The United Food Operation, Inc. 2016 food distribution season has officially begun. This morning at 8:00 A.M., volunteers from the Nitro Food Pantry joined UFO volunteer staff at the program’s new facility to sort food destined for area food pantries. Continue reading United Food Operation works out of new distribution center
Category Archives: Program Updates
2016 program dates and open house set
The 2016 United Food Operation, Inc. winter food distribution program will begin on January 8 and conclude on April 2 at a new distribution warehouse facility in Institute, WV.
Dow Chemical Company has donated a new and improved warehouse space for UFO to use at the Institute Industrial Park — in a part of the park that Dow recently purchased from Bayer CropScience. Over the past few months the facility, which is located across Route 25 from the Institute Post Office, was extensively renovated by Bayer Crop Science to prepare it for UFO’s use.
“We couldn’t be more pleased with our new space,” said Elaine Harris, UFO chair person “Our thanks go out to Bayer and Dow for their generous donations. This means so much to us.”
The building has a conference room and office in addition to ample food storage and distribution space. The renovations included fence line modifications to allow for a separate entrance off Route 25, minor reconstruction, electrical modifications, painting, and the installation of new tile and ceiling for a conference room area. Also included is the donation of conference room furniture, chairs, refrigerator and microwave for the conference room area. [Link to directions and map]
To recognize Bayer CropScience and Dow for their donations and to familiarize the community with the new space, UFO will hold an open house and fundraiser there on Saturday, January 16 from 10:00 A.M. until noon.
“For many years we have relied on many of the plants and companies here in the Kanawha Valley that have now downsized,” said Elaine Harris. “Therefore, in order for us to survive and to continue to supply food to the pantries in Kanawha and Putnam counties, we have to solicit new partners.”
The 2016 winter program will mark the 34th year of UFO food distributions. During the annual program period, the group provides weekly distributions of much-needed foodstuffs—free-of-charge—to 12 independent food pantries located throughout Kanawha and Putnam counties.
For more information on UFO volunteer opportunities or the upcoming open house, call 304-342-2023 (8:00 am – 4:00 pm, Monday–Friday).
Organization meeting set
United Food Operation, Inc. will hold the organizational meeting for its 2016 campaign on Thursday, December 10. The meeting will be hosted by Dow Chemical Company at its Institute, WV facility.
At the meeting, the dates for the 2106 Winter Food Distribution Program will be announced. UFO will also disclose the new location of its food distribution center.
The group had to move from its former space following the repurposing of the building in which it was located after Bayer CropScience sold the property earlier this year. The UFO board expressed their gratitude to Bayer for its generous support over the past decade. UFO is thankful to have had the use of the BayerCropScience warehouse space for those many years.
As part of the meeting agenda, representatives of the participating food pantries will help UFO leaders assess the current need for food in the region. UFO anticipates a strong demand for food this winter given the region’s weak economy and high unemployment. Plans for fundraising will also be discussed.
For additional information on the meeting, please call 304-342-2023.
Letter Carriers Food Drive set for May 9
This year’s National Association of Letter Carriers (NACL) annual food drive will take place on Saturday, May 9. United Food Operation (UFO) will again assist the letter carriers with unloading food at the downtown Charleston postal center.
UFO needs volunteers to help at the downtown post office from 1:00 PM until around 6:00 PM.
NACL uses United Food Operation to distribute the donated food to food pantries around the Kanawha Valley. UFO will truck the donated food from the Charleston post office to its distribution center at the Institute Industrial Park. At the warehouse the food will be divided into portions for each of the 12 participating food pantries in Kanawha and Putnam counties. The pantries will then pick up the food and use it to help with their missions.
Volunteer Contact
Those wishing to volunteer should contact Nancy Grist at ngrist@cwa-union.org or may call her at 304-342-2023 no later than May 1. Volunteers should plan to work at least a two-hour shift between 1:00 and 6:00 PM on May 9. Volunteers should be able to lift boxes weighing from 15 to 25 pounds. Food and soft drinks will be provided.
Volunteers will be working in the post office loading dock area, which is entered off Washington Street E., across the street from the Best Western Charleston Plaza Hotel.
Winter Food Drive Ends with a Flurry
Winter snow flurries couldn’t stop the flurry of activity as the final day of the 2015 winter food distribution program took place at United Food Operation, Inc. (UFO). The winter campaign ended March 28 with a group breakfast for volunteers and food pantry workers.
Volunteers sorted food and loaded trucks as usual. A large group showed up for the final day of the winter program.
“I want to thank everyone for their work this winter,” said Elaine Harris, UFO chairwoman. “I am constantly encouraged by all the people who contribute their time and money to our effort.”
