Healthy Waltham

Welcome Our New Executive Director

Brian Norcross — Wed, 10 Apr 2024 11:36:37 +0000

A Message From the Board

The Healthy Waltham Board of Directors is thrilled to welcome Chukwuemeka (BJ) Osuagwu to Healthy Waltham as its new Executive Director! Among many excellent candidates, BJ stood out: He is an experienced leader, fundraiser and community organize with a deep passion for community health and wellbeing. We are confident that BJ is the right person to consolidate our organization’s recent expansion and oversee the opening and operation of the new Healthy Waltham Community Pantry.

BJ’s passion for community development and drive to make a positive impact on his community have been present from a young age as his long history as a youth mentor can attest. While a student at Gordon College, he founded a campus community engagement organization serving students of the African Diaspora and he was selected to join the Clarendon Scholars program, an urban leadership development and honors program that prepares students to pursue careers as leaders in cities and urban areas around the country. For the past several years he has held positions with the Boston City Council working on policy and constituent services and civic engagement. He currently serves as a member of the board for Rose’s Bounty Food Pantry in West Roxbury.

We are excited by BJ’s passion for our mission and his vision for expanding Healthy Waltham’s programmatic offerings, particularly in the youth space. We know you will enjoy getting to know BJ and we look forward to your continued support for Healthy Waltham. Please join us in welcoming him to the Healthy Waltham family and wishing him every success in this new endeavor.

The Healthy Waltham Team

A Message From the New Executive Director

Hello, Waltham! I feel so honored to have been entrusted to lead Healthy Waltham by its Board of Directors. Rest assured that I will do everything in my power to realize the worthy mission of this organization and continue the legacy of outgoing Executive Director, Myriam Michel, who accomplished so much during her tenure.

First up, I’d like to share a little bit about myself and what makes me excited and proud to be leading Healthy Waltham into the future: My career has been dedicated to service; with energy, optimism and an insatiable curiosity about my fellow humans, I’ve sought to positively impact those around me. My passion for serving others stems from my parents, Nigerian immigrants who instilled in me the importance of community, empathy and supporting those in need.

Healthy Waltham’s outsized impact on the residents of Waltham, its vitality and energetic base of supporters and its big vision for the future immediately drew me to the organization. I truly believe that the new Healthy Waltham Community Market is an opportunity to revolutionize the concept of the food pantry. It will create a space where families and individuals experiencing the trauma of food insecurity, perhaps living far from their communities of origin, will be treated with dignity and empathy. They will have the freedom and autonomy to select culturally appropriate foods that nourish their families and will be able to utilize services to assist them in accessing more sustainable government assistance programs.

I’m also looking forward to expanding Healthy Waltham’s community programming. I hope to be able to develop opportunities for Waltham’s young people to become community stewards and spearhead community renewal initiatives, in addition to creating programs to support the health and wellness of all our Waltham neighbors.

I’d like to thank all those who have given me such a warm welcome. I look forward to building relationships with Healthy Waltham’s constituents and supporters and am excited to contribute to the advancement of the City of Waltham as a whole. Please feel free to reach out with any comments, questions or suggestions! My door (and my inbox!) is always open.

With sincere thanks,

Chukwuemeka (BJ) Osuagwu
Executive Director
Healthy Waltham
bj@healthy-waltham.org

A Message From Myriam Michel

Brian Norcross — Fri, 02 Feb 2024 15:16:33 +0000

I am writing today to share some important news. On March 31st, after five deeply fulfilling years, I will be stepping down as Executive Director of Healthy Waltham.

It has been an absolute privilege and joy to lead this remarkable organization and I am immensely proud of all that we have accomplished together. With the organization poised to begin a new chapter with the launch of the Healthy Waltham Community Market, I believe it is an ideal time to welcome new leadership. Plans are underway to recruit a new Executive Director. You can read more on that process from our Board of Directors below. I will be doing all I can to ensure a smooth transition, both prior to and after vacating the position.

