AmazonSmile: A Hassle-Free Way to Give While You Shop Online

The Modern Shopping Experience

Many of us can remember a time before the rise of the internet allowed us to shop online. Getting the best deal required things like checking a newspaper, cutting a coupon, or getting up before the sun to access the big sales. We were limited by store hours and stocked shelves. But no longer.

Since 1995, when online shopping began with Amazon and a few other companies, we’ve seen convenience accelerate at lightning speed. No longer does a good deal necessitate such sacrifice and restriction. These days, a simple download of an app, or a click of a button, and our wares arrive right at our door at a bargain price. And not just big ticket items. Groceries. School supplies. You name it.

Now, online shopping accounts for almost 28% of all shopping. That’s one in four people. And since 2013, shoppers have been able to take that convenience even further to do some meaningful giving back while shopping—through a program called AmazonSmile. With the simple click of a button, you can shop for a cause and have big impact in your community.

Shopping

What is AmazonSmile?

AmazonSmile is a website operated by Amazon. The specially allocated site donates .5% of the price of eligible purchases to the shopper’s preferred charitable organization. This might seem like a pretty small amount, but the numbers add up. As of March of this year, organizations around the world have racked up nearly $400 million in donations, with virtually no cost or hassle. That’s worth investigating.

AmazonSmile

How Do I Get Started with AmazonSmile?

To begin donating, head to the AmazonSmile page from the web browser on your computer or mobile device. Click “Get Started.” Amazon uses the same account for Amazon and AmazonSmile, so if you already have an Amazon account, you’ll be prompted to sign in. If not, you’ll set up your free account. This is a bonus, because you’ll find your previous shopping, wish lists, and registries right there.

Next, you’ll choose your preferred organization. Make sure you choose “Feed the Need Missions” in the search bar. You’ll know it’s us by the Bastrop location. We are listed as a Human Service organization. Once you select us, you can start shopping. Just make sure that you’re on the AmazonSmile page when you start adding things to your cart.

Something to note—not all amazon items are eligible for AmazonSmile donations. Make sure you look for “Eligible for AmazonSmile donation” stamp in the product’s description. If it is not there, the product will not count toward your total donation.

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Watch Your Impact Grow

Once you start shopping, you’ll be able to track your contributions to see your impact grow. You’ll receive periodic statements via email, or you can simply click on the “Supporting” tab at the top left of the screen when you log in. There you’ll see what you’ve accumulated, as well as the total donations to Feed the Need Missions.

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Guilt-Free Shopping

With online shopping becoming the growing norm, why not connect yours to a great cause? Shake off the guilt for spending by adding some community impact. We’d love for you to support Feed the Need Missions through your shopping so that you can enjoy knowing while you’re getting what you need, you’re also giving back physically and spiritually to those in need.

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3 Surprising Facts About Rural Hunger

Poverty & Hunger in Rural vs. Urban America

According to the US Census, rural America makes up 97% of the land mass of our nation. From these areas come vital national resources, including food and energy products. With its seeming abundance, it’s ironic, then, that food insecurity and poverty here tend to outpace urban poverty.

When you think about under-resourced communities in America, most likely your mind swells with images of densely populated cities. Statistically, though, rates of poverty are higher in small towns than that in metropolitan areas. While poverty exists in all communities, there are unique challenges to combating rural hunger and poverty.

In this blog post, you will discover challenges related to rural poverty, how these create a desperate need for tailored hunger intervention, and how Feed the Need Missions is responding to these unique rural needs.

What Causes Increased Poverty & Hunger in Rural Areas?

Rural communities make up 87% of the counties with the highest rates of overall food insecurity. Food insecurity is defined as the lack of consistent access to enough food to sustain a healthy, active life. Also, childhood poverty is much higher in rural areas than in urban cities. What makes these communities particularly vulnerable?

According to PBS, a few common challenges of rural communities include:

  • Employed individuals make less money
  • Rural areas are not experiencing increased job opportunities
  • Disabilities are more common in rural areas

Another important consideration is the lack of convenient access to goods, services, programs and resources that bigger cities enjoy. In small towns, residences, businesses, and yes, grocery stores, tend to be more spread out and sparse. Twenty percent of rural counties in the United States are considered “rural food deserts,” which means a minimum of ten miles must be travelled to reach the nearest market or grocery store, whereas, in urban areas, food deserts are classified for those who need travel only a mile.

How Can We Reduce Rural Poverty & Hunger?

What is becoming evident is that many hard-working families in these rural communities simply cannot reach the life-sustaining resources they need on a consistent basis. Successful intervention must involve bringing the food and resources directly to the community on a regular basis. This is precisely what Feed the Need Missions, a Bastrop, Texas based nonprofit organization, endeavors to do.

