Reuse Organization Profiles

Senior Gleaners, Inc.

Overview

The mission of Senior Gleaners, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit food bank, is to alleviate hunger among the poor and elderly and to glean surplus foods, at low or no cost, from every available source, for distribution among the needy members and other charitable organizations in a fair and equitable manner. Senior Gleaners, Inc. is the tenth largest food bank in the nation, and the only all-volunteer food bank.

History

Senior Gleaners, Inc. has been operating since 1976.

Operations

All the work done at Senior Gleaners, Inc. is voluntary. Volunteers, who must be at least 50 years of age to work, must pay a $4.00 monthly membership fee to become members and to work at the facility. The average age of the volunteers is 75 and some workers are in their 90s. Senior Gleaners, Inc. operates through the work of its 1,200 members; 1,000 are active members, and about 150 members can be found working at the facility each day.

Fifteen hundred copies of the member newsletter are printed monthly at the facility; a quarterly newsletter sent to all donors and all forms used by Senior Gleaners, Inc. are also printed on site.

To advertise the facility, Senior Gleaners, Inc. conducts an annual direct mail campaign using the addresses in the Pacific Bell directory.

To qualify for Senior Gleaners, Inc.'s donations, an organization must be a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and have adequate storage for food and for record keeping. Senior Gleaners, Inc. will inspect the organization's facility initially, and then on an annual basis. It is not required that an organization's main purpose be to feed the hungry; distributing food to the needy can be an incidental part of an organization's operations.

Fifty percent of the food Sacramento's Loaves and Fishes receives and forty percent of the donations Sacramento Food Bank receives is from Senior Gleaners, Inc. Through the networking process, eventually more than 400 charities benefit from Senior Gleaners, Inc.'s donations.

Funding

While Senior Gleaners, Inc. does not apply for government funding, it does solicit grants nationwide, and receives about $30,000 a month from these efforts. In addition, the monthly bingo games hosted by Senior Gleaners, Inc. provides $50,000 a month, net. The $4.00 monthly membership fee also provides substantial income. Some of the women volunteers also sew items that can be raffled at the annual open house.

Materials Accepted

Edible food, pet food, personal hygiene products, and household products. The law currently prohibits Senior Gleaners, Inc. from accepting donations of baby food.

Source of Materials

Senior Gleaners, Inc. receives about one-third of all its donated food from Second Harvest Food Bank. Approximately two-thirds of its donated food is from local grocery stores, Starbucks, etc.

Contact Information

Ernie Brown, Director of Public Relations
1951 Bell Avenue
Sacramento, California 95838

County: Sacramento
Phone: (800) 585-1530; (916) 925-3240
Fax: (916) 568-1528
E-mail: SGI@seniorgleaners.org
Web site: www.seniorgleaners.org/

Return to Profiles | Reuse Home

Last updated: November 01, 2007