YMCA OF CENTRE COUNTY

The Y is committed to ensuring that no one in our community goes hungry during these unprecedented times. Although our facilities are now open, we’re still working hard to ensure local kids and families get the food they need. Learn more about our food distribution efforts and support the cause today!

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Summer Lunch Program

YMCA of Centre County’s Anti-Hunger Program heads into its 16^th year distributing meals through the Summer Lunch Program. The program began June 8 and will run through August 28.  The YMCA will be distributing meals at 31 sites in seven school districts throughout Centre and Clearfield Counties. Hot meals will be served four days and a cold meal will be served one day each week. Every meal will consist of lunch and an evening snack. Weekend food will also be distributed every Friday. All sites serve between 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM and are listed below. In addition, the YMCA’s mobile feeding unit, the “Travelin Table”, will be serving meals to children in areas that don’t have easy access to one of the 31 sites. All meals and snacks follow SFSP guidelines and contain protein, fruits, vegetables, bread, and milk.

All eligible children (those under the age of 18), have equal access to the benefits of this program regardless of family income, race, color, national origin, sex, age or disability. No child is turned away and there is no need to register or sign up in advance. To file a program complaint of discrimination, complete the USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form, (AD-3027) found online at: http://www.ascr.usda.gov/complaint filing cust.html and at any USDA office or write a letter addressed to USDA and provide in the letter all of the information requested in the form. To request a copy of the complaint form, call (866) 632-9992. Submit your completed form or letter to USDA by mail: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410. By fax: (202) 690-7442; or by email: [email protected]. The YMCA of Centre County is an equal opportunity provider.

ALL FEEDING SITES ARE OPEN 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY

Bellefonte Area:

• Beaver Farms
• Bellefonte YMCA
• Pleasant Gap Elementary
• Pleasant Hills Apartments
• Marion Walker Elementary
• Trinity United Methodist
• Governor’s Park
• Centre County Library (Opening Soon)

Bald Eagle Area:    

• Pine Glen Fire Co                   
• Wingate Elementary
• Mountain Top Elementary
• Howard Elementary School
• Port Matilda Elementary    
• Miles Trailer Park

Moshannon Valley Area:

• The Wreck Center

Penns Valley Area:

• Don Wert Memorial Park                               
• Grace Methodist Church Centre Hall
• St John’s Millheim                                        
• Miles Township Elementary
• Penns Valley YMCA

Philipsburg-Osceola Area:

• Hope Fire Company                                                                  
• Moshannon Valley YMCA – come to the front desk
• Calvary U.M. Church
• Osceola Mills UM Church
• Holt Memorial Library (Opening Soon)

State College Area:

• State College YMCA
• Ashworth Woods
• Limerock Terrace
• Centre Estates

West Branch Area:

• Grassflat Vol Fire Company – ends July 30
• West Branch Area School District

Menu – August 3-14:

• August 3
  • Lunch: Chicken fajita wrap, mixed veggies, peaches, and milk
  • Evening Snack: Popcorn and juice
• August 4
  • Lunch: American hoagie, carrots, fruit cup, and milk
  • Evening Snack: Nutri-Grain bar and juice
• August 5
  • Lunch: Spaghetti with meat sauce, breadstick, green beans, applesauce, and milk
  • Evening Snack: Animal crackers and juice
• August 6
  • Lunch: Buffalo chicken dip with nacho chips, corn, fruit, and milk
  • Evening Snack: Fruit snacks and juice
• August 7
  • Lunch: Ham and cheese on roll, chips, carrots, fruit, and milk
  • Evening Snack: Goldfish crackers and juice
• August 10
  • Lunch: Fish sticks, mac and cheese, mixed veggies, mixed fruit, and milk
  • Evening Snack: Animal crackers and juice
• August 11
  • Lunch: Baked chicken, seasoned noodles, carrots, pears, and milk
  • Evening Snack: Nutri-Grain bars and juice
• August 12
  • Lunch: Rotini with meat sauce, green beans, peaches, and milk
  • Evening Snack: Pretzels and juice
• August 13
  • Lunch: BBQ pulled pork on a roll, green beans, peaches, and milk
  • Evening Snack: Teddy Grahams and juice
• August 14
  • Lunch: Ham and cheese sandwich, chips, carrot sticks, fruit, and milk
  • Evening Snack: Fruit snacks and juice

 

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Baby Food

We carry a limited supply of baby food for those who are in need. Please call 814-342-0889 for more information.

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Mobile Feeding: Travelin’ Table and Local Restaurant Partnerships

The Travelin’ Table, our mobile feeding bus, has been on the road distributing food we are receiving through partnerships with several local restaurants.  For more information, please contact Mel Curtis at [email protected] or 814-342-0889.

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Family Sites

We currently have 2 family centers, which provide free boxes or bags of food to families in need of groceries during this challenging time. Contact Mel Curtis at [email protected] for additional details or check our Facebook page for upcoming distribution dates.

Penn Highlands Family Site: 

• • Located in the former Penn Highlands building next to the old Bi-Lo in Peebles Plaza in Philipsburg, PA.

DiamondBack Family Site: 

• • Located in the Eureka Building at 703 Hannah Street in Houtzdale, PA.

