Photographer Nick McCabe contacted the Food Bank for permission to take photos at our Boogie Down for Hunger Concert with Little Feat.  He did such an amazing job with the photos and has even offered to donate any proceeds from sales to the Food Bank!  Take a look at this message from Nick.  Thank you Nick from your friends at the Food Bank of Northern Nevada!

On Friday July 9th Little Feat played at the Hawkins Amphitheater for a benefit for the Food Bank of Northern Nevada. With the assistance of the Food Bank and the cooperation of Little Feat Management I was allowed photo access for the duration of the show. I captured over 1200 shots of the performance and have posted the best ones on my website.

In a gesture of appreciation and support of the Food Bank Front Row Photo will contribute all the proceeds for any purchases of these photos or gift items made from now until Saturday August 21st to the Food Bank. Photo prices start as low as $2.50 for a 4×6 print and go up to $74 for a 24×36 print. Other options include canvas prints and various gift items.

Look the pictures over. At the very least it will be a fun reminder of the show if you were there. If you enjoy these type of photos there is a link to send me an email on the home page. If you want to receive a link like this for other shows I shoot in the Reno / Carson City / Lake Tahoe area, just send me an email and I’ll add you to the list. If you change your mind I’ll remove you at your request.

Little Feat Slide Show (about 10 minutes at medium speed)

http://frontrowphoto.smugmug.com/photos/swfpopup.mg?AlbumID=12892313&AlbumKey=SveBr

Little Feat Photo Gallery

http://frontrowphoto.smugmug.com/Music/Little-Feat-2010/12892313_SveBr#931017878_m57rw

Thank you.

Nick McCabe
Front Row Photo
775-246-0708
916-519-2196
www.frontrowphoto.smugmug.com

One of the best things about working at the Food Bank is meeting all of the wonderful people that support our cause.  So many people contribute to us in unique and meaningful ways. It is inspiring to hear their stories and see how their contribution can be so exceptional.

Our fundraising concert for the summer, Boogie Down for Hunger with Little Feat is coming up on Friday, July 9th.  The show is sure to be one of the summer’s best and as with Food Bank tradition, we are planning a raffle.  As our volunteer and special events coordinator Bill Kolton was putting together the prizes, he asked a very talented friend of his and the Food Bank, Dale Pappas, if he had anything that he could contribute.  Dale offered a beautiful piece from his pottery collection that is worth buying a healthy handful of tickets to win.

We made the trip to Dale’s studio to pick up the prize and were given a sneak peek into Dale’s workshop.  Dale’s pottery is magnificent and, although enthusiastic about his work, he is very humble about his abilities.  He is a  true artist turned production potter because of a few tricks he learned along the way, allowing him to turn quite a few pieces in a short amount of time. He makes all his own glazes and explains that the pieces are all made to be used, not to sit on a shelf.  They are all dishwasher, microwave and oven safe, and lead and barium free.  Looking around you expect Dale to share that pottery has been his life’s work but it is something that he has done in retirement.  He worked for the Washoe County Sheriff’s Department for nearly ten years.  As his love as pottery has grown, so has his skill.  He is now turning gorgeous wood bowls as well and boasts that his wood is nearly all gathered from northern Nevada .  He sells most of his wares during a couple of shows during the year, that are clearly worth attending!

We thank Dale for his generosity, but also for his story.  We appreciate his talent and his willingness to help.  Here’s a little glimpse of what we saw at his studio.  You can find out more about Dale and his work at www.peavinepottery.com. 

It is so great to hear from a group of volunteers and to learn what the experience is like for them.  A group from NV Energy shared a little bit about their volunteer experience with us.  This is what they said:   The 18 volunteers from NV Energy had so much fun and got to pack the CSFP boxes along with some great young people from Job Corps.  We were proud to pack 527 CSFP boxes for needy seniors and 18,000 pounds of food in just under 3 hours!  For our volunteers, it worked well to start with the CSFP boxes, take a quick break to eat our dinner of Capriotti’s sandwiches and then do a little more work packing cans from the Letter Carrier’s Food Drive. The Volunteer Manager, Dave is such a nice guy and patient teacher, everyone agreed we need to do it again soon.  Another highlight was seeing a few wild horses as we drove into the facility – it’s beautiful wild Nevada out there! Any company looking for a great teamwork/bonding event should think about spending a few hours at the Food Bank.

