art on The Menu in St. Vincent's Soup Kitchen!
Hadlyme illustrator/ artist Abby Carter has been volunteering at the Soup Kitchen on Tuesdays mornings since May, encouraging our guests to draw anything they like in her large sketch pad. "My philosophy is that anyone can draw. The more you draw the better you become."

She sits quietly as guests Tony and James sketch cartoons from the Sunday funny papers. Tony finishes his rendition of Garfield. "I've been drawing since I was a little kid. Now Abby has gotten me in the mood by bringing in her art supplies."

Tony reminisces about drawing and painting a large wall mural in the 1970s and developing black and white photos in a dark room. "You really can get the feeling with the shades of black and white."

Abby exercises her own desire to draw by finding dining room guests as her models who are eager to pose for her or her camera. "I usually take their photo home and work on the portrait there," she says. She returns with the portraits framed and hangs them on the dining room wall.

Tony admires his portrait among 20 others. "Abby caught my likeness 100%. Being on this wall is better than being on the most wanted list," he jokes.

Abby has been illustrating since her early childhood. "When I was 11, I made small gift tags and my grandmother sold them to stores in Maine." She graduated from Wesleyan in 1983 where she studied studio art and has been illustrating children's books for over 20 years for publishers including Hyperion and Holiday House.

Abby plans to bring in her watercolors, aqua pencils, and chalk to share. "Every time I leave here, I feel very heart-warmed. People here are very welcoming and friendly."
August Food Drives Help To Fill Shelves
Recent food drives have helped to replenish typically low shelves this time a year at Amazing Grace Food Pantry, a program of St. Vincent De Paul Middletown. Many thanks to members of South Congregational Church and the Middletown Police Department who held food drives at Stop and Shop markets in Middletown and Cromwell and at Price Chopper in Middletown earlier this month.

The South Congregational Church collected 1,344 pounds along with $637.00 in money and gift cards. The Middletown Police Department organized the "Fill the Cruiser Event" at Price Chopper, and collected 1,388 pounds of food and $540.00. City Hall contributed 100 pounds of food and $149.

Food drives are crucial as St. Vincent De Paul's Amazing Grace Food Pantry is currently distributing 30,000 pounds of food per month to an average of 950 shoppers, an increase of 13% from last year.

"Fifteen percent of all the food at Amazing Grace is donated through organized food drives," explained St. Vincent De Paul's executive director Ron Krom. "Food drives are extremely helpful because 1,000 to 2,000 pounds of food in one delivery---sometimes a variety of items, sometimes targeted items--- is a one day commitment of a group to collect a lot of food in a short amount of time."

We have many partners working to help feed the hungry in the Middletown Community and are blessed by all our friends in the community who consistently support our efforts. About forty percent of our food comes from churches, businesses, schools, organizations, and families that commit to regular food donations throughout the year.

If you would like to learn more about supporting our work and/or facilitating a food drive, please contact Amazing Grace Food Pantry, 860-347-3222. Calling all Gardeners!
to the Amazing Grace Food Pantry
A wonderful way to use the extra bounty of your garden is to donate the food to Amazing Grace Food Pantry. When shoppers there see that there are fresh fruits or vegetables available, they are thrilled. Being able to prepare meals and provide snacks for children with fresh food is a treat that they usually can't afford. Your donation of your garden's bounty will bring many smiles of appreciation, and good nutrition to our shoppers. Amazing Grace is located at 16 Stack Street in Middletown. Food donations will be accepted Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 10:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. and on Saturday from 9:00 A.M. to 1:00 P.M. Please call if we can provide you any additional information, 860-344-0097 x10, or 860-347-3222. Photo: Local gardener Angelo Tebano donated part of his garden's bounty on July 21.

The Erin Street Community Garden is beautiful again this year! It is also a testament to what can happen when a diverse group of neighbors work together for a common purpose. The garden, initiated as a project of the North End Action Team to reclaim a blighted lot, provides a perfect opportunity for St. Vincent de Paul Middletown to demonstrate its commitment to its neighborhood. The flowers that we grow in our plot are a welcome sight not only to passersby on the corners of Erin and High Streets, but they also brighten up the tables in the Soup Kitchen from July through September.

This year we donated our double composter to the Erin Street Community Garden to allow all of its gardeners to both contribute to and benefit from the rich compost produced. Our guests from the Soup Kitchen are involved in the full cycle - from tilling and planting, to composting and weeding, to cutting and arranging flowers in vases. Everyone who enters the Soup Kitchen dining room feels welcomed by the simple beauty and colors that greet them!

