That's a lot of bologna -- literally. That's 500 packages of bologna for the Spring Break food bags!

Spring Break Food Bags

Many kids rely on their school lunch program at Grape Street Elementary as their primary source of food. What happens during school breaks when the program is not available? Powerhouse Food sends these kids home with food bags to get them through this time. Filling these bags is a formidable task. Russ Hamilton is out this morning cornering the bologna market, purchasing 500 packs of bologna!

How to Contribute to the Winter Coat Drive

At Grape Street School, there are about 600 students. Teachers have reported that about 300 don't have a warm winter jacket. You can donate a gently used jacket (contact us by email to arrange delivery) or a $35 contribution buys them a new one. Contributions can be made through Paypal at our website. http://wattspowerhousefood.org/Donation_Center.html

How it gets done.

Much of the work at Watts Powerhouse Food is carried out by Russ Hamilton. He spends much of his time working the supermarkets and club stores like a commodity trader -- looking for the best price on the eggs, bacon, pancake mix and orange juice for the free Sunday morning breakfasts, that feed about 80 kids a week. He may be working up a combination of foods for the end-of-the-month grocery boxes... that are reasonably balanced, nutritious and still appeal to kids. He may find a too good to pass up deal on granola bars, which make a great convenient snack for kids getting tutored for their SATs. During the holidays he can tell you where to get the best deal on a nice plump turkey or ham. All the work for Watts Powerhouse Food is performed by unpaid staff that relies on financial contributions from people like you to keep the pantry filled.

Powerhouse Food doesn't just supply food. Our current goal is to supply 300 warm winter jackets to the kids at Grape Street School by November 1st. Costco at Hawthorne & Manhattan Beach Blvd. has committed to supplying 60 new jackets. The jackets don't need to be new, but they should be warm and in good condition and not red.

Maui Chicken

The Park family, owners of Maui Chicken, provide a monthly Sunday lunch at Powerhouse for approximately 120 people. They also provide Sunday morning breakfast. They don't just provide food: Their High School age son is providing tutoring for a man trying to get his GED. They meet at 6:00 AM every Sunday morning!

Why not stop into Maui Chicken and thank the Park family for their generous support?

Summertime Food Boxes

One of the main goals of Powerhouse is to provide food to kids in the Watts area. They are especially in need at times near the end of the month or when they are not in school. The Spring Break Food Drive was a great success and provided much needed groceries to these kids and their families. The same need will arise during the summer break and Powerhouse would like to help fill that need.
Please, stay tuned for details on The Summer Food Drive to see how you can help.