This Week’s Needs at the Food Closet: Thank you donors – last week your donations were 6 bags of food items and $5 in cash. Also – an amazing amount of empty egg cartons – always needed. This week the Food Closet’s volunteer managers ask us to check the dates on any items we are donating from our own cupboards. Please check to be certain items are not well past their expiry dates. All shifts at the Food Closet are presently fully staffed. This is excellent news and shows the community is chipping in as needed when the customer level is also increasing.
Drop off donations at the Food Closet. The Diocese allows food pantries to remain open during Covid. All Saints Food Closet is taking precautions to protect staff, volunteers, customers and donors using a protocol from Second Harvest, the main Food Closet donor. The address and new hours are:
425 Hamilton Avenue, Palo Alto
M, T, W, F: 9 am-2:30 pm
Thursday: 9 am to 2:30 pm (except 12 pm to 1 pm when closed for staff meeting ).
Access via the blue side door that opens onto Hamilton Street. Please call ahead – (650) 325-3663 to let them know you are coming. Please do not drop off food after hours – it brings up a variety of concerns as people often congregate unsafely after hours to go through the food.
Donating by Check: You can also donate by check. Check donations will be used to purchase needed shortfall items. Please write a check to the Downtown Streets Team, and write in the memo line “For Food Closet”. Checks can be mailed to:
Project Manager
Downtown Streets Team
1671 The Alameda, Suite 306
San Jose, CA 95126
Current Food Donation Requests
-15 oz cans of whole kernel corn, peas, beets, but not green beans and tomatoes, please.
-15 oz cans of beans (baked, refried, pork beans, kidney, garbanzo, black)
-Soup and Ramen noodle soup (Packets if possible)
-Quaker Oats in packets
-Regular Quaker oats
-Instant coffee
-Jam
Non-food items
-Brown grocery bags with handles (please no department store bags)
-Ziploc bags: sandwich size
-Newspaper sleeves
Important, please note: Often sundries and fresh breads are donated at St. Mark’s – the intention is commendable – unfortunately, the Food Closet is constrained from distributing these items due to its contract with Second Harvest. Second Harvest does not allow distribution to customers of any goods beyond food. However, the Opportunity Center in Palo Alto will happily accept both clothes and sundries donations from the community.