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Large Food Distribution/Fresh Express Events

Our Fresh Express program offers staple fresh foods, such as meats, fruits, and vegetables. Food is available to anyone, regardless of income or family size. No questions asked. The sites listed below serve as distribution locations. Upcoming distribution dates will be posted on our Facebook page and this portion of the website. For more information, please contact Mel Curtis at [email protected].

• Penn Highlands Family Center in Philipsburg
• Mountain Top Alliance Church in Snow Shoe
• Bald Eagle Valley Community Church in Wingate

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Food Delivery

Through several partnerships, we are able to provide food delivery service to shut-ins and those that don’t have transportation to one of our sites. To receive this assistance, please contact Mel Curtis at [email protected] or 814-342-0889.

Frozen Meal Delivery

We’re delivering pre-baked frozen meals to shut-ins and families without transportation to our sites. These meals consist of enough food for a family of four and can be adjusted for larger families. All meals meet nutritional guidelines for children and adults.

Meals that are part of this service are delivered to your home or a distribution site in your community. Please contact Mel Curtis at [email protected] or 814-342-0889 for more information.

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Make a Donation

Donations to support these efforts can be made in the following ways:

• Online: CLICK HERE
• Mail: YMCA of Centre County Development Office, 677 W Whitehall Road, State College, PA 16801.
• In-Person: Any of our four branches during operating hours

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Volunteer Information

If you would like to volunteer at any of our sites or warehouse, please email: [email protected]. In your message, please include the following information: Name, phone #, email address, the school district area that you are willing to volunteer in, and what type of volunteer work you are willing to do (transport food to sites, volunteer at sites, volunteer for packing, or volunteer to pick-up donation). We have received a tremendous response from our community, and we want to make sure we are responding to everyone. For safety reasons, volunteers will only be working in small groups and will be required to wear a mask. 

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If you or someone you know are struggling to put food on the table or if you are willing to provide support of any kind, please contact Mel Curtis at (814) 342-0889 or [email protected].

We’ll continue to provide updates regarding our Anti-Hunger initiatives as they become available. Thank you for your support.

The services the Y provides to kids and families are needed now more than ever. As our facilities reopen, we continue to remain committed to supporting our community throughout this crisis by providing:

• Drive-Through Food Distribution: When schools were mandated to close, many children lost access to healthy meals provided through their school’s free and reduced lunch program. As other businesses were required to close, additional families began to face food insecurity. Within a few days, we gathered resources to start distributing food at drive-through sites throughout Centre County. We’re currently providing food for over 2,000 kids and families in need at 30+ sites per day.
• Groceries for Families in Need: Several sites are currently distributing hundreds of bags full of groceries 1-2 times per week to families in need.
• Meals for Seniors and Veterans: We’re working with other local organizations to provide drive-through meal distribution for seniors and veterans.
• Virtual Health and Wellness Resources: Group exercise class offering at our branches are currently limited, but you can still join us for virtual classes with your favorite Y instructors. To access online classes, click here.

Thank you for playing such a vital role in our efforts to strengthen our community, particularly during this time. Please continue to follow all suggested measures to keep yourselves safe and healthy. If you would like to offer additional support, donations are being accepted at our branches during the day or by mail. You can also give online by clicking here.

The article below was written by a YMCA of the USA representative in response to questions from White House officials regarding efforts being made by local YMCAs to aid community members during the Coronavirus outbreak. We’re pleased to have been one of the two associations that they chose to spotlight. Read the full post here. You can help us with these efforts by donating or volunteering. Learn more by clicking here. 

Mel Curtis, Moshannon Valley Branch Director at the YMCA of Centre County, began mobilizing his mobile meal program last week when he realized the schools would be potentially closing. He reached out to community partners to organize mobile meal delivery sites for children and grocery drops for families. Before Coronavirus struck, Mel was organizing over 700 weekend backpacks to distribute to kids throughout State College, PA in addition to offering weekly meals afterschool and during the summer.

Now, Mel has collaborated tirelessly to ensure children still have access to food during school closures with his buses delivering meals this week. Mel shares that parents are ecstatic to have help with groceries and have been very appreciative as the Y hands out food. As closures started happening across the county, a single mother called Mel at the Y because she did not know where to turn. She panicked. With schools closed and grocery stores sold out, she did not have what she needed to care for her 7-year-old son with Autism. The Y was able to get hygiene products and groceries she desperately needed.

Mel also shared that the outpouring of support is unbelievable. Coca Cola sent skids of water to the Y as a donation. A trucking company called from Minnesota and said they had a truck in PA that had a refused delivery, would the Y be interested? The company donated 8 skids of snacks that were going to be delivered to a high school that closed. Clubs are making sandwiches. A volunteer paid an apple farmer $500 to donate a truckload of apples and the farmer is adding more! A school administrative assistant is volunteering her time to help the Y coordinate the excess of SFSP paperwork to get more sites added in the community (18 more sites requested for approval tonight).

Community volunteers are helping secure food donations and making calls to help supply the bags of groceries being distributed to families along with children’s meals.

Mel says the Y of Centre County is hosting a food drop on Friday with Representative Glen Thompson at Bellefonte Court House and at the State College Walmart parking lot on Saturday.

These food drops are in addition to the Y’s Travelin’ Table mobile meal and grocery distribution. Volunteers packed over a thousand bags on Monday alone.