Thank you to the Masons, Lodge #20 for all their help! And, thank you to Schmitz busing for donating the use of the bus and driver! There are a variety of community groups arranging to help with the event, as well, including the Caledonia Lions Club, Caledonia Rotary, etc. Thrivent Financial encourages members to use an action grant to buy food, as well.
Semcac Clinic has found a new Medical Director. Thank you to Dr. Retzinger, for his years of service to Semcac Clinic, who is now retired.
Challenge Yourself to End Hunger Accept the 2016 Food Shelf Challenge from Open Your Heart to the Hungry and Homeless and Semcac this July. You can make a difference for hungry families in our community. Minnesota summers were made for trips to the cabin, boat rides on the lake, and farmers market outings, not food shelf visits. But that’s the reality for thousands of Minnesotans. Children are home from school and the family budget is tight. Food Shelf helps provide nutritious fruits and vegetables to these families and needs your help this summer. We see an increase in child visits during [...]
March is Minnesota Food Share Month The effects of hunger for an individual or family can range from poor health and slowed recovery from injury or illness to poor performance at school or work. During 2015, Semcac Food Shelves in Rushford, Preston, Caledonia, and Kasson had 8,215 visits from 1,388 households and distributed 378,046 pounds of food. Clients are also provided with information and referral to other community services. During March the annual statewide FoodShare campaign promotes the collection of food and funds to stock the state’s food shelves. As an official participant in the Minnesota FoodShare campaign, Semcac’s Food [...]
Semcac is actively looking for a consumer board member in Freeborn County to be part of the Semcac Board of Directors. Being part of this dynamic group presents an opportunity to enhance leadership skills, diversify personal and professional networks, and contribute to empowering people in Southeast Minnesota. Consumer board members can be Semcac clients/customers. The current board consists of committed individuals who enjoy participating in their communities and having an impact on the Agency’s direction. They are responsible for ensuring that Semcac fulfills its mission and maintains its financial health. The board oversees performance, establishes strategic goals, and leads the [...]
Semcac’s Dodge County Food Shelf, located in Kasson, received a fund allocation of $2,500 from a local farmer/grower via the America’s Farmers Grow Communities Grant distributed by the Monsanto Fund. The funds will be dispersed to the food shelf in March of 2016. We are very grateful for this generous contribution to help those in need residing in this rural area of the state. Semcac, a nonprofit community action agency, operates four food shelves in Fillmore, Houston and Dodge Counties. In Fiscal Year ‘15, the Dodge County Food Shelf provided assistance to 1,850 people from 572 households. These individuals visited [...]
The Foster Grandparent Program of Lutheran Social Services of MN is partnering with Semcac Head Start to enroll retiree volunteers to serve in their LaCrescent, Caledonia and Preston Head Start classrooms. The Foster grandparent Program, which recently celebrated its 50th anniversary is part of the National Senior Service Corps and is administered locally by Lutheran Social Services. Foster Grandparent volunteers play an important role in the classroom by providing a nurturing environment. Their wisdom and life-long knowledge offers a background of experience which helps to develop social skills and encouragement that prepare preschoolers to enter kindergarten with confidence. Volunteers must [...]
Thank you for your patience, the car repair program will be launched in the next several weeks, likely in February of 2016. Outreach & Emergency Assistance Services are offering a new car repair program in 3 counties. Semcac is partnering with the Minnesota Prairie Alliance to provide a car repair program to income eligible households with one or more children, ages 1 – 18 years. The program is available for persons living in Dodge, Steele or Waseca counties. Households qualify if they earn 200% or less, of the federal poverty level. This program begins in January 2016. Please contact the appropriate office [...]
Semcac has the opportunity to receive money from Merchants Bank’s Swipe Out Hunger campaign, which will run November 30 through December 10. Merchants Bank will donate a nickel to Swipe Out Hunger every time a Merchants Bank credit card or debit card is used between those dates, up to a total of $10,000. Supporters of the Semcac can vote three times a day at the Merchants Bank Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/MerchantsBank. At the end of the giveaway, the food shelf with the most votes will receive the top donation prize of $5,000. All remaining participating food shelves will receive a percentage [...]
