Volunteers Keep
Food Pantry Growing

Dedicated volunteers make this growth possible. They handle everything from processing online food orders to packing bags with fresh produce from local farms like Cedar Circle Farm & Education Center and products from McNamara Dairy. Each week, volunteers also assemble “Meal Kits of the Week” with ingredients and recipes.

Many volunteers say their own cancer experience helps them understand what patients need. As survivor-volunteer Barb Lens puts it, “Many of us who volunteer know first-hand how important good nutrition is to cancer survivorship and how difficult it can be to get groceries, to cook and sometimes to afford food while going through cancer treatment. Healing Harvest is an important part of a successful treatment plan.” According to physicians, reducing food stress hastens and improves recovery outcomes.

Beyond the standard groceries, volunteers create specialty kits for different situations. There are comfort kits for nausea, meal packages for holidays. Celebration kits mark treatment milestones and birthdays, a tradition started from volunteer suggestions and popular staple of the program.

With 22% of oncology patients facing food insecurity, Healing Harvest now spends roughly $30,000 monthly on groceries—all funded by philanthropy.

Patient Phil Howard estimates Healing Harvest saves him $75 to $100 weekly on groceries and says volunteers have made the pantry into a place he feels welcome. Their work ensures that when families are focused on treatment and recovery, at least one burden is lifted.