In a collaborative effort between the Builders Association Charity and the Food Bank of Northern Nevada, a joint Food and Blood Drive was held at the Builders Association of Northern Nevada.  A record setting number of pints (67) were collected and 94 pounds of food was gathered for those in need.  Thanks to everyone who donated – both or either!

Pictures from the day. 

Thank you so much to Ben Wise for coming out today to present the Food Bank of Northern Nevada with the generous donation of $5,000 from The Grainger Foundation! Grainger Industrial Supply in Sparks has been a long time friend of the Food Bank and the Grainger Foundation has made this generous donation in support of the Back-Pack kids Program.  The Back-Pack Kids program provides weekend food to homeless and chronically hungry children.  Approximately 700 Back-Pack bags of food are distributed each week during the school year and the program runs entirely from donations.  Each bag costs $5 so this donation makes an enormous difference in the lives of hungry kids in our area.

Thank you so much to the Grainger Foundation!

Here’s an event  where you can play poker with celebrities for a good cause!

Legends of The Game Celebrity Poker Tournament

Saturday, June 5, 2010 7:30 PM

Play poker with the stars! Bluff some of the greatest sports legends of all time during the Legends of the Game Celebrity Poker Tournament at Peppermill. Poker players who knock out a sports legend will go home with an autographed shirt right off the legend’s back!

Buy your tickets today! Cash and Prizes are up for grabs when you play poker with these stars:

Mel Renfro- Corner Back/Safety, Dallas Cowboys. Pro Football Hall of Fame

Jim Plunkett - Quarter Back, Oakland Raiders, New England Patriots, San Francisco 49’ers, Super Bowl XV MVP

Dave Wilcox- Line Backer, San Francisco 49’ers, 1964 – 1974. Pro Football Hall of Fame

Al Joyner- All American Track and Field; Olympic Gold Medal, Triple Jump 1984

Mark Rypien- Quarterback, Washington Redskins, 1988 – 1993 /  Cleveland Browns, 1994 / St. Louis Rams, 1995 / Philadelphia Eagles, 1996 / St. Louis Rams, 1997 / Indianapolis Colts, 2001 / Rochester Raiders (GLIFL), 2006  (Pro Bowl, 1989, 1991 / Super Bowl XXVI  MVP, 1992)
 
Ed “ Too Tall” Jones- Defensive End. Number one draft pick, Defensive Rookie of the Year, Dallas Cowboys
 
Artis Gilmore- Center, Kentucky Colonels, Chicago Bulls, and San Antonio Spurs. ABA Hall of Fame

Paul Petersen- Actor, Played “Jeff” on the Donna Reed Show

John “The Count” Montefusco- Pitcher, San Francisco Giants. No Hitter 1976

Meadowlark Lemon- Center, Harlem Globetrotters, Pro Basketball Hall of Fame

Ted Kwalick- Tight End, San Francisco 49’ers, Oakland Raiders 1969 1977, College Football Hall of Fame

Darin Jordan- Line Backer, San Francisco 49’ers, 1981 – 1990

Ron Mickle- Quarter Back, BYU, All-American Track and Field

Clarence “Foots” Walker- Guard, Cleveland Cavaliers/NJ Nets

John Franklin- Center, University of Nevada Reno

Dan Bunz- Line Backer, San Francisco 49’ers

George Foster- Out Fielder, Cincinnati Reds ‘Big Red Machine’

Elmore Smith- Center, Cleveland Cavaliers

Jeff Nelson- Pitcher, New York Yankees

David Naughton- Actor, “An American Werewolf in London”

Otis Birdsong- Guard, Kansas City Kings, New Jersey Nets, and Boston Celtics

Ed Halicki- Pitcher, San Francisco Giants, California Angels. No Hitter 1975

Larry Livers- Silver Medalist 1968 Olympics

Rollie Fingers- Pitcher, Oakland A’s,  AL MVP and Cy Young Award 1981, (MLB Hall of Fame)

Lafayette “Fat” Lever- Guard, Lever was selected by the Portland Trail Blazers as the 11th pick in the 1982 , considered one of the NBA’s best point guard’s in the late 1980s, he regularly led the Nuggets in rebounding, he produced a memorable performance against the Chicago Bulls, with 31 points, 20 assists, 16 rebounds, and 6 steals, one of only three players in NBA history to record 15 plus points, rebounds and assists in a single playoff Game (the others being Jason Kidd and The Great Wilt Chamberlain.) 