Vern Curry has been volunteering at the Amazing Grace Food Pantry for the past 3 years. His initial service was a result of community service which was completed long ago. Vern, however, has never stopped volunteering and finds it most fulfilling to serve people, "It feels real good."

Vern is usually at the Food Pantry Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 8:00-4:00. A brief conversation will make you realize he has a very deep respect for Amazing Grace and the people he works with there. Amazing Grace is "a huge part of my life."

Kathleen Kelly, coordinator of the food pantry, considers his volunteer services a critical part of the success of the program. "Vern will do whatever it takes to accomplish the mission of helping people. He will ask questions and improvise as necessary to get the job of helping people done."

Vern knows some people are embarrassed to come to the food pantry but he believes "If you're hungry and your family is hungry, don't hesitate to come and get food. That's why we are here."

Vern finds it very fulfilling to see people who had been shoppers at Amazing Grace who have since gotten a job and a new start on life. He also finds it very sad to see people who had regularly donated food to now be in line to shop.

Vern retired in 2008 from Pratt and Whitney in East Hartford after 33 years of service. In the near future Vern and his wife Classie will be relocating to North Carolina to be close to elderly parents.

The management, staff and volunteers of St. Vincent de Paul and The Amazing Grace Food Pantry extend our sincere thanks for all his outstanding volunteer efforts, and we extend our very best wishes as Vern and his wife begin a new chapter in their lives. We hope he finds another volunteer opportunity that provides the fulfillment he so richly deserves. Whatever organization he joins will be very lucky to have him.

Ron Krom, Executive Director the St. Vincent de Paul Middletown recently gave State Senator Paul Doyle, State Reps. Joseph Serra and Matthew Lesser, and Middletown Mayor Dan Drew a tour of The Amazing Grace Food Pantry. Ron explained that the need for food remains constant in the summer, though food contributions are reduced significantly due to schools being closed and people on vacation.

Heads up Hartford is a faith based group of urban and suburban youth who along with adult advisors get together for a week every summer and weekends through the year to build communities through promotion of diversity, developing leadership, and providing community service. A youth group volunteered on June 27th at The St Vincent de Paul Soup Kitchen and The Amazing Grace Food Pantry. Pictured are Mandi, Lamar Jake, Margaret, and Glen.

Middletown mayor, legislative delegates announce tax refund for Amazing Grace
By JIM SALEMI, Middletown Press Staff
Members of the city's legislative delegation and Mayor Dan Drew announced legislation passed during the special session that will allow the city to return nearly $5,000 in taxes it collected from the Amazing Grace food pantry.

State Sen. Paul Doyle, D-Wethersfield, and state Reps. Joe Serra, D-Middletown, and Matt Lesser, D-Middletown, visited the pantry Thursday for a formal press conference announcing the legislation and a tour of the facility.

"The city of Middletown and the legislative delegation worked together to fix a technical glitch," Doyle said during the conference.

Ron Krom, executive director of St. Vincent de Paul, the agency that oversees the Amazing Grace Food Pantry, was unaware that paperwork exempting the not-for-profit of property taxes had to be submitted in 30 days. Click for more details»

St. Vincent DePaul executive director to be honored
By Kevin J. Wilhelm, Middletown Press
For those few of you who may not know Ron Krom, he is the Executive Director of St. Vincent DePaul Middletown. He is also one of our area's finest people, going about his work with compassion and persistence, but never with bravado. Ron will soon be honored for his outstanding advocacy work at the Reaching Home Awards Dinner on June 14.

Reaching Home, part of the Partnership for Strong Communities, is a campaign to build the political and civic will to prevent and end homelessness in Connecticut with the vision that no one should experience homelessness or be without a safe, stable place to call home. Each year, the organization celebrates the success of the Reaching Home campaign at a statewide event to honor a select few that have made a measurable impact.
Click for more details»

Feed the People Charity - First Annual Pizza Wars
Volunteers from Feed the People Charity www.facebook.com/pages/Feed-the-People-Charity organized The First Annual Middletown Pizza War on May 17 to benefit St. Vincent De Paul Middletown.

Mondo wins Middletown's first Pizza War
Friday, May 18, 2012 - Middletown Press by Jim Salemi
MIDDLETOWN — Jane Rolon didn't get much sleep Wednesday night. Rolon is is the chairman and CEO of Feed the People Charity, the organization that hosted the city's first Pizza Wars Thursday. It was the first-ever competition that the organization held, and Rolon was afraid no one would show up.

