Welcome to PORCH Western Wake!
We started as a group of women in Cary who got together every month or so to network, chat and have good old fashioned girl time.
We are all business/working women in one profession or another (lawyer, designer, teacher etc.) that have lived in Cary for a number of years and are all now in our … hmmm… in our … 40s, 50s and 60s! In other words, we are still young, and at the same time we are old enough to know that we still have a lot we CAN and want to do and accomplish.
We first learned of PORCH, www.porchnc.org (People Offering Relief for Chapel Hill Carrboro Homes) and its successes as a grass-roots hunger-relief program in late December, 2010, and within weeks we were talking about and talking through ways to get a similar program started in Cary. What appealed to us immediately was not only the energy and success of the existing PORCH program in Chapel Hill but also the simplicity of the program:
- Participation is easy … on a given date people leave their donations on their front porch for volunteers to collect
- Participation is ongoing … donors can participate every month OR just during the months of their choosing. There’s no pressure, no advance commitment
- The impact is local … all of our donations help individuals and families in the Western Wake Communities of Cary, Apex and Morrisville
- Everyone and Anyone can participate … just like our recipients, donors are not asked about political or religious affiliations. This program is just about those who CAN helping those in need!
So, it seemed like a winning formula to us and one that we couldn’t resist! Six weeks later, we had our first collection and fortunately, our feelings and belief in our neighbors were correct! PORCH-Cary (which soon became PORCH-WesternWake) has been successful from its first month. Not because of us but because of the many giving donors who participate and are helping to spread the word to new donors and new neighborhoods.
Now, as our collections and donor lists grow so do our goals and our commitment. We would love to have volunteers and donors from every neighborhood in Western Wake (Cary, Morrisville, and Apex). We’d love to expand to multiple recipient organizations so that we CAN help as many different local people in need as possible. It’s truly amazing the difference that every CAN of canned food CAN make!
So, please join us and enjoy the great feeling of giving all year long!
We are anxious to have you on board!
How PORCH Works
PORCH is built around the very simple idea of a neighborhood food drive. Here’s how it works, in three easy steps:
Once a month, on a designated day, residents place a food donation of individual sized-portions on their front porch.
A volunteer neighborhood coordinator goes porch to porch and picks up the food donations.
The donated food is transported by car to a central location where it is sorted, packed into backpacks, and then delivered to Western Wake Crisis Ministry, USO-NC and National Guard families.
The three-step process is easy and it’s also fast. With the help of dedicated volunteers, all the food collected from the many neighborhood food drives moves from porch to pantries and those in need in just a few hours’ time. From there, it goes to children struggling to get enough food to eat.
Donation History
Below are our annual donation totals for past years:
Date | Volume (lb) | Value |
---|---|---|
Jan 31, 2016 | 1,641 lbs | $3,282 |
Feb 29, 2016 | 2,172 lbs | $4,344 |
Mar 31, 2016 | 1,494 lbs | $2,988 |
Apr 30, 2016 | 1,234 lbs | $2,468 |
May 31, 2016 | 1,491 lbs | $2,982 |
Jun 30, 2016 | 1,005 lbs | $2,010 |
Jul 31, 2016 | 2,036 lbs | $4,072 |
Aug 31, 2016 | 1,595 lbs | $3,190 |
Sep 30, 2016 | 1,446 lbs | $2,892 |