Event will take place in Peppermill’s 2nd floor Naples Ballroom. Buy-In: $200. Unlimited $50 Re-buys during the first 3 levels. One $50 Add-on at the break. Cash prize pool is split among final six players. Part of the proceeds will benefit Reno Philanthropist Evelyn Mount, Big Brothers Big Sisters, and Food Bank of Northern Nevada.

To register, please call 1-800-648-5555 or register online.

Jerry’s Video

At the Food Bank of Northern Nevada, a great deal of what we do is to educate the public on the very real problem of hunger that exists in our communities. If you take a look deep into the issue and see the amount of hungry children, seniors and families that there are without enough to eat, it is difficult to ignore.

We also know that for us to continue to have a fighting chance at solving this problem, we must engage the younger generations. We received some great assistance in this effort earlier this month from a Spanish Springs High School Student, Jerry Larson.

Jerry came out to the Food Bank of Northern Nevada and did a story for his school’s CNN channel about hunger in our community and what the Food Bank is doing to fight the problem.

Take a look at what Jerry put together! We thank him for helping us spread the word. He is a true hunger advocate.

Click here to view Jerry’s CNN Video.

We love our friends at New York Life.  Scott and his pals have helped us in many ways.  They have donated food, money and their time to the very important cause of feeding those in need in our community.  Yesterday, they joined us again for a food packing session that has great reach into our community.   Right now, we are distributing about 730 backs of weekend food for homeless and chronically hungry children every week.  The numbers are shocking and the reality of this is frightening but the fact that we have donors to help us buy the food and people like our friends at New York Life to pack the bags is so important.      Here are some photos of the day!

On Saturday, May 8, northern Nevada letter carriers gathered a record breaking 187,527 pounds of food in Washoe County to help the increasing number of Nevadans who are struggling with hunger. 

Generous community members gathered food from their pantries and grocery stores to participate in this yearly, one-day food drive.  They bagged up their donations and left them by their mailboxes while letter carriers gathered the food in one day.  Additional donors left their food at participating grocery stores including Raley’s, Scolari’s Food and Drug Company, Safeway, Save Mart Supermarkets, and Smiths Food and Drug throughout the weekend.   Local sponsors included Drinkwater Law Offices, Raley’s, Safeway, Save Mart Supermarkets, Scolari’s Food & Drug Company, The Pampered Chef, and Sierra Nevada Job Corps. 

In addition to the food gathered in Washoe County for the Food Bank of Northern Nevada, food was also collected for Project Mana in Truckee and Incline, FISH in Carson City in Dayton, Lyon County Human Services in Yerington, the Carson Valley Food Closet in Douglas County and the Churchill Community pantry in Fallon. 

Supporting the drive nationally this year are Campbell Soup Company, the U.S. Postal Service, Feeding America, Valpak, the National Rural Letter Carriers’ Association, the AFL-CIO and United Way Worldwide. 

Generous donations from the community and the hard work of the Postal Service and Letter Carriers make this food drive possible.  The Food Bank of Northern Nevada staff gratefully acknowledge these efforts. 

Lionel Sawyer & Collins Pay it Forward Party - Click for more pics

Lesslie Bauer, of Applied Companies is really on to something.  She started a movement in Reno, called Pay it Forward Parties, and from the very first one, people took notice.  She started to get inquiries from people wondering how their company could get involved.  The concept was simple enough.  Members of an office or group all choose something to bring in from the list provided by the Food Bank, and they assemble bags of weekend food for children in need.   

Food Bank employees see every day how a company volunteering together is always well received.  It’s a great team building experience and it helps employees give back in a way that is different from their every day lives.  But, Lesslie recognized that if you could have this experience in the work place and if you could make the committment easy and trouble free, more people would do it and more people would get fed.  Then, those companies would challenge others to do the same and it would spread like wildfire.  

This time, Brenda Riviera, at the offices of Lionel Sawyer and Collins was moved to organize a party at her place of work.  The party was great and 125 snack bags of food were taken back to the Food Bank to go to children in need!  As they worked, they talked about friends, co-workers, family and others that they could involve and you could see Lesslie’s idea come to life. 

