Dear Supporters,

I’m writing to you today with an amazing opportunity to double your impact to the Poverello Center through donating during our Fall Appeal, supported by a $25,000 match from the Town Pump Foundation!

Every day, I get the opportunity to feed our most vulnerable community members. I also get to work alongside volunteers and residents, listen to eclectic music and stories of the folks helping out in the kitchen, and experiment with a variety of food donations.

My name is Dave Heffner and I am the Poverello Center Food Programs Manager. After managing restaurant kitchens in Montana for 15 years, I made the shift to the Pov because I knew my skills would benefit our neighbors in need, and I am so grateful to do this important work.

My primary goal is to provide high quality, nutritious meals to those who need it. Nobody should have to worry about when their next meal will be or whether they’ll be able to afford it.

The amount of individuals accessing our Food Programs have increased by more than 25% over the last two years, including an increase in families and children under 18. We provide three free meals a day, seven days a week, with sack lunches available outside of normal meal times, and Food Pantry services three nights per week. 

We continue to increase the amount of meals we provide to our community every year through innovative ways.

• We partner with the Meadowlark Family Housing Center and provide hot meals five days a week.
• We also expanded our food programs at the Johnson Street Winter Shelter from five to seven hot meals per week.

Now more than ever, our Food Programs are integral to providing food security, keeping people housed, and helping folks create more stability. 

But it’s not always easy to meet this goal. 

More than 90 percent of the Pov’s food is donated by partnering restaurants and grocery stores through our Food Rescue Program. Economic consequences of the pandemic have made the Food Rescue truck donations less consistent and forces us to get creative with serving three meals per day, every day of the year. 

We will continue increasing the quantity and quality of food we provide as the demand for it continues to rise, however, we need your support to sustain it. Support of volunteers and donors like you make it possible to provide food to all who need it, in the ways that best serve the individual.

The Town Pump Foundation is matching $25,000 in donations throughout Fall for our Food Programs through the Montanans helping Montanans campaign. We are so grateful for this continued partnership, and we invite you to celebrate the cause with us!