Among this year’s contributions, Harris mentioned the work of the Communications Workers of America and Frontier Communications Corp., who really came through with big time support that helped the campaign end on a very positive note.
The program distributed packaged food to 12 independent food pantries in Kanawha and Putnam counties for 12 weeks of the winter season. This is the time of year during which food pantries experience increased need as people’s heating bills peak, leaving less in the family budget for food purchases.
UFO is an all-volunteer operation. It pays no salaries or contracted employees. It operates from donated warehouse space provided by Bayer CropScience at the Institute Industrial Park. All the funds individuals donate to the organization go to purchase and distribute food.
Noble Pickens: a volunteer supreme
The organization honored Noble Pickens for his many years of volunteer service to the group. Noble has long served as the warehouse coordinator, managing both food purchases and distributions for the program. United Food Operation could not be successful it it weren’t for folks like Noble who have spent countless hours through the years working to help those less fortunate. UFO is so indebted to him and other long-term volunteers who make the group go.
The next organization activity will be assisting with the Letter Carriers Food Drive in May. Letter carriers in the Charleston, WV, region use UFO to distribute the donated food to local food pantries.
As UFO closes the door on another winter food distribution season, plans are already being made for next year. Volunteers are always needed for fundraising and food collection activities. For information call Elaine Harris at (304) 342-2023.
2015 food drive, distributions under way
On January 9, United Food Operation, Inc. (UFO) began its 33rd season of supplying food to 12 community food pantries in Kanawha and Putnam counties of West Virginia.
UFO Chairwoman Elaine Harris announced the start of the group’s winter food drive at the kickoff event. This year’s food drive is dedicated in honor of Sylvia Mae Jones, who was formerly a receptionist at Bayer CropScience and a long-time supporter of UFO.
The meeting took place at Charleston’s Mountain Mission, which is one of the food pantries that benefits from the UFO program. Fund raising activity heated up fast as several donations were received from area work systems. Bayer Corp., ICL Group, and Dupont all stepped up to provide significant support for this year’s campaign.
United Food Operation depends on the caring and generosity of workers and companies around the Kanawha Valley to provide the funds needed to fight hunger in the region. UFO is an all volunteer operation, with no salaries, and operates out of donated warehouse space at Institute, WV.
Because UFO operates with almost no overhead, all the funds it raises in the annual food drive can go toward purchasing food, which it then supplies to the community food pantries free of charge.
Each Saturday from January through March, food pantry vehicles arrive at the UFO warehouse located in the Institute Industrial Park, to pick up a free load of packaged foods. This food is a big help to the pantries that are often strapped to meet the large need they find in their communities.
United Food Operation receives support from a variety of employers and individuals around Kanawha and Putnam counties. Elaine Harris emphasized that more support is needed this season in order for the group to meets its goals. Business or individuals wishing to help can contact Harris at 304-342-2023.
UFO to begin 2015 food distribution program January 9
Many ideas were contributed as United Food Operation, Inc. (UFO) held its organization meeting for the 2015 winter food distribution season. With the treasurer’s report showing the group will begin the 2015 program season with about $8,000 less than last year, much of the discussion centered on fundraising.
“We understand money is tight, but still there are those who need our help,” said Elaine Harris, UFO chairperson as she expressed the group’s commitment to find more resources.
The organization will conduct its 33rd annual food distribution program from January 9 to March 28, 2015. The program helps 12 local food pantries in Kanawha and Putnam counties get through the tough winter months.
It was determined that UFO needs to raise an additional $36,000 between now and the end of March if it is to maintain the same level of support it provided food pantries last year.
Each year, United Food Operation program provides additional food to the pantries during a 12-week winter-to-spring period — a time during which many families struggle with high heating bills that cut into their food budgets. UFO provides this support to the pantries at no cost to them.
The 2015 program will again operate out of space donated by Bayer CropScience at the Institute Industrial Park.
“We really appreciate Bayer’s providing us warehouse distribution space for the upcoming year,” Harris said. “They have been so generous through the years. I don’t know where we’d be without them.”
The 2015 distribution center will be located next door to the building that has been used the past several years. The former distribution center building is scheduled for demolition as the industrial park continues to experience changes and redevelopment.
Food pantry representatives at the meeting included those from Five Loaves–Two Fish, Poca; Nitro Community Services; EnAct, Inc, which operates in Clendenin, Montgomery and Chesapeake; Christian Community Cupboard, Hurricane; Covenant House, Charleston; Mountain Mission, Charleston; Sissonville Community Food Pantry; The Salvation Army, Charleston; and St. Albans Community Food Pantry. Representatives from Heart and Hand of South Charleston were unable to attend the meeting but will also participate again this winter.
United Food Operation, Inc. is a total volunteer operation with no paid staff and operates out of donated warehouse and office space. All donations it receives from the public go to purchase food.
Letter Carriers food drive a big help
Around the region, the annual Letter Carriers food drive on May 10 netted over 50,000 pounds of donated food that will be distributed to West Virginia food pantries.
At the main post office in Charleston dozens of United Food Operation, Inc. (UFO) volunteers turned out to unload food from postal trucks and move it to the waiting UFO tractor trailer. A rainy day did not dampen the spirits of the volunteers nor of the members of the National Association Letter Carriers (NALC) Local 531, as approximately 21,000 pounds of food donated by postal patrons was received and reloaded at this site.
It takes a lot of volunteers to pull off a day like this and Charleston area organizations were very generous. Those offering volunteers included the Communication Workers of America, Local 2001; American Federation of Teachers, Putnam County Local 4639; Buffalo Soldiers Motorcycle Club, Charleston Chapter; National Association of Letter Carriers, Local 531; Charleston Professional Fire Fighters, IAFF Local 317; Heart and Hand of South Charleston; International Association of Machinists, Local 656; International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Local 175; International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 132; United Food Operation, Inc.; WV AFL-CIO; and the WV Governor’s Office.
With the day having been proclaimed by Governor Earl Ray Tomblin as Letter Carriers Food Drive Day, the large haul of donated food will be spread among pantries around south central and western West Virginia. The 21,000 pounds of food given to United 
Food Operation will be shared with the 13 pantries it supports in Kanawha and Putnam counties. This food will be an immediate help to those in need in the Kanawha Valley.
** Click on the photos to view enlargements of our volunteers **
Details of the day
Postal delivery trucks arrive at the post office at the end of their day bringing back the donated food they have collected from postal patrons.
The donated food is loaded into large dump bins by United Food Operation volunteers.
Once these dump bins are filled they are moved over to the weighing area.
Each bin is placed on the scale and weighed.
Full bins typically weigh in the area of 800-900 pounds.
Bins are then loaded into the UFO trailer and hauled to the UFO warehouse in Institute.
This tractor and trailer was provided, at no cost to United Food Operation, by Yellow Freight. This is the kind of contribution that allows UFO to put all the funds it raises toward buying food. We thank Yellow Freight and all the others who made this successful day possible.
UFO will now distribute all the food donated from the Letter Carriers drive to its participating local food pantries . With the completion of this project, 2014 UFO distributions season will come to a close. Over the summer and fall months UFO will raise the funds needed to kick off its Winter 2015 program, which begins in January.
2014 Letter Carriers Food Drive
United Food Operation (UFO) will again be joining in partnership with the National Association of Letter Carriers for their annual food drive on Saturday, May 10. UFO Chairperson Elaine Harris said the program is in need of volunteers that day.
Work unloading donated food will begin at 1:00 PM and end around 7:00 PM. Food and soft drinks will be provided for volunteers. If you can help out for an hour or two or three on May 10, please contact Nancy Grist at ngrist@cwa-union.org or (304) 342-2023.
Work sites will be at the loading docks area of the main Charleston Post Office on Washington Street and at the United Food Operation distribution center in Institute.
Mid-Winter Event Creates Enthusiasm
Over $6,000 in cash and food donations were received during United Food Operation’s (UFO) mid-winter event held on Saturday morning, Feb. 22, at its Institute distribution center.
“This will fund another week of food distributions to local pantries,” an appreciative UFO Chair Elaine Harris said. She explained that donations have been somewhat lower over the past year and the program needed this mid-winter boost.
Charleston radio station WQBE provided a two-hour live remote broadcast from the event. This is the third year the station has donated a remote broadcast to help publicize the need for donations.
Standing out among Saturday’s contributions were donations from Communications Workers of America Local 2001, IVS Hydro, Kanawha Valley Labor Council, and employees at wvOASIS–WV Auditor’s Office.
UFO volunteer event manager Joseph Davenport offered special thanks the everyone who participated.
“The day was a great success with area businesses, local unions, retirees, community organizations, volunteers, and a state government agency all participating,” he said.
The day began as a usual Saturday with loading food into the food pantry vehicles. UFO supports 13 food pantries in Kanawha and Putnam counties of West Virginia. Unlike some food banks, UFO gives its food to the pantries free-of-charge.
United Food Operation distributions will continue this year each Saturday through April 12. All donated funds received before that time will be used to add additional food to the amount distributed to each participating pantry.