Nov 30, 2016 | 2,080 lbs | $4,160 |
Dec 31, 2016 | 2,464 lbs | $4,928 |
Jan 31, 2017 | 1,497 lbs | $2,994 |
Feb 28, 2017 | 1,718 lbs | $3,436 |
Mar 31, 2017 | 1,184 lbs | $2,368 |
Apr 30, 2017 | 1,593 lbs | $3,186 |
May 31, 2017 | 1,510 lbs | $3,020 |
Jun 30, 2017 | 1,120 lbs | $2,240 |
Jul 31, 2017 | 1,560 lbs | $3,120 |
Aug 31, 2017 | 1,425 lbs | $2,850 |
Sep 30, 2017 | 1,493 lbs | $2,986 |
Oct 31, 2017 | 2,352 lbs | $4,704 |
Oct 31, 2017 | 1,488 lbs | $2,976 |
Nov 30, 2017 | 2,080 lbs | $4,160 |
Dec 31, 2017 | 1,403 lbs | $2,806 |
Jan 31, 2018 | 1,389 lbs | $2,778 |
Feb 17, 2018 | 995 lbs | $1,990 |
Mar 17, 2018 | 1,433 lbs | $2,866 |
Apr 21, 2018 | 1,284 lbs | $2,568 |
May 19, 2018 | 1,005 lbs | $2,010 |
Jun 16, 2018 | 1,142 lbs | $2,284 |
Jul 21, 2018 | 1,397 lbs | $2,795 |
Aug 18, 2018 | 1,198 lbs | $2,396 |
Sep 22, 2018 | 2,074 lbs | $4,149 |
Oct 20, 2018 | 1,276 lbs | $2,552 |
Nov 17, 2018 | 1,669 lbs | $3,338 |
Dec 15, 2018 | 1,333 lbs | $2,666 |
Jan 19, 2019 | 1,543 lbs | $3,085 |
Feb 16, 2019 | 1,202 lbs | $2,405 |
Mar 16, 2019 | 1,598 lbs | $3,196 |
Apr 13, 2019 | 1,351 lbs | $2,702 |
May 18, 2019 | 1,100 lbs | $2,200 |
Jun 15, 2019 | 1,215 lbs | $2,431 |
Jul 20, 2019 | 1,451 lbs | $2,902 |
Aug 17, 2019 | 1,270 lbs | $2,540 |
Sep 21, 2019 | 1,262 lbs | $2,524 |
Oct 19, 2019 | 1,476 lbs | $2,952 |
Nov 16, 2019 | 1,361 lbs | $2,722 |
Jan 18, 2020 | 1,496 lbs | $2,992 |
Feb 15, 2020 | 1,066 lbs | $2,132 |
Mar 21, 2020 | 1,049 lbs | $2,098 |
Apr 18, 2020 | 947 lbs | $1,894 |
May 16, 2020 | 1,080 lbs | $2,159 |
Jun 20, 2020 | 1,174 lbs | $2,348 |
Jul 18, 2020 | 1,084 lbs | $2,168 |
Aug 15, 2020 | 1,030 lbs | $2,060 |
Sep 19, 2020 | 1,184 lbs | $2,368 |
Oct 17, 2020 | 1,163 lbs | $2,326 |
Nov 21, 2020 | 1,400 lbs | $2,800 |
Dec 12, 2020 | 1,488 lbs | $2,976 |
84,267 lbs | $168,534 |
Participating Neighborhoods
We collect in the following neighborhoods. If you don’t see your neighborhood listed, we would love to add you to our list! Email westernwake@porchcommunities.org for more information.
- Amberley: Marcy Sacarakis
- Bella Casa
- Breckenridge: Salma Haque
- Cameron Park: Linda Barret, Jan White
- Cedar Bend: Melissa Miller
- Dogwood Ridge: Linda Barret, Jan White
- Downing Glen: Ellen Rubel
- Downing Ridge: Ellen Rubel
- Downing Village: Ellen Rubel
- Edinborough Point: Kristi Matthews
- Georgetown: Melody Hughes
- MacGregor: Wendy Musser
- MacGregor Downs: Georgi Murray
- Morrisville General: Ellen Rubel
- Normandie: Lee Harrison, Elizabeth Allbert
- Pearson Farms: Linda Barret, Jan White
- Picardy: Jack Pearson
- Preston Fairways: Maria Madsen, Nancy Flink
- Preston Highlands: Adele Rogan, Lisa Bultman
- Preston Highlands Ridge: Adele Rogan, Lisa Bultman
- Preston Village: Melody Hughes, Ellen Rubel
- Preston Villas: Nancy Flink
- SearStone: Maria Madsen
- Weaver Crossing: Lis Pfeiffer
- Whitebridge: Maria Madsen
For more information on Neightborhoods or to contact your neighborhood coordination, go to ‘Get Involved’.
Partners
All of these business hold periodic food drives on behalf of PORCH-WesternWake. If your organization would like to participate monthly, quarterly or even annually please let us know!
- Apex High School National Honors Society
- Be Better Vending
- Burger 21
- Campbell University
- DNA Group Inc.
- Glass Plus Inc.
- Green Hope High School
- Moore and Van Allen
- My Soccer Fitness
- National Honors Society
- Operation Eagle - United Drug Supply
- Orange Theory Fitness
- PPD
- St. Mary Magdalene
- Walmart
Recipients
Currently, all of our donations are allocated between three main recipient organizations:
- Interact - 10%
- National Guard Families - 25%
- The USO-NC (at Raleigh-Durham Airport) - Variable
- Western Wake Crisis Ministry - 65%