Feed the Need Missions harnesses and empowers volunteers, businesses and churches in rural communities to come together to serve and support site locations in their own communities. Currently, we serve nine unique site locations in North and Central Texas, and we are poised for continued expansion throughout Texas and beyond.

These site locations utilize trailers equipped with food and meal prep supplies each week to prepare and serve hot meals to anyone who drives or walks up, free of charge. There is also ample opportunity for much needed bridge building to community resources, emotional support and spiritual guidance for guests. Additional efforts include an annual Gobble Kits campaign, which provides free Thanksgiving Dinner kits (complete with turkeys) to families who sign up in advance.

Help Feed Children & Families in Rural Communities

A simple donation of $20 per month allows Feed the Need Missions to serve 10 people in these communities. When you commit to giving monthly, you are not only providing people in our communities with a meal they can rely on, you are giving them opportunities to learn about the hope and love of Christ. Join us as we bring relief to hardworking families and children in these rural communities. Visit our website to learn more and donate today.

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Feed the Need With Us On Giving Tuesday

What is Giving Tuesday? 

In the coming days, you will likely see social media and email inbox flooded with requests to give for Giving Tuesday. But what exactly is it?

Giving Tuesday is a global generosity movement designed to empower people to do what they can to improve the world. Situated just after frenzied Black Friday and Cyber Monday shopping, the initiative calls on the community to pause, to consider others, and to do something to support others and important causes. 
Participation also includes many activities, including:
    • Doing a kind deed for neighbors
    • Volunteering or sharing talents 
    • Giving your voice to a cause that matters to you
    • Donating to a local fundraiser, community drive or coordinated event
With so many worthy nonprofit organizations and activities from which to choose, how do you decide which cause to support? Read on for a few suggestions from our Feed the Need Missions team. 

How to Choose the Nonprofit to Support?

Give to support your community’s needs. One of the most invigorating experiences as a donor or volunteer is to actually see your donation in action— to see change happening and know you were able to support it.

Consider the problems that weigh heavily on your own community. Is it poverty? Homelessness? Hunger? Then seek out organizations that are working to solve these problems. If you can find one that is functioning where you live, or has a desire to expand to your area, even better!  Most organizations provide an overview of their Mission Statement on their websites. 

Give according to your personal values. When you look for your cause, be selective about not only what your organization does, but how.

Investigate their methods and their practices. Read their blog and check out their social media sites. These should give you a pretty full picture of what they view as most important. Then consider your own personal values, and make sure your preferred organization matches up. Sharing values with the organizations you support means you can feel good about partnering with them. 

How to Partner with Feed the Need Missions on Giving Tuesday

This GivingTuesday, we hope you’ll consider Feed the Need Missions as you make your selection. Every week, we work hard to meet physical and spiritual needs in communities across rural Texas. At our site locations, we provide free weekly dinners open to anyone, as well as spiritual encouragement and prayer support. We also take hope on the road though our disaster relief efforts nationwide. 

Take a few moments to view a testimony from one of our donors here. Here you’ll learn a little more about our values as an organization. If you feel like we are a good fit for you, there are several ways you can give: 

  1. Simply click here to make a donation online. 
    We are so thankful for our generous donors. You can give this one time or even select a monthly amount for ongoing support.

  2. Sign up for AmazonSmile. Many of the gifts you are planning to purchase this holiday season qualify for AmazonSmile. Simply go to smile.amazon.com, select Feed the Need Missions as your default organization, and a percentage of your purchase will be donated to us.
  1. Check with your employer to see if they match donations. This can double or even triple the financial donations or even volunteer hours you generously give to Feed the Need Missions! Search here to see if this is something your employer offers or check with your HR department and ask about matching employee donations.
  1. Give through other revenues. Take a look at our Ways to Give page to learn more about giving to Feed the Need Missions through stocks, planned giving, and more. And feel free to contact us if you have any questions about these various ways to make a difference in our communities.
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Site Updates: Gobble Kits

Put the GIVING in Thanksgiving Dinner This Year

Famed English poet Wiliam Blake once wrote, “The thankful recipient bears a plentiful harvest.”

As holiday hustle and bustle begin to surface once again, our minds and to-do lists are already filling up with meal planning, travel arrangements and decor inspiration. But let’s not forget that Thanksgiving is also a wonderful opportunity to show gratitude by blessing those around us.

Challenges in the wake of COVID-19 have made 2020 a particularly difficult year for many. If there was ever a time to emphasize the giving in your family’s Thanksgiving plans, this is it. Feed the Need Missions’ annual Thanksgiving Gobble Kits campaign provides area families in need with a traditional Thanksgiving dinner, with all the fixin’s. If you’re looking for a safe, simple and family-friendly way to give back, we’d love to partner with you!

