Pantry now open for in-person food selection

On May 4th we re-opened Pilgrim House to our Patrons!

We are happy to announce that on May 4th patrons of Fishes and Loaves were again permitted to enter Pilgrim House to select their own food. Due to COVID-19 concerns we provided “curbside only” pickup from mid-March of last year until now.

Patrons that prefer not to enter Pilgrim House may continue to pick-up “curbside” boxes, put together by our volunteer staff. In addition, those individuals unable to come to the pantry because of health issues or lack of transportation will continue to receive boxes delivered to their homes.

Safety Protocols: Strict safety protocols have been implemented that include wearing a face mask at all times if you are not fully vaccinated, sanitizing hands upon entry and maintaining a safe social distance. There is a limit of three individuals allowed in the distribution room at any one time to maximize social distancing. We also encourage patrons to move quickly and not fraternize with other clients while inside the building to minimize contact and maximize efficient distribution and consideration of others.

Connecticut Food Bank Grant

Fishes and Loaves had items delivered May 19th through a grant from the Connecticut Food Bank for equipment to facilitate the distribution of food. We are very grateful to be the recipient of this grant.

Gladys, Catie and Pat assembling the bench for patrons to use while they wait to pick up.

Gladys and Pat take a look at the new insulated wheeled cooler.

Gladys unpacks a new floor mat.

Gladys inspecting the new platform truck to carry food boxes.

 

Join us. Signing up is easy.

In need of nourishing food?

Open Tuesday 4pm-6pm and Thursday 12pm-2pm

 We are happy to be able to serve the nutritional needs of people in North Canaan, Falls Village and Norfolk, Connecticut.

Email: fishesandloavespantry@gmail.com
Phone: (860) 824-7232

We would love to see you during our open hours.

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Community Support

Increased Support in Difficult Times

Click to VIEW VIDEO on 

Northwest CT Community Foundation website.

Fishes and Loaves Pantry, a mission of North Canaan Congregational Church, provides nutritional food to members of the community in need. The Pantry provides food support to about 120 people per week, including many children.

Unemployment related to the Covid-19 pandemic has increased the need for support across Connecticut and in our Northwest Corner.

"We have seen seen an increase of up to 50% in the number of households seeking supplemental nutrition, more young families, several with four children," said Louise Riley of Fishes and Loaves Pantry.

Recent grants from the Northwest CT Community Foundation Northwest Corner Gives: Covid-19 Rapid Response Fund and Northwest CT Community Foundation Northwest Corner Gives crowdfunding initiative enabled Fishes and Loaves Pantry to purchase PPE and cleaning supplies to keep volunteers safe and provided for the purchase of additional food to meet growing needs.

Calico Fair Benefit

The Calico Fair, held for many years in November at Pilgrim House, benefited Fishes and Loaves. We are optimistic it can be held in 2021 following last year when the pandemic made it impossible. 

Families always had a great time, including Lynne and her granddaughter Maeve in 2019.

Meals from Roma's

We were the beneficiary of a grant obtained by Northwest Litchfield Food Rescue that provided individual meals from Roma’s for our patrons in July, 2020. 

It helped a local business as well as Fishes and Loaves during the difficult times of Covid-19.

Covid19 pick up procedure

Due to the Covid-19 safety concerns we pack food boxes for delivery to clients' vehicles instead of letting them enter Pilgrim House."

For the safety of everyone.

 

Cooler for dairy products

We were thrilled to be the recipient of a beautiful cooler for dairy in October.

Amanda Freund, of Freund's Farm, helped us apply to New England Dairy to obtain the cooler.

Ready for Autumn at Pilgrim House

Early fall colors in our vegetable and herb garden signal the end of the growing season.

We are getting in the spirit of fall holidays and will distribute soup, oatmeal and other cold weather staples to our clients.

USDA Farmers to Families Program

Above is one of four weekly deliveries of 25 boxes we received through the USDA Farmers to Families Program during the month of October.

Each box of fresh produce, milk, dairy and processed meat contained food to feed a family of four for a week.

We are very thankful to Friendly Hands Food Pantry in Torrington for organizing the distribution for our area.