November 11th is Veteran’s Day – Take time out of your busy schedule to remember all the brave men and women that have fought and are currently fighting to keep our country free.  Do not forget to also remember the families of all these fine men and women.  They also need to be commended.  Some have lost their loved ones and others wait for their safe return home but in either case, they also have displayed bravery.  It is not easy seeing someone go and not knowing if they will return home but these families understand the commitment that these men and women have made and are very proud of them.   We would like to say - Thank you to all our Veterans and to all who are currently serving.

1. We are happy to announce that we will be receiving a grant award from the United Airlines Foundation.
2. Congratulations to The Foodbank of Monmouth and Ocean Counties in receiving an Outreach Food Stamp Grant.  The Keyport Ministerium Food Pantry has been conducting preliminary food stamp screening for our clients since May 2005 and have now agreed to partner with the Foodbank and the Monmouth Food Stamp Agency to now not only screen our clients but any person that is interested in seeking Food Stamp assistance.  If you know of someone that would like to be pre-screened, have them, contact us during our hours of operation so that we can explain the process to them and setup an appointment.  REMEMBER: the person does not have to be a pantry client.
3. We would like to thank Commander Jim Santella, the Officers, and Members of The American Legion Raritan Post 23 in Keyport for donating the use of their hall for us to host the Quarterly Roundtable Meeting conducted by the Foodbank of Monmouth and Ocean Counties.  Due to lack of space, we were never able to host a roundtable meeting but due to the generosity of Post 23 in allowing us the use of their facility, we are able to host our First Rountable Meeting.
4. We would like to thank all the people that made it possible for us to benefit from the following food drives: Crop Walk (Red Bank), Mothers Against Hunger and the Keyport Senior Citizens.
5. We submitted the names of 134 children for the United Way 4th Annual Snowflake Drive. To learn more on this program visit: uwmonmouth.org/Volunteer_Donate/snowflake.html
6. We have distributed over 100 handmade items (blankets, scarves, etc.) to our clients due to the generous donations from Project Linus.  Our clients were thrilled to receive these beautiful and useful items. To learn more on this program visit: blankiedepo.org
7. We distributed school supplies to over 125 children.  Thank you to all who contributed to this effort.
8. We should be hearing soon from the NJ State Legalized Games of Chance Control Commission on the application we submitted to conduct 50/50 raffles.
9. We continue our research on Federal, State, and Local grants that are available and submit applications whenever we meet the criteria. We are waiting for feedback on some of the grant applications we have submitted.
10. We continue to receive donations toward our new building fund.  We ask that you continue to help us if you can possibly do so.  Remember - no donation is too small.

If you have any questions, comments, etc. please feel free to contact us via email or call us. The KMFP Staff and Volunteers are eternally grateful for all your assistance and continued support. Thank you!

Isaiah G. Cooper
Executive Director
Keyport Ministerium Food Pantry, Inc.