How Can I Provide Thanksgiving Dinner to a Family in Need?

There are three ways to get involved:

1. Give.

A donation of just $25 provides a full Thanksgiving meal to a family of four to six. You can donate directly, and our team of volunteers will purchase supplies and assemble the meal kits on your behalf. You can also pick up a shopping list at one of our local supply pick-up locations, fill your bag with groceries and even a personalized note, and drop them off. Visit our Gobble Kits page for details and donation locations.

2. Serve.

If you are looking for a family-friendly volunteer opportunity, and are located near one of our distribution sites, we would love to invite you to join us as we hand out these meals to families in the community. You can also join us for Gobble Kit assembly day. To receive updates and join our volunteer team, email our Vice President Jason Bray.

3. Pray.

Prayer fuels everything we do at Feed the Need Missions. Whatever capacity you decide to partner with us this year, we hope you will join us in prayer. We believe that many will be fed not only physically, but also spiritually as they see the love of Christ in action this Thanksgiving. We ask that you pray for the immediate and eternal needs of these families to be met through our mission.

Thanksgiving 2020 Gobble Kit Collections Are Now Underway

We are already busy making preparations for this year’s Gobble Kit giveaway. For more information, visit our Gobble Kits page. Here, you can donate directly, find our shopping list or locate a place to come and serve.

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The Beyond Gala Update

What an incredible night we had for The Beyond Gala. We are “Beyond Thankful” for those who gave, participated, prayed and were involved. In a short time of 1 1/2 hours we raised $80,000. With this being our first virtual Gala we are incredibly thankful. Feed the Need Missions has been feeding people physically and spiritually for ten years! We continue to see God grow the ministry and those we serve. Here are a few quotes from people over the last 10 years:

“I never thought Bastrop would have something like this., I came back to Bastrop with the clothes on my back and my two dogs. You guys helped me in many ways. It doesn’t matter your race, what you look like, or who you are you still feed them.” – Joe

“We are a large family. My husband works full time and I take care of the children. Sometimes it’s hard to feed seven people.” – Vasquez Family

“I am gratefully thankful for Feed the Need Missions in helping me see who I really am, learning more about Jesus, and the transformation that has happened in my life. Thank you for accepting me into the family.” – Brandy

We still need your help to continue feeding people physically and spiritually. Our goal for next year is to continue reaching people with the gospel, starting new sites, and putting together a marketing team to help us grow. Will you help us finish raising our goal of $150,000? People like Joe, The Vasquez Family and Brandy need physical and spiritual feeding. Help us raise $70,000 to meet our goal.

Here’s how you can help:

– Donate online HERE
– Mail a check: PO Box 1542 Bastrop, Texas 78602
– Pray for the ministry!

Thank you for an impactful 10 years of serving people physically and spiritually. We couldn’t do this without your help and the support from the communities.

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Are You In?

Since COVID-19 pandemic began, we have faced the challenge of figuring out how to continue serving in our communities. Safety has been a priority and our team at Feed the Need Missions has been working around the clock to make sure no one in our community gets left behind.

Zulma and her kids are just one of the families we have been able to serve each week. “Both of my kids are in Head Start and my youngest daughter has really bad asthma and she gets very sick easily. I lost both of my jobs and income because of no one working,” she told us. “You guys have been a resource for my family in helping us get through this.”

The need is even greater during this time with job losses and children out of school. That’s why we are asking if you are able too, can you commit to giving monthly?

 

Did you know?

On average each Feed the Need Missions community needs $2,500 in monthly pledges to cover all costs. That means all we need is 125 people from each community to commit to giving $20 a month to cover all costs for that community.

Plus, right now for a limited time, when you sign up to give $20 or more monthly, we will send you a free t-shirt as a thank you for partnering with us. So what are you waiting for? Sign up today!


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3 Reasons to Sign Up for Monthly Giving Today

Somewhere along the way, I am sure you have been asked to become a monthly donor for a nonprofit. Maybe several nonprofits have asked you. Maybe we’ve asked you.

Nonprofits are always so thankful for the people who support our organizations through their financial contributions or the giving of their time. We could not serve our communities without these supporters. But did you know there is a way to make your support go further? And it is easy. Simply sign up to become a monthly donor. Here are a few reasons why.

1) Helps with planning

This one might seem pretty obvious, but when a nonprofit knows it will receive a certain amount of donations each month from their monthly givers, it helps with budgeting and planning.

If a nonprofit doesn’t have monthly supporters, they’d be walking into each month a little blind, not sure how many people they could actually serve that month. And when you aren’t able to prepare well, things get missed and people can fall through the cracks.

For Feed the Need Missions, we count on the income from our monthly donors to provide a certain amount of burgers each month. If we look ahