Dear UUSRQ Community,
Thank you for your amazing support of Food 4 Our Neighbors / Comidas para Nuestros Vecinos at UUSRQ.
From our launch in mid-September, we have delivered 186 orders to immigrant families who are in need and under threat. And they are large orders—3 boxes of non-perishables, diapers as needed, and $75 per family of perishables (fruits, vegetables, meat, dairy) from store to door. We feel good about it—but it’s a drop in the bucket of the need.
We celebrate our skilled, efficient, dedicated Pantry Teams, who show up in the Reeb Room every single time on Mondays and Thursdays. In a flash, they wrestle dauntingly large amounts of food into a semblance of order and into labeled 3-box sets for delivery. What looks overwhelming to me at the start is completed in 1.5 to 2 hours. Wow!
We celebrate our intrepid Delivery Teams, who have traveled far and wide, from Sarasota to Palmetto to Ellenton (Thank you, Ahmad, our Man in Ellenton J). They communicate with the families in Spanish; they shop for the perishables; they find hidden, sometimes harrowing and occasionally incorrect addresses; and they haul heavy boxes, including up flights of stairs. They CARE and CONNECT. They embody our values in the world.
We celebrate our outstandingly generous "Hunters & Gatherers,” who donate food and money, often kicking in over and over again. A particular need in 2026 is to widen our circle of donors to new individuals and supportive organizations.
We also celebrate our tireless colleagues: Trinity MCC Food 4 Neighbors and organizer Ruth Beltran, Tampa Bay Immigration Solidarity Network.
I wonder how long can we can sustain this level of outreach. But so far, whenever the pantry starts to look bare, miracles just happen. All of a sudden, food arrives at the Reeb Room, or at the trunk of my car, or a call comes in: “We have food for you to pick up.” Through word of mouth, people and organizations all over the area are chipping in and getting involved. Every connection embodies our UU principles, inside and outside our walls. Thank you, UUSRQ. And thank you, UU Venice, UCC SRQ, Sarasota Democratic Party and Women’s Club, and the SURE and Pueblos Unidos vigil collections.
We took a holiday break till January 5th, when we once again began sorting, packing, and re-stocking the essentials. The essential essential? A 4-lb bag of Maseca in every order. That’s fine ground flour from corn, used for tortillas and other staples of the families’ diets. At Walmart, a bag costs $3.98.
Deliveries will start going out to families again shortly after the 5th. Please keep the NON-PERISHABLE donations coming. (We can’t stock perishables.) Specify your donations to UUSRQ on the website or on check memo lines: “Social Justice Food.”
Thank you on behalf of the vulnerable families we serve; It’s charity but it’s also resistance.
May 2026 be a better year.
In the meantime, we continue...
Louise Machinist
[email protected]
412.979.4844
For Comidas para Nuestros Vecinos at UUSRQ,
An action arm of the Immigration Justice Coalition of Southwest Florida and UUSRQ Social Justice
Maria Robayo, Chair [email protected]
Thank you for your amazing support of Food 4 Our Neighbors / Comidas para Nuestros Vecinos at UUSRQ.
From our launch in mid-September, we have delivered 186 orders to immigrant families who are in need and under threat. And they are large orders—3 boxes of non-perishables, diapers as needed, and $75 per family of perishables (fruits, vegetables, meat, dairy) from store to door. We feel good about it—but it’s a drop in the bucket of the need.
We celebrate our skilled, efficient, dedicated Pantry Teams, who show up in the Reeb Room every single time on Mondays and Thursdays. In a flash, they wrestle dauntingly large amounts of food into a semblance of order and into labeled 3-box sets for delivery. What looks overwhelming to me at the start is completed in 1.5 to 2 hours. Wow!
We celebrate our intrepid Delivery Teams, who have traveled far and wide, from Sarasota to Palmetto to Ellenton (Thank you, Ahmad, our Man in Ellenton J). They communicate with the families in Spanish; they shop for the perishables; they find hidden, sometimes harrowing and occasionally incorrect addresses; and they haul heavy boxes, including up flights of stairs. They CARE and CONNECT. They embody our values in the world.
We celebrate our outstandingly generous "Hunters & Gatherers,” who donate food and money, often kicking in over and over again. A particular need in 2026 is to widen our circle of donors to new individuals and supportive organizations.
We also celebrate our tireless colleagues: Trinity MCC Food 4 Neighbors and organizer Ruth Beltran, Tampa Bay Immigration Solidarity Network.
I wonder how long can we can sustain this level of outreach. But so far, whenever the pantry starts to look bare, miracles just happen. All of a sudden, food arrives at the Reeb Room, or at the trunk of my car, or a call comes in: “We have food for you to pick up.” Through word of mouth, people and organizations all over the area are chipping in and getting involved. Every connection embodies our UU principles, inside and outside our walls. Thank you, UUSRQ. And thank you, UU Venice, UCC SRQ, Sarasota Democratic Party and Women’s Club, and the SURE and Pueblos Unidos vigil collections.
We took a holiday break till January 5th, when we once again began sorting, packing, and re-stocking the essentials. The essential essential? A 4-lb bag of Maseca in every order. That’s fine ground flour from corn, used for tortillas and other staples of the families’ diets. At Walmart, a bag costs $3.98.
Deliveries will start going out to families again shortly after the 5th. Please keep the NON-PERISHABLE donations coming. (We can’t stock perishables.) Specify your donations to UUSRQ on the website or on check memo lines: “Social Justice Food.”
Thank you on behalf of the vulnerable families we serve; It’s charity but it’s also resistance.
May 2026 be a better year.
In the meantime, we continue...
Louise Machinist
[email protected]
412.979.4844
For Comidas para Nuestros Vecinos at UUSRQ,
An action arm of the Immigration Justice Coalition of Southwest Florida and UUSRQ Social Justice
Maria Robayo, Chair [email protected]
Watch Our Pantry Crew in Action!
Items Needed to Keep Pantry Stocked
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Essential Non-Perishables
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Essential Hygiene
Baby Supplies
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