After the first half-hour of the event, it was standing room only and two restaurants had already run out of their pizzas, sending volunteers scrambling to get more pizza to the Sons of Italy hall, where the competition took place. Click to read full article »

Proclamation
St. Vincent De Paul Middletown along with a host of partnering organizations was recently honored with a Citation on behalf of Mayor Dan Drew and The Common Council of The City of Middletown for City's Warming Center program that took place November 20, 2011 to March 2012.

The City praised St. Vincents for its supervisory role in providing staffing and general oversight at the three churches that took turns providing space: The First Baptist Church, First Methodist Church, and the Church of the Holy Trinity. An average of 15-20 people per night was able to seek shelter from the cold 133 nights this past winter.

The City also thanked organizations that provide financial resources for the Warming Center including Middlesex Hospital, Citizen's Bank, St. Pius X Church, Seasons Federal Credit Union, and Liberty Bank Foundation.

Delivering mail... Delivering food?! The Middletown and Rocky Hill U.S. Post Offices picked up and delivered over 11,000 pounds of food which eventually ended up on the shelves at St. Vincent De Paul Middletown's Amazing Grace Food Pantry. The local postal services, who organize periodic pick ups, send out emails and post cards to their patrons for the spring food drives. Postmen and women pick up non-perishable items at individual addresses and bring them back to the post office. St. Vincent De Paul is grateful to the post offices, the postal patrons on their routes who donated food, and the volunteers who sorted and transported food from the post offices to Amazing Grace Food Pantry on 16 Stack Street, Middletown. A hearty thanks to Mike Elliot of Store U Self of Portland, a partner or Penske http://www.pensketruckrental.com/locations/connecticut/portland/ for the use of two 16 foot trucks to transfer the 9000 pounds of food collected in Middletown, and 2000 from Rocky Hill.

Members of the South District Fire Department recently delivered a check for $1000.00 to Kathleen Kelly at St. Vincent De Paul's Amazing Grace Food Pantry. This is in addition to the 7100 pounds of food they collected on March 24th in a food drive at the Middletown Stop and Shop.

Firefighters pictured are LT. Russ Jacobs, Firefighters James Mastorianni, Michael Howley, Ryan Parmelee, and Terance Keenan.

Books on the Menu at Soup Kitchen
Members of Altrusa International's Central CT branch delivered books to the Soup Kitchen on April 23 at part of the group's World Book Night International bookgiving event. "It was our pleasure to bring books to St Vincent de Paul. Stephanie (Labbe) & I had a wonderful time visiting with your guests during the lunch serving. We had many conversations with your guests and made a few friends too!" said member Patti Deegan.

Atrusa distributed about 40 action/adventure/romance, reading-for-leisure books by authors such as John Irving and Danielle Steele.

"Altrusa was very impressed with the enthusiasm of our guests and have agreed to supply us with an attractive book container to provide new and used books on an ongoing basis. Altrusa will also make an attempt to obtain books in Spanish for some of our non-English speaking guests," said Lydia Brewster, Assistant Director for Community Services.

April 2012 - Fellowship Church, Saybrook Road in Middletown, collected 1635 pounds of food for Amazing Grace Food Pantry. From left to right, Marcel Farrington, Andy Eiss, Gerri Howard, Lara SantaMaria, and Matt Balogh.

March 17, 2012 Helper Highlights — St. Patrick's Life Teen group, from St. Patrick's Roman Catholic Church in E. Hampton, spent the whole day on St. Patrick's Day in the Soup Kitchen, preparing and serving food, and clean-up tasks. They also brought beautiful bagged lunches for our guests.

(L to R) Judy Klotzbier, Cathy Muscat, a guest, Paul Lechowicz, Lori Lechowicz, Bill Donahue, Dan Williams. 2nd row (L to R) CarliAnne Lanou, Emily Donahue, Miss Debbie, Asia Banning,

Front row (L to R) Jen Masselli, Kim Muscat Behind the counter, youth from the Life Teen group serve meals.

The Parishioners of St. Francis of Assisi Church & the Italian American Civic Order together will be making Meatball Grinders to benefit The Amazing Grace Food Pantry, a program of St. Vincent De Paul Middletown. The sale is Thursday April 19th 11 a.m. - 3 p.m. at Fox Parish Center St. Francis Church 10 Elm St Middletown, CT. Orders are due by 4/6/12.

Click to view great video from St. Pius X.
2010 AMAZING GRACE - AMAZING CHALLENGE!! St. Vincent dePaul Middletown and the Amazing Grace Food Pantry once again hosted the Amazing Challenge. This year, the Amazing Challenge will coincide with the beginning of the 30th anniversary year of St. Vincent dePaul ministries in Middletown.