When I became Executive Director of Healthy Waltham in 2019, I could not have imagined what lay ahead. Less than a year into my tenure, the Covid-19 pandemic turned our world upside down. The number of Waltham residents facing hunger increased exponentially. In the face of this immense and unprecedented need, Healthy Waltham stepped up. We tripled the number of pantries we held, we secured more food, we sourced volunteers – and we turned no one away. This is perhaps my proudest achievement as Executive Director, and indeed of my professional life.

As the pandemic subsided, we were able to return to long-term plans to build capacity and transform the way we deliver services and support to our neighbors in need. After an intensive and challenging search, we secured Healthy Waltham’s first-ever permanent home – a major milestone in the history of the organization. In addition to providing security and efficiency for our pantry operations, this new space will enable the realization of our long-cherished plan: to implement a progressive new pantry model that will revolutionize how we serve our Waltham families experiencing hardship. The Healthy Waltham Community Market will deliver a dignified and compassionate pantry experience to our clients while streamlining operations and reducing waste. I could not be more excited to see this new model in action.

In time, it is my hope that additional health services and learning opportunities will be staged from this location and that it will also become a hub for Waltham’s residents and service organizations, creating a place to convene and co-work and facilitating a cross-pollination of ideas and resources that will result in improved care and resilience for our community.

Throughout my tenure I have been supported by an extraordinary group of people: Staff, board members, volunteers, partners, private donors and funders, elected officials, municipal personnel in the city of Waltham and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts who have supported and amplified our work.

I cannot name them all here but I would like to give special mention to a few:

First, our dedicated staff, past and present–our warriors and the heart and soul of Healthy Waltham: Maria DiMaggio, Rico Vasquez, Theresa Pendant, Rob Thompson, Joe Previtera, Chris Gamble and Ann Callahan.

Second, our committed and caring board members, current and past: our supportive Chair, Dr. Nadene Stein, together with Amy Esposito, Paul Nederhoed, Naveen Pawar, Deb Moore, Maureen Taddeo, Ravi Samavedam, Bill Burgess, Donnie Lucente, Kaytie Dowcett, Maria Russo, Emily Sapeira, George Darcy, Jessica Greher Traue, Sue Lowcock, and Haylee Dussault.

And, finally, to all those who make this city what it is: warm, caring, supportive, vibrant and strong – I thank you. I have loved being part of this community.

With heartfelt gratitude,

Myriam Michel
Executive Director

A Message From the Healthy Waltham Board of Directors

To Our Wonderful Waltham Community:

On March 31st, Myriam Michel will step down as Executive Director of Healthy Waltham. We received this news with a mixture of gratitude and sadness. In her nearly five years of service, she has transformed our organization. Under her leadership, and using her extraordinary skills as both a visionary and a logistician, Healthy Waltham became the city’s first line of defense against hunger during the Covid-19 pandemic, distributing over three million pounds of food to tens of thousands of families in need. We could not have asked for a more capable and dedicated leader during this extraordinary time. Healthy Waltham is now the city’s largest food pantry distribution service. While the pandemic delayed Myriam’s longer-term, higher goals to transform Healthy Waltham’s delivery of resources and support to improve the health and wellbeing of our community, it did not dampen her determination in the least. As Covid waned, she led the Board and staff through an extensive strategic planning process which helped to clarify our purpose, reinforce our commitment to fighting food insecurity in our city, and identify new opportunities for building a healthier Waltham. This process reinforced our decision to secure a permanent home for our organization for the first time in its history. Our new space at 123 Felton Street will be the foundation for this next phase of our organization, including the Healthy Waltham Community Market. To make these plans a reality, Myriam successfully expanded the organization’s base of support. Public supporters, as well as corporate, foundation and individual donors believed in, and contributed to, her vision and the organization garnered local and statewide recognition for its Covid response and plans for its Community Market. While we will miss Myriam’s leadership and energy, she leaves us with the roadmap and resources to lead us into an exciting future that will benefit the entire Waltham community. We have begun the search for a new Executive Director and will keep you posted on its status. We thank Myriam for her hard work, commitment and her vision and wish her the very best in all of her future endeavors. She will always remain a part of the Healthy Waltham family.

