Waltham, We Have a Home
After many months of searching, and with incredible support from you in the Waltham community, Healthy Waltham has found its “forever home”! We could not be more excited to make this announcement–especially following the recent break-in and destruction at our current pantry location. Cue fireworks and confetti!
Best of all, a stable home will enable us to implement Healthy Waltham’s
long-held dream: to transform our food pantry into a Community Market model
and give the vulnerable families of Waltham a dignified,
convenient way to access food for their families!
Your support will help us get there!
Please Donate Now.
Our new location at 123 Felton Street will give us the space and stability to implement a progressive new food distribution model, which will improve food access and give our clients a more convenient, compassionate and dignified pantry experience. No more waiting for hours in frigid temperatures, oppressive heat or pouring rain, no more missing pantry days due to work or caregiving commitments (or missing work for pantry days).
Instead, our pantry will be housed entirely indoors, with clients able to make appointments and schedule a time to visit that fits into their work and family lives. Inside, the space will be laid out like a market so participants can select for themselves the high-quality produce and pantry staples they have been accustomed to receiving from Healthy Waltham, ensuring that their families receive healthy food to sustain them.
Our new Community Market reflects current best-practices which have been implemented successfully across the country–and a stable home base will finally enable us to implement it here in Waltham! But to make this happen, we need your help. Our new location requires significant capital improvements, including modifications to enable accessibility to those with disabilities. We will also need to purchase industrial-sized refrigerators and freezers and equipment for loading and storage. These are substantial costs and an ambitious undertaking for our small organization.
We’re asking you to be part of something special!
Invest in the future of Healthy Waltham – and in our Waltham community –
by helping our neighbors facing hardship to sustain their families with dignity! Help us create the Healthy Waltham Community Market.
Yours in health,
Myriam Michel
Executive Director
Healthy Waltham
P.S: We (heart emoji) our new space and can’t wait to move in and institute our new model, providing greater access, convenience and dignity for our pantry-goers. But there will be significant new costs. Can you help? Please donate now.
Waltham food pantry may be forced to find new location at critical time
WALTHAM – A Waltham food pantry may be without a home unless the city steps up in the next few months.
Healthy Waltham serves 750 families currently, and more than 1,000 during the pandemic. They have been home hopping the past few years. The pantry now resides in the gym of the vacant Fitch School. They have an agreement with the city to stay there, however that ends March 31.
“The deadline is ticking, clock is ticking, and people can’t go hungry,” says Myriam Michel, Executive Director at Healthy Waltham, “We are serving fresh produce. Anything from milk, eggs, dairy, meat. We are serving families, seniors, veterans, different sets of people. Over the period of the pandemic, we have served over 3.8 million families with a total food value of over $7 million.”
So far, the city is not letting them stay past that date. The non-profit is searching for commercial land but finding out that no one wants a food pantry in their neighborhood.
“We are the bridge that provides food on people’s tables,” says Michel.
Waltham City Councilor Colleen Bradley-MacArthur is calling on her fellow councilors to step up. She says the city needs to do a better job managing their properties and helping area non-profits.
“I can’t imagine there isn’t a space to operate safely and efficiently in the city, and as leaders we should be encouraging the business community to support non-profits,” said Bradley-MacArthur. “It’s not just in one part of the city, it’s throughout the city, and as leaders in the city it is our obligation to the people we serve to make sure they don’t go hungry.”
On March 2, emergency SNAP benefits will end. This comes just a few weeks before Healthy Waltham’s deadline. The pantry expects even more people to show up during those weeks.
“We have been on calls with the Greater Boston Food Bank saying be prepared,” said Michel. Councilor Paul Katz says the city is doing more to assist Healthy Waltham than the public is aware of. We reached out to Mayor Jeannette McCarthy for more details, but she was not available.