Editor's Notebook

It's Peanut Butter, Jelly Time!

Back-to-school season can be a hectic one for parents—even more so when they're struggling to put food on the table. The Marley Project seeks to make the transition a bit easier. Find out how you can help.

There's nothing that says "back to school" quite like a bag lunch with a peanut butter and jelly sandwich inside. But not all kids are fortunate enough to enjoy such meals. That's why The Marley Project, an Illinois nonprofit organization, is coordinating back-to-school Peanut Butter and Jelly drives throughout the area, including Tinley Park. The project helps area food pantries keep their shelves stocked throughout the year—peanut butter and jelly are typically in short supply in pantries. Other items greatly appreciated for lunch boxes include:   Donating is easy! Drop-off locations include the Tinley Park Community Church, Oak Forest City Hall, Oak Forest Park District (Central Park), the Don Gorman Fieldhouse and Jack Hille Middle …

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Food Pantry Coordinators Hungry for Help, Donations

With an increased number of families passing through the doors of Together We Cope's food pantry, the stock is flying off the shelves. In fact, last week's visitors left cabinets entirely devoid of groceries.

The shelves at Together We Cope's food pantry are painfully bare. That's what coordinators said Thursday, after spending about a week of, at times, servicing 90 families per day. The lack of enough food and donations has further emphasized the importance of an upcoming fundraiser—the Greater Chicago Food Depository Hunger Walk, which is set for June 23 at Soldier Field. The pantry will be shuttling participants to the event that morning. But before then, they'll need more walkers and more donations; especially if they want to keep up with the growing needs of the community, fundraising assistant Kerry Nolan said. Check out Together We Cope's blog on Tinley Park Patch. These days, the number of families visiting the pantry is inching closer…

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VIDEO: L-W Marching Bands Perform Together in Community Concert

The student musicians of Lincoln-Way District 210 schools took to L-W Central's football field last week to play in the Marching Band Showcase.

It's a rare occassion when the marching bands of the Lincoln-Way high schools come together to perform. But when they do, it's something the musicians and audences treasure. Students from Lincoln-Way East, West, Central and North performed in the district's Marching Band Showcase on Wednesday, Nov. 2, at L-W Central's football field. The bands showed off their elaboarate performance numbers for family, friends and area residents. This was the second year for the event, and it was free. But attendees were encouraged to bring a non-perishable food item, which was donated to the food pantries of Frankfort and New Lenox townships. For a look at the performances and interviews with some of the musicians, check out the video in our media gallery…

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Fundraiser Round Up: Neat Repeats, Together We Cope and Style Shopping

A short list of charitable organizations and fundraisers that we think you should know about. Suggest others in the comments.

Neat Repeats Neat Repeats is a resale shop run by and benefiting the Crisis Center of South Suburbia, an organization that provides services for victims of domestic violence. Neat Repeats provides one third of the organization’s annual revenue. Located along 159th street east of 94th Avenue in Orland Park, the shop offers clothing, antiques, collectibles, toys, small furniture, books and jewelry at discounted prices. Volunteers staff the store, as well as high school teens earning community service hours by donating their time. One volunteer, Cass Piorkowski, said he finds “giving his time to a worthy cause” the most pleasurable aspect of volunteering at Neat Repeats. Donations of clean, new and gently used items are accepted daily. A call…

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Off To the Races: Together We Cope Fundraiser to be Held Wednesday

Local food pantry's "Nite at the Races" event is a winning ticket for fun and goodwill.

It's time to place your bets for an evening of music, food and laughs. Together We Cope’s annual Nite at the Races and Pasta Extravaganza will be held Wednesday, Sept. 14, at Orland Chateau. The fundraiser aids the Tinley Park-based nonprofit organization, which helps families in temporary crisis through a food pantry, resale shop and financial aid for basic expenses. The agency serves families from more than 23 south suburban communities. “The need for our services is greater than ever before," said Karen Moran, fundraising chairwoman at Together We Cope. "It’s not uncommon to serve from 50 to 55 families a day” PLEASE VISIT the Together We Cope listing in the Patch Places directory for more information. Attendees Wednesday will bet on …

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Together We Cope Pantry Coordinators Ask for Help Stocking Sparse Shelves

The food supply at our local shelter is in dire straits, volunteers say.

Carol Ettema scanned the storage area of the Together We Cope Food Pantry last week and immediately felt uneasy. "I've never seen our food supply so low in all the years I've been here," said Ettema, director of food pantry services for the nonprofit organization. “It’s a combination of greater demand for our services and the current higher cost of food." Together We Cope's mission is to bridge the gap for Southland residents in temporary crisis by providing food, shelter, clothing and help returning to self-sufficiency, according to its website. The organization guides families in more than 20 communities throughout Bremen, Palos, Orland and Worth townships. PLEASE VISIT the Together We Cope listing in the Patch Places directory for more …

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Pet Pantry to Pet Palooza: Orland Township Lends Pet Owners a Hand

The pet-needs addition to the township’s food pantry has escalated to an upcoming event.

The idea for Orland Township’s pet pantry started with chickens. While at a continuing legal education seminar in Cancun, Mexico, township supervisor Paul O’Grady and his wife Debbie were talking about chickens and other animals running loose in the streets. Eventually the conversation shifted to abused animals and overloaded shelters. Soon the idea entered in to add pet food and goods to the township’s food pantry. The response was uniformly in favor. People needed the goods and others were willing to donate. For elderly people on fixed incomes, the extra resources might make the difference to keep a needed companion. Now about eight months after the pet pantry began, Orland Township is throwing a pet party of sorts to raise money for …

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