Holiday Food Drive

This type of food drive is wonderful for the group who would like a hand’s on approach to raising food. Once you have decided with your group to do this type of drive, you will need to establish two dates. First you will need to establish the date that you would leave a written notice at your neighbor’s house and second would be the notice explaining that your group is having a food drive to help people in the community that need our help. The notice should include the date, time and location where
to leave the food and the date your group will pick it up. Also include in the notice the type of food we suggest donating.

Once the donations are collected and brought back to a central location, you will need to weigh the items, call Doreen Principe at 516-294-8528 ext. 14 and let her know how many pounds you have and a date you need the food picked up. (a house scale is good to weigh the food) We suggest using copy paper boxes weighing no more than 40 lbs, they help our drivers manage the food better. If you have less than 150 pounds please call us for further details or you can drop it at any of our three locations. Island Harvest can provide you with a copy of the notice to be left with the neighbor. (you will need to make the copies). We will also provide a letter of thanks for the group’s effort’s (listing all the names) and will forward it to the person or organization of your choice.

How to Run a Holiday Food Drive

• Select Food Drive Dates – First, you should decide on dates for your food drive.
• Contact Island Harvest – Download and complete our Register for a food Drive Form. Contact Doreen at (516) 747-6843 ext. 14 or doreen@islandharvest.org with questions.
• Set a Goal – Each $1 counts as 4 pounds of food. A great tip for a successful food drive is setting a goal.
• Get Creative – Compete against classrooms, add competition to your homecoming, challenge your teachers, plan an event, collect food or cash from your neighbors and friends.
• How Many Barrels? – Determine how many barrels to order (one barrel holds an average of 125 pounds of food). Generally we suggest using copy paper boxes instead, it helps our drivers manage the food better.
• Schedule Delivery and Pickup – Once you have planned your drive, you should contact Island Harvest to arrange for delivery of barrels if needed, (Suggest using copy paper boxes makes pick up easier for drivers and volunteers) donation envelopes, and other supplies you may need to conduct your drive.
• Check In – Please call us during your drive to let us know how you are doing.

Click here to Register a Food Drive