Go Inspire Go is proud to present this month’s Social Good Spotlight, to raise awareness of organizations doing good in their communities in order to inspire others to take action and ultimately make real social change. For more information and to read past Social Good Spotlights, click here.
GIG SOCIAL GOOD SPOTLIGHT: Store to Door – Delivering Groceries and Friendship to Seniors
Compiled by Marcia Estarija Silva
What is Store to Door?
Store to Door is a nonprofit organization that provides personalized, low-cost grocery shopping and delivery services to seniors and people with disabilities. Established in 1989, over 200 volunteers fill and deliver more than 7,000 orders annually in the Portland and Beaverton communities in Oregon. Besides providing a reliable and inexpensive service, Store to Door’s volunteers and staff reduce clients’ isolation by building relationships through weekly phone calls and visits. Store to Door was honored by Portland Monthly Magazine and the Oregon Community Foundation as a nonprofit organization “whose extraordinary acts of service have raised the quality of lives in Portland” and received the Volunteer Innovation Award from Hands On Greater Portland and the Portland Trail Blazers.
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What inspires Store to Door to do this work?
Store to Door was modeled on a similar program in Minnesota. In the early 1980s, Dr. David Berger formed a nonprofit corporation that conducted research on community and social welfare issues and found that there was a group of elderly persons who could live independently but could not do their own grocery shopping because of various health and mobility issues. Unable to get other agencies to start a reasonably priced grocery delivery service for this group of people, Dr. Berger, along with colleague Judy Madaj, decided to do it themselves. In 1984 in south Minneapolis, Store to Door was born, and its work inspired the creation of the Portland organization five years later.
Store to Door is more than a grocery delivery service; it is a “friend at the door” that aims to make life easier for its clients and their families. As the elderly continue to be the fastest growing segment of our population, family members often feel stressed about prioritizing an aging parent, their work, their children, and their own needs. Store to Door is able to relieve these caregivers of at least one time-consuming task, as well as provide assurance that their loved ones are being contacted and visited regularly.
How can GIGSTERS get involved and help Store to Door?
– Volunteer – Volunteers are the backbone of Store to Door’s service. Ranging from teens to people in their 90s, they all have a desire to assist neighbors who need a little extra help. All it takes is a couple of hours a week to either take orders, shop or deliver.
– Donate – Your donation will help make Store to Door accessible to everyone who needs its services.
– Events – Support Store to Door by checking out its events
– Like Store to Door’s page on Facebook – Keep in touch and get the latest news from Store to Door.
Store to the Door – Heart of the Community Award 2007
Store to the Door – Heart of the Community Award 2007
[Video produced by Ralph Cunningham and the Portland Trail Blazers]
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