CT Food Bank Seeks Good Neighbors

Alert — and very civic-minded — “06880” reader Mary Lynn Halland is a consultant to the Connecticut Food Bank. One of the largest centralized sources of emergency food in the state, it plays an active role in the needy (and sometimes unseen) corners of Fairfield County.

For years, Mary Lynn’s Stamford neighborhood has participated in a “Weekly Neighborhood Food Give.” It’s not the snappiest name, but it works.

Each week at the same time, people put food donations in a shoebox-size Tupperware bin (provided by the CT Food Bank) near their mailbox or door. A neighbor picks up the food, then stores it someplace safe or dry until the Food Bank collects it (usually once a month).

It takes just 20 minutes a week to make the pick-up — and it can be done by children and teenagers as well as adults.

Mary Lynn figures if it works in Stamford, why not Westport?

But she doesn’t know where to start. So she’s asking “06880” readers for help.

If you’ve got an idea for a local neighborhood or condo association that wants to pilot the project — or if you want to help organize one — Mary Lynn wants to hear from you.

Email her: marylynn@crny.net. Call her: 917-657-0943. Or click “Comments,” and let everyone in town know you and your neighborhood are ready to help.