Sincerely,

Healthy Waltham Board of Directors

Introducing our vision for the Healthy Waltham Community Market!

Brian Norcross — Sun, 26 Nov 2023 12:29:55 +0000

Waltham, We Have a Home

Brian Norcross — Wed, 09 Aug 2023 17:53:10 +0000

August 8, 2023

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.

Donate Today!

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

Brian Norcross — Thu, 19 Jan 2023 16:51:48 +0000

CBS Boston

BY MIKE SULLIVAN

January 18, 2023

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.

Banco de comidas de Waltham sin lugar donde operar

Brian Norcross — Thu, 19 Jan 2023 16:26:38 +0000

Telemundo

January 16, 2023

La agencia ayuda principalmente a trabajadores de bajos ingresos e inmigrantes recientes. Alimentan a 1,000 familias cada dos semanas.

Waltham Food Pantry Forced to Find New Home, Facing Resistance From Neighborhoods

Brian Norcross — Wed, 18 Jan 2023 13:51:56 +0000

NBC Boston

By Katelyn Flint

January 16, 2023

Keeping up with demand for food assistance is difficult enough but one nonprofit in Waltham, Massachusetts, is pulling double duty trying to feed families in need while also being in need of a home themselves. The organization Healthy Waltham says it’s in a difficult position as the temporary solution they’ve found is set to expire in a few weeks.

Since April of 2020, Healthy Waltham has distributed more than 1.7 million pounds of food to the community. It’s a need they say has not tapered off post-pandemic. Instead, it’s expected to grow in the coming months once emergency SNAP benefits expire. However, without a permanent home, they fear they won’t be there to help.

The nonprofit shifted to emergency food pantry services during the pandemic and still serves about 750 families.

“These are your next door neighbors,” said the organization’s executive director, Myriam Michel. “No one is walking around with, ‘I am hungry.’”

The group serves fresh, natural food at the pantry to a diverse group of individuals in the city. During the pandemic they were operating out of an area church but once they began in person activities again they needed a new space. They moved into an area at nearby Government Center but the city asked that they eventually leave the space — granting them the ability to store and distribute food from an abandoned school facility nearby. However, Michel says they only have a few months to use the space. The city is giving them until the end of March to move out.

Michel says the group is working with a realtor to try and find a viable space but is hitting road blocks there as well.

“No one wants a food pantry in their backyard. That’s quite simple,” Michel said. “And we’ve gotten resistance from neighborhoods in the city and residents.”

Healthy Waltham To Host Free Food Pantries This October

Brian Norcross — Tue, 04 Oct 2022 13:42:08 +0000

The local nonprofit organization Healthy Waltham will host two free food pantries this month on Thursdays, Oct. 13 and 27 from 3-6 p.m. at Government Center. (Shutterstock)
The pantries will be held on Thursdays, Oct. 13 and 27 from 3-6 p.m. at Government Center.
The festival will offer free food, free bike helmets for kids, a Wheelworks bicycle raffle, and kids’ games.

Annie Sandoli, Patch Staff
By Annie Sandoli
October 3, 2022

WALTHAM, MA — The local nonprofit organization Healthy Waltham will host two free food pantries this month on Thursdays, Oct. 13 and 27 from 3-6 p.m. at Government Center, located at 119 School Street.

Read The Full Article HERE

Healthy Waltham To Host Food Pantry & Family Festival

Brian Norcross — Tue, 04 Oct 2022 13:33:59 +0000

The local nonprofit organization Healthy Waltham will host a food pantry and family festival on Saturday, Sept. 24 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the back parking lot at Boston Children’s Hospital Waltham (Shutterstock)

The festival will offer free food, free bike helmets for kids, a Wheelworks bicycle raffle, and kids’ games.

Annie Sandoli, Patch Staff
By Annie Sandoli
September 19, 2022

WALTHAM, MA — The local nonprofit organization Healthy Waltham will host a food pantry and family festival on Saturday, Sept. 24 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the back parking lot at Boston Children’s Hospital Waltham, located at 9 Hope Avenue.

Read The Full Article HERE

Greater Boston food banks face dual challenge of high demand and high costs

Brian Norcross — Wed, 02 Feb 2022 21:40:20 +0000

Delmi Marroquim, 35, waits near the end of a long line for food at a pantry run by “Healthy Waltham” in Waltham, Massachusetts.

Liz Neisloss / GBH News

By Liz Neisloss

November 23, 2021Greater Boston

In downtown Waltham, a line of people wends along busy School Street on Thursday afternoon. This is no holiday rush. Rather, it is the type of demand the nonprofit Healthy Waltham sees regularly during the food pantry it runs twice each month outside the city’s municipal building.

The pandemic brought greater numbers of people to food pantries — and high grocery prices have kept them coming back. Nonprofits in the Greater Boston area say demand is higher from this time last year because more people are relying on food donations to make up for the squeeze of inflation. And for those in the business of getting and transporting food to people who need it, rising prices and rising demand have been a double hit to budgets.

Waltham resident Wang Yihao, 83, arrived four hours early to be at the head of the line for Healthy Waltham’s distribution. He said he and his wife were feeling pressure from the higher prices. “We have to come here to get charity,” he said. “The increased price in meat hurts us the most, and that in vegetables has an impact as well.”

Several blocks down, 35-year-old Delmi Marroquim worried the pantry would run out of many items by the time she got there. She said her husband, a construction worker, recently found part-time work after a long pandemic shutdown, but feeding her young children became more difficult because of inflation.

“Food prices are now higher,” Marroquim said, “I can’t buy as much as before because they’ve gone up so much.”

Those increased prices are affecting greater Boston nonprofits, too. Sasha Purpura, executive director of the nonprofit Food For Free, said they have made more trade-offs than usual to keep its costs down. For instance, this year they “splurged” on cooking oil for many of their donation boxes. Normally a year-round staple, she said the cost of oil went up 10% in October alone. Rather than cutting back, the nonprofit devoted more of its budget to buy it.

“It is Thanksgiving, and we anticipate people will be doing a lot of cooking. It’s something a lot of families struggle to afford. So, we just made the decision to spend the dollars and buy the oil,” Purpura said.

The Greater Boston Food Bank, which distributes food to more than 600 partners, including Food for Free, has received reports from aross the state of rising demand. Cheryl Schondek, senior vice president for food acquisition and supply chain, expects the nonprofit will hand out 10% more meals this holiday season than last year.

With prices edging up all year, Schondek said the food bank started planning for Thanksgiving back in April. Back then turkey prices had gone up 10%; now they’re up 24% in retail stores. And, she said, the price of sweet potatoes is up 28%. Global shortages are also impacting many of the basic items they need.

“Not only were there truck driver shortages, there were supply shortages, such as aluminum cans, cardboard boxes, wooden pallets. That’s all having a negative effect on what we’re trying to get,” Schondek said.

As she watched Healthy Waltham workers stack up 700 frozen turkeys for handout, Operations Director Maria Dimaggio said supply chain problems make it tough to know what will be available.

“A specific example is milk and eggs,” said Dimaggio, “Sometimes we’re able to get those, sometimes we’re not. Also, meat, chicken is inconsistent. A couple of pantries, we could not get any chicken.”

And after several years of increased demands on donors in the pandemic, nonprofits hope fatigue hasn’t set in.

“People are tremendously generous during this time and our hope is that they understand as well that this need has not decreased,” Purpura said, “In fact, in many cases, it’s gotten worse because of inflation.”

WATCH: Turkey with a side of inflation: On a food line in Waltham, Massachusetts.