NNEMAP Food Pantry is a non-profit corporation. Two key concepts reside in there, but I’m going to focus on the second idea: corporation. Non-profit organizations are businesses. As such, there are expenses–occupancy/rent; utilities; payroll; equipment. In that way we are just like, say, General Motors or Microsoft. 

As a social service agency, we clearly have a different product line from a car manufacturer or software developer. Instead of products, we offer programming–in our case, free groceries for low-income customers. And we have different expectations on how we expect those programs to perform. We are not in existence to make money, but we have to offer some sort of value proposition if we can expect community support. 

Our grocery delivery service, introduced and eventually made permanent last year, provides an excellent return on investment for the community. Here is how the numbers work out:

-Every grocery delivery that we complete costs about $13. That’s for everything. Food, staff time, mileage–the works.

-A 2017 assessment of food-insecure families found that the average low-income household in Franklin County spent $2.02 per person per meal.

-The average amount of food we deliver replaces about 31 meals for the recipient household. Stay with me here.

-By delivering food to provide 31 meals, NNEMAP Food Pantry is saving customers, on average, $62.62 per delivery. We’ll do the math: 31 meals x $2.02 per meal. Instead of spending money to have groceries delivered by a for-profit grocer at a steep markup, we deliver similar products for free. Instead of paying for a restaurant to deliver food for one or two meals for the household, we deliver food for 3 DAYS or more. Instead of going hungry, customers get fresh, healthy produce and great shelf-stable goods to go with it.

We spend about $13 per delivery. But we SAVE customers $62 and change. That is ALMOST a 5-to-1 return on investment ratio (4.81-to-1 to be exact). Would Microsoft invest in a project with that kind of return? Thinking yes.

Your support for NNEMAP Food Pantry provides big returns for the community. If you would like to help with a cash donation or volunteer to be a delivery driver, you can do it right now by clicking below. Thank you for your support!

DONATE             DRIVE

Say what you will about 2020, but you have to admit it was not uneventful. For a year of pandemic-induced lockdowns and travel restrictions, it was not without its excitement.

NNEMAP Food Pantry experienced a year of accelerated growth and explosive expansion in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. In case you missed it, we….

*Expanded our service territory to include the whole City of Columbus and Franklin County,

*Allowed shoppers to come once a week instead of twice a month,

*Added Thursday afternoon/evening hours so we are now open 6 days a week,

*Introduced a popular grocery delivery service for customers who can’t get out.

As expected given the economic fallout of the pandemic, we were busier than ever distributing food to our friends in the community. By the end of the year we…

*Served 5,137 unique households (up from 3,736 in 2019)

*Served 17,480 unique individuals (11,904 in 2019)

*Fulfilled 18,546 requests for groceries (17,338 in 2019)

*Distributed the equivalent of 605,250 meals (526,731 in 2019).

Thank you to our supporters, including our incredible church network; United Way of Central Ohio; The City of Columbus Department of Development; The Columbus Foundation; and hundreds of individual donors who gave what they could for those who had nothing to spare.

Thank you for helping us navigate a most unusual year. 2021 is off and running already. We are looking forward to running this race with you again!

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We are always welcoming new partners to our community. Click a link below to learn how you can get involved today!

DONATE       VOLUNTEER

What can you get at NNEMAP Food Pantry? Well, food of course. But you can also get a whole lot more. As a neighborhood hub of food-related activity, we are in position to help in more ways than just one. So we work hard to connect customers to other useful resources when they are here. 

For customers who need help with….

-Housing issues or homelessness

-Healthcare or health insurance

-Unemployment or low-wage jobs

-Childcare

-Legal issues

-Food stamps/SNAP benefits

-Rent assistance or utility payments

….we can refer you to a partner who can help. Right now a lot of people do not know where to turn. You can turn to NNEMAP Food Pantry for free groceries–and we can point you in the right direction for all your other needs. Just let us know how we can help!

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How can YOU help? Any of these three easy ways:

VOLUNTEER: Click the link at left to learn how!

DONATE: There are many ways to give–and every dollar makes a difference!

ADVOCATE: Follow us on Facebook. Share our story with friends–together we can make change happen!

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THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT!!!

NNEMAP Food Pantry presents our annual Holiday Gift Shoppe!!! Gifts for children aged 17 and under!!! Details follow!!!

SIGN UP DATES  November 2 through November 14 ONLY during pantry hours (CLICK HERE for times)

TO REGISTER YOUR CHILDREN  Bring ONE of the following documents with your child’s name: Photo ID / Social Security Card / health insurance card / birth certificate

NO EXCEPTIONS TO REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS!!!

HOLIDAY GIFT SHOPPE DATES  By appointment only, December 14 through December 19

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To DONATE or VOLUNTEER for this event, CLICK HERE!

Did you feel that? Nope–not those recent 90-degree days. Those couple of nights in the high 50s–did you feel that? 

We did. Sure, the frost ain’t quite on the pumpkin yet, but we felt that little bit of cool creeping in. And it can only mean one thing: fall is near! And you know what rhymes with “fall is near”?!? Yes: VOL-UN-TEER!!! You read my mind! Read on for some fun new ways (and old) to help out around the best pantry in Columbus!

STUDENT SERVICE HOURS  School is back in session in one way or another. If you or someone you know needs to complete service hours as a course or graduation requirement, let us know! Please note that anyone under 18 must be accompanied by a parent or responsible adult.

DRIVERS NEEDED  Do you like to stay on the move? We can help! We need volunteers to deliver groceries to customers and pick up donations from area stores and restaurants. Come join our fleet!

NEW SHIFTS  Looking for after school/work activity? We’ve got you covered. We are now open Thursday afternoon from 3pm-7pm. Need to fill those college football-free Saturdays? Come in for our 10am-1pm shift. Join our team and help us win the big game against food insecurity!

WE CAN’T WAIT TO SEE YOU! Hurry up and get in here–we’ve got work to do!

CONTACT US TODAY!!!