Marie's Food Rescue Volunteers in Action! - Marie Wilkinson Food Pantry & Gardens

What do Marie Wilkinson Food Rescue Volunteers DO?

37 weekly trips to pick up local grocery store donations
7 weekly gatherings to sort and stock rescued food
3 weekly food sharing times to nourish neighbors in need!

The process of rescuing, sorting, stocking and sharing food from local grocery stores is called “Food Recovery.” Valuable nutrition is saved from being wasted in landfills every day! Over 80% of all food shared to nourish our community comes from the good work of Marie’s Food Rescue Volunteers.

Volunteers Ande Abbott and Bob Kania load the Food Rescue Van with donated food from local grocery store partners.

Local grocery and retail partners donate perishable food to the Food Rescue program. Many thanks to our friends at Prisco’s Family Market, Aldi, Save a Lot, Jewel-Osco, Fresh Thyme, and Smallcakes too!

Volunteers gather to share food with the community 3 times a week. Marie’s West Pantry at 834 N. Highland Ave. serves veterans, seniors, and disabled neighbors every Wednesday from 11 – 2 pm. Food is shared with the general public every Friday from 1:30 – 4 pm.

Marie’s East Pantry shares food with the general public every Saturday, from 8 to 11 am. The pantry is located inside the East Aurora High School’s back entrance, by Loading Dock Door #33. (Enter at Smith Blvd. and Zeigler Ave.)

What food comes from Food Rescue? Perishables such as Fresh Produce, Milk, Yogurt, Deli Meats, Sandwiches, Bread, Baked Goods and more!

By partnering with East Aurora School District 131 and their food service provider, Sodexo, School Food is Rescued too! This provides milk and healthy snacks for pantry guests during the school year.

Nothing goes to waste. Farmers come to the pantry 3 times a week to take any leftover food, or vegetables that have started to spoil, back to feed their animals!

This final step of food recovery, feeding leftovers to animals, keeps valuable nutrients right here at local farms, where it is returned to restore and nourish our agricultural soils!

Marie’s Food Rescue Program is great for public health, and great for the environment too! The goal is to keep 100% of nutrients OUT of landfills, where they are locked up forever. As food rots in landfills, it produces harmful methane gas, which is horrible pollution that contributes to environmental problems!