Silver Spring Neighborhood Food Project (SSFP) mantra is Feeding Families Creating Community. Our volunteers help those in need in our local neighborhoods, by collecting and sorting donations six times a year, that feed a local food bank. So they have food and other personal and home hygiene necessities all year round, not just during holiday food drives. We have through the years grown to over 100 donor families serving mostly the larger downtown Silver Spring area. Our group of dedicated volunteers have foster friendships during the times of collecting donations.
In some Silver Spring census tracts, more than 20% of residents experience food insecurity. Hidden in these alarming statistics is one bit of very good news: plenty of us can afford to offer a little help. Not everyone, of course… But enough to make a huge difference. You may be one of them.
How It Works
You sign up to become a donor. You will receive a welcome email. You will be given a green bag, to use during a two month period. You buy something extra every time you shop. On the second Saturday of each even-numbered month (February, April, June, August, October and December) our donors place bag(s) (we welcome more than one!) outside their front door no later than 10am. If you do not have a bag just mark your donation for the Food Project. Our volunteer collectors then take them to our donation partner for sorting. Our donations are combined with others to be shared with people with limited means, such as low-income working families, refugees or recent immigrants. We collect all shelf stable food items, long lasting perishable foods like sweet potatoes, personal hygiene items except baby diapers, and small household cleaning items.
Where Does The Food Go?
Collectors take your donations to our current local donation partner:
Adventist Food Pantry
501 Sligo Avenue
Silver Spring, MD 20910
The Food Project volunteers help sort the donations in milk crates by category of food.
The food bank volunteers will then use the donations they receive to create family food boxes and bags to be given away to people in need that have signed up to receive donations. The food pantry also partners with local supermarkets to salvage food that is close to expiring and distribute it. The Pantry also runs a program for new mothers providing diapers, personal hygiene items (from our donations), healthy snacks for their young kids.
Most Needed Items
The needs of our food bank partner change every month, so look for our email updates. We always are in need of basic food items: beans, rice, oils, tuna cans, soups in cans, masa and wheat flour, salad dressing, healthy snacks and cereal.
Personal hygiene items like menstrual pads, shampoo and conditional, toothpaste and toothbrushes and soap are always in high demand.
Small size cleaning supplies like dish soap is in high demand.
Get Involved
Being a volunteer involves limited commitment. Every two months you are given a list of donor houses near you. You spend about 1 hour collecting and half an hour unloading and sorting your donations once every two months. Contact us if you want to be a donor and/or volunteer. We typically have more volunteers that we need so you do not have to collect every time.