The Need is Great
Within our community, nearly 1 in 4 students depend on free or reduced school meals, and those same students may go without breakfast and lunch over the summer school vacation when those resources are unavailable.
The nearest food shelf in Burlington can feel unreachable for these families, as the most vulnerable struggle with poverty, employment, and lack of transportation. By establishing a food shelf here, where it’s needed most, we can offer our neighbors the resources they deserve. By pulling together, as a community, we can serve our neighbors with dignity and grace.
Our Teams
The Faith Influenced Leaders, LLC as part of their mission to serve their fellow man and the community, provides oversight and governance as our fiscal agent. The Faith Influenced Leaders Corporation focuses on leveraging the time and talents of individuals with leadership and management accountability in the secular sector of life who are strong in their faith. The group explores the challenges of secular leadership accountabilities that may at times conflict with the tenants of faith teachings, with a goal of ever-increasing alignment, personal growth, creating bonds with peers from different walks of life, and introduction of programs that serve our community, especially those in need. Individuals interested in learning more about becoming part of the Faith Influenced leaders nonprofit should contact Patrick Leduc at pleducvt@gmail.com.
We also maintain an advisory board for the purposes of advising the operations, assisting in the recruitment of volunteers, ensuring that equity and inclusion are core to the food shelf’s operation, and advising on nutrition and food education. The advisory board maintains seats for the following voices:
- A current or recent client of the South Burlington Food shelf
- Two representatives of the South Burlington business community
- A member of each organized faith community in South Burlington
- A representative from Common Roots
- Four at large advisory Board members
- Two student representatives from the South Burlington School District
- A representative of the Faith Influenced Leaders
- The Director of the South Burlington Food Shelf
Individuals that would like to join the advisory board can email us at southburlingtonfoodshelf@gmail.com
Our food shelf Director, Peter Carmolli is the sole paid member of the team and runs the day-to-day operation of the food shelf. Peter works closely with the leadership team, the advisory board, and the community at large.
| The Faith Influenced Leaders, LLC | The Advisory Board |
|---|---|
|
Patrick Leduc, President Kevin Dorn, Vice President Brian Culver, Treasurer Tom Hubbard, Secretary Doug Bugbee, Director Hal Colston, Director Jake Cunavelis, Director Patrick Gallivan, Director David Young, Director |
Peter Carmolli, Director Carol McQuillen, Common Roots Hiba Ali, South Burlington School District Josie Kummer, South Burlington School District Aerwen Stagers, South Burlington Business Community Joshua Cheney, All Saints Episcopal Church Pastor Mike Kriesel, Vibrant Church Chuck Bowen, St. Timothy Anglican Mission Alan Luzzatto, Faith United Methodist Church Gary Scudder, Islamic Society of Vermont Deacon Tony Previti, St John Vianney Church Gretchen Gundrum, at large member Mike Maloney, at large member Bethany Cole, at large member Susan O’Brien, at large member Doug Bugbee, Faith Influenced Leader |
Community Roots
Recognizing a need in our community, a small group of South Burlington residents and community leaders formed a coalition to help address the problem of food insecurity in Vermont’s second-largest city. Inspired by their faith and by a commitment to their neighbors, the group led the effort to build a food shelf that serves South Burlington’s food-insecure individuals and families.
“We have a problem with food insecurity in South Burlington,” says Patrick Leduc, one of the South Burlington residents who’s leading the effort. “Step one is to solve that problem. Let’s make something available to those that are in need, whether that’s a short term problem that they’re experiencing or something that’s longer term.”
We were proud to announce the opening of South Burlington Food Shelf on November, 1st 2019 at 356 Dorset Street in South Burlington!
Ongoing fundraising is vital to our continued mission and we are asking community members and local business owners to consider becoming a Food Hero as a monthly sustaining donor.
“We’re called to love each other, take care of each other and serve each other,” says Leduc. “This is our duty.”