Thank you to the employees of Lionel Sawyer & Collins for making a difference today and thank you for challenging those in your lives to do the same!

If you want to have a party too, click here for details. 

Thank you to the employees of Anthem Blue Cross who came out on Saturday to celebrate the national Community Day of Service.  We loved having you for the tour and for your hard work.  We really needed your help to get ready for our big Letter Carriers Food Drive on May 8. 

Check out these pictures from the day! 

Like This and the Nature of Things to Come…

by Peter Whittenberger   

            Like This and the Nature of Things to Come… is a Master of Fine Arts thesis exhibition and fund raiser for the Food Bank of Northern Nevada by Peter Whittenberger held at the Sheppard Fine Arts Gallery. Whittenberger is currently working towards his Master of Fine Arts degree and holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree with an emphasis in printmaking from the University of Montana. Whittenberger’s relational art and videos investigate ideas of what is common to us, exploring experiences we share in our day-to-day lives. Like This and the Nature of Things to Come…, concerns isolating ordinary activities and taking responsibility for them. Whittenberger believes by elevating the common to a level of importance, it is possible to accentuate similarities in our society. The intent of the work is to use these similarities to present ideas of unity and understanding in our community.

            The exhibition will contain videos and interactive works that invite the audience to play games and create sculptures of their own. Participating audience members who create sculptures at the exhibition will be asked for a monetary donation to the Food Bank of Northern Nevada, being collected at the gallery. All the proceeds will go to the Food Bank of Northern Nevada, who can distribute four meals for every dollar donated. The gallery will host three receptions at different times to allow people with various schedules to attend.

May 3-14, Monday-Thursday, 11 a.m.-5 p.m., Friday, 11 a.m.-2 p.m.

May 6, opening lecture, 5:30-6:30 p.m. and reception, 6:30-8 p.m.

May 11, swing-shift reception, 11:30 a.m.-1:00 p.m.

May 14, graveyard closing reception, 8:30-10:00 a.m.

Gallery will be open till 7:30 p.m. for all Nightingale Concert Hall events

Sheppard Fine Arts Gallery, Church Fine Arts Building

University of Nevada, Reno

Creative Coverings – inventive party favor idea

Local NACE Chapter Donates $1,400 to the Food Bank!            

The Reno Tahoe Chapter of the National Association of Catering Executives donated $1,400 to the Food Bank of Northern Nevada from their 2nd Annual Events Elements and Confectionary Competition.  The event brought together some of the most talented designers and pastry chefs to compete in the categories of table top and cake design.  The Food Bank was very excited to be a part of the event and is thrilled that the donation will provide 5,600 meals to the community. 

 The Awards:  

1st Place, Day Category, under $500- Mt. Rose Ski Tahoe with “Mt. Rose Sunshine”
1st Place, Day Category, over $500- Creative Coverings with “Bee-utifuL Brunch in Blossom”
 
1st Place, Night Category, under $500- A Wildflower by Lori Britton
1st Place, Night Category, over $500- Green Apple Events with “Virginia City After Dark”
 
1st Place, Day Category in Confectionary Creations- The Atlantis
1st Place, Night Category in Confectionary Creations- Circus Circus
 
People’s Choice, Tabletop- Green Apple Events with “Virginia City After Dark”
People’s Choice, Confectionary Creations- Sugarpine Bakery

 Photos of the event:  Jessie LeMay Photography 

Food Bank Photos:  Food Bank Flickr Account

Left to Right: Jim Tatro, State Farm Insurance, Jocelyn Lantrip, Food Bank, & Mark Boge, State Farm Insurance

Mark Boge and Jim Tatro visited the Food Bank and said that they’d love to take a look around.  They received a tour of the facility and were so excited to see all that goes on in the warehouse.  They were especially touched by the Back-Pack Kids program that is now bringing 700 backpacks of weekend food to children who are homeless or chronically hungry in our region every week. 

State Farm had held a “friendly competition” among their agents in six states that ultimately helped 12 different Food Banks.  In northern Nevada, the Food Bank of Northern Nevada was the recipient of $3,500, which helps to provide 14,000 meals to the hungry in our area.  We thank State Farm for their caring nature and we really thank the promotions top producer Jim Tatro and his Agency Field Executive Mark Boge for bringing the check out personally to see us.  You guys are the best!