October 2021 Newsletter
On Our Hearts
Partnerships
As Hearts heads into the fall, your continued partnership is important to us. When you partner with Hearts, not only does it help us keep our outreach programs to the poor and homeless populations running, it also allows us to share our resources in partnership with other non-profit agencies in need.
“For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them…”
~Romans 12:4-8 ESV
Recently, we’ve had some very unique partnerships:
We are honored to have partnered last month with former Buffalo Bills linebacker, Mark Maddox, and his Help 1 Foundation, and the Buffalo Dream Center.
Mark was impassioned to do something for the homeless when he came to town the weekend of September 24th and contacted Hearts for ideas. He was hoping to serve a breakfast meal and we immediately thought of the Curbside Church carried out every Sunday through the Buffalo Dream Center.
Mark is no stranger to doing charity work in Buffalo, so he fit right in with Hearts’ mission to serve the community. Mark and his team touched Buffalo, this time, through the breakfast meals and their big hearts for the underserved.
Another partnership Hearts was spurred to take part in was through a for profit company called Soap Box that empowers nonprofits and social enterprise partners like Clean the World to distribute soap to communities in need, and for every product Soap Box sells, Clean the World donates soap to a charity. Soap is a popular item the homeless ask for and we distribute it to them on a regular basis.
Hearts was the recipient of 10,000 bars of soap! Receiving such an enormous donation allows us to share it with other homeless shelters and agencies that offer shower facilities to those living on the street. So far, we have been able to deliver a case of soap to Eight Days of Hope’s disaster relief program and Little Portion Friary’s homeless shelter, then there are at least 9 other agencies we will make deliveries to very soon. The soap was also handed out to the guests that attended last month’s Sunday breakfast given by former Buffalo Bill, Mark Maddox. |
received a pair of Bombas socks.
Bombas sock company is another for profit company that Hearts has been able to partner with and blessed to receive a large donation of new socks, another crucial item for the homeless. Bombas donates a pair of socks for every pair they sell. Hearts has been able to hand out hundreds of these socks to the homeless and also share them with other agencies that reach the poor and homeless in Buffalo.
Each of these partnerships and donations show the long-range effect that one organization can have in the lives of those less fortunate. Whether you are a donor or a recipient, Hearts is eager to partner with you because partnerships allow for more people in need to be reached and assisted.
Talk from the Street and Heart
October starts the hot meal season for Hearts Mobile Soup Kitchen leading us into the busiest time of the year. Each night a different hot meal is served along with a take away sandwich meal at the Downtown Library.
A line of people can be seen, as we pull up curbside at the library, waiting to receive food, clothing and supplies to get them through the night. Hearts does not leave until each person in line gets at least one meal.
“Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter”
~Isaiah 58:7
LIVES TOUCHED LAST MONTH
September 2021
Total Clients Served: 515
Homeless: 352
Male: 391
Female: 124
Seniors: 8
Children: 5
Meal Bags for Buffalo Dream Center Outreach: 400
Hearts Thrift Shop News
Come Shop at 890 Tonawanda St.
MON - SAT 10am - 5pm
Profits help us to help the homeless!
♥ A young couple who are homeless came into the store wet, tired, and scared after being robbed at gunpoint for whatever belongings they had. They expressed a need for everything from clothing to food to blankets and toiletries. Once again, each of Hearts’ outreach programs pulled our resources together to give them everything they needed from socks to sleeping bags, mats, clothing, shoes/boots, and food. And, as timing would have it, just the day before someone donated back packs filled with toiletries and snacks and they both received one. Although they were going back out on the streets, they were so grateful to receive needed supplies. We sent them off with a resource sheet to get shelter, showers, and a place to sleep.
♥ A young man and his wife came into the thrift store in need of help. He said he used to attend the Kids Club program that Hearts operated when he was a young boy. It was a time in his life that he was hanging with the wrong crowd and getting into trouble. Then, one day, he went to a church in Riverside with a friend and accepted Jesus into his heart. He is married now and his wife is expecting a baby in February. We helped them by giving them some baby items, a stroller, and clothes. We also prayed with them. They left with a little touch from heaven and were very grateful to us.
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
~John 3:16
Clothing Donations
We are so grateful for all of your donations. We also have a bin onsite at our outreach center at 890 Tonawanda Street; you can find the bins located in your area by going to our website at www.heartsforthehomeless.org, click on Bin Finder, put in your zip code and those in your area will appear.
Hearts Mobile Food Pantry
The new building for our food pantry is now open and we are very excited about it because it offers a fresh new space to welcome the community to utilize our services. We are also back to serving the Client Choice shopping experience enabling shoppers to choose what items they want and best suits their family needs.
Our pantry staff and volunteers welcome those in the community who need the help from a food pantry to feed their families, Monday 12pm to 4pm, and Fridays 10am to 2pm, at Hearts at 870 Tonawanda St. Riverside.
| Households | Infants | Toddlers | Children | Adults | Seniors | Individuals |
| 417 | 26 | 93 | 289 | 576 | 145 | 1,125 |
| Households | Infants | Toddlers | Children | Adults | Seniors | Individuals |
| 94 | 9 | 19 | 88 | 134 | 41 | 291 |
The rain didn’t keep Hearts from opening the Mobile Food Pantry or the neighborhood from stopping by to receive the food ready to be handed out to them.
Hearts Mobile Food Pantry is held every 4th Wednesday of the month at Hearts Outreach Center at 890 Tonawanda St., Riverside, from 1pm to 3pm (sign-in at 12:30pm). Families in our community can come as often as we have them as a supplement to our onsite food pantry.
CURRENT NEEDS FOR HOMELESS OUTREACH
Canned Tuna & Spaghetti Sauce
Canned Chili & Beef Stew
Warm Socks & Gloves
Bring donations to Hearts at 890 Tonawanda St., Riverside Ave.
Side of building – Ring bell at kitchen door.
**** Some of these photos are pre-Covid