Give Now – Donor Pledges 100% Match for Pet Food Pantry Donations, Today Through Saturday

A donor has generously pledged a 100% match on all donations (food and financial) thru Saturday – donations to the Dr. John Ruffing VMD Pet Food Pantry. We are based in Manchester on the Northside. Over 70 households are registered from around Allegheny County. We need 250 pounds of food to reach our goal. GoFundMe […]

In the 90’s, the Mormon Calvary Saved a Food Pantry

Update on the Closure of the Pittsburgh Pet Food Pantry Pittsburgh has been responsive – 27 people have ordered items from our wishlists. It is a little hard to know the quantity until they arrive. But 27 is lovely and will help us be prepared for October. I’ll admit I was hoping for an autumn […]

Reasons Why a Pittsburgh Pet Food Pantry is Closing Temporarily

PET FOOD PANTRY temporarily closed due to lack of donations. We are sorry to inform our neighbors that the Dr. John P. Ruffing VMD Pet Food Pantry will not be distributing in September due to lack of pet food. The pantry has over 70 registered households and caretakers. Based on Pittsburgh’s Northside, they serve families […]

Lettuce spread the butter, not the shame or stigma

I regularly rely on a food pantry. Of course, I’m researching a blog post to destigmatize food insecurity resources. Because that’s what I do. I talk about it openly with my circle of friends. I felt no shame or guilt about it. I meet the criteria of the pantry. No shame until today. Today, someone […]

How a Community Pet Food Pantry in Pittsburgh Joined the Resistance

We don’t know what lies ahead. We won’t give you platitudes about resiliency or inner strength or toughness even though we think those are true. What we can give you is reassurance that you are not alone. The Dr. John P. Ruffing VMD Pet Food Pantry supports neighbors taking care of animals – community cats, […]

New #ThingsToDo: a List from Esai, Age 14

New Things To Do Project

Total Lists Submitted: 5 Total Amount Raised for Food Pantry: $50.00 This is our new project #ThingsToDo where we invite youth to create and share a list of things to occupy time and cope with boredom. You’ll fine the details at this link. Your young people are welcome to participate. Here’s the cool thing – in addition […]

Ten Alternative Gifts to Celebrate Easter & Spring & More

alternative easters gifts

We are honoring Passover and Easter this week along with the first real lasting bout of spring weather. This means lots of sniffles, but also buying stuff for gifts – candy, toys, etc. I don’t want to take away your joy at gnawing on that giant chocolate ear, but there are some other ways you […]

How To Help Your Neighbors With Girl Scout Cookies

It is the most wonderful time of the year … cookie time! I placed my order last night and showed considerable restraint. And I want to suggest that we all add a sharing component to our cookie compulsion by purchasing a box (or ten) to donate. The Girl Scouts of America have an existing program […]

Northside Food Pantry Launches Food Drive Blitz To Meet Holiday Needs

The food pantry hosted by Northside Common Ministries on Brighton Road is the largest pantry in Western Pennsylvania. Each month, they distribute food to over 1,000 families and households in the Northside zip codes. The pantry is set up in a ‘shopping model’ which allows clients to select the items they prefer from whatever is […]

Northside Holiday Food Drive

  The Northside Food Pantry is the largest in Western Pennsylvania, serving over 1,000 families every month. 1,000 families equals many thousands of people. Some have children, some are senior citizens living on their own. All our are neighbors. Each family can visit the pantry one time per month. This is the leanest time of […]