We are specifically seeking the following items most requested by after school programs. Packages should be newly purchased and stored carefully.

• Macaroni and cheese (box or cup)
• Peanut butter and jelly (please, no glass)
• Single-serving cereal, oatmeal, fruit cups, applesauce, juice boxes
• Healthy snacks in individual packages: pretzels, goldfish, granola bars, fruit snacks, cheese or peanut butter snack crackers, etc.
• Grocery store gift certificates (distributed among Portland Housing Authority’s four study centers to support the thousands of meals provided during each school vacation)

If you are attending a performance of TINA, staff will be stationed inside the lobby at a collection table. You will be able to drop your items off once you have passed through security at the entrance.

If you’re not attending the performances but still want to contribute, collection bins will be available at the Portland Ovations offices (120 Exchange St, Portland) right across the street from City Hall. We will be accepting items for all organizations, and drop-off is available November 3-6, between 10 AM – 4 PM.

Wednesday, November 5 – Wayside Food Programs

• Wayside uses food to reduce waste, fight hunger and strengthen community through volunteer-driven programming and a collaborative, cross-industry network of partners in Southern Maine. Our work is rooted in partnerships utilizing approaches that reinforce social connection, individual dignity and limiting our impact on the natural environment. Wayside believes that the health and vibrancy of our community depend upon the physical, social and economic well-being of all community members.
• Wayside has been increasing access to nutritious food for our neighbors in Southern Maine since 1986. Wayside’s hunger relief efforts include their Food Rescue Program, 9 free weekly Community Meals, 5 monthly Mobile Food Pantries, senior food assistance through the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP), and many other programs and partnerships.
• Click here to make a Tax-Deductible Donation 

Thursday, November 6 – The Locker Project

• The Locker Project connects food-insecure children in Maine with nourishing food to improve their learning capacity, health and future. We take a whole-family approach to child hunger with programs that strive to be low-barrier, stigma-free and environmentally responsible
• With fresh food rescued from nearby grocers and farms, produce donated by the food bank and local farms, and staples purchased at a discount, we’re able to source, pack up, and share more than 600,000 pounds of nourishing food each year. We work to reach kids from birth through high school and adapt our program model for different age ranges. Taking a “whole-family approach,” we acknowledge and support parents as dietary role models who need healthy food, too. Our programs help reduce financial and emotional stress for families, stretching weekly food budgets while making nourishing food easily available.
• Click here to make a Tax-Deductible Donation 

Both performances – Portland Housing Authority study centers

• With three locations in Portland (Kennedy Park, Riverton Park, and Sagamore Village), the collective goal of the study centers is to help students of all ages become academically and socially successful. The study centers provide a safe space with technology, resources, mentors, and volunteers to support academic success – all within the public housing family neighborhoods. The Study Centers try to address the multitude of challenges public housing students face by helping them develop their talents while instilling a desire for lifelong learning, greater self-discipline, and a sense of academic responsibility. Students in Portland public housing represent cultures from all over the world, most predominantly Somali, Sudanese, Cambodian, Vietnamese, and Iraqi. Around 300 youth attend one of the four study centers and their programs each year. 
• Click here to learn more about how to get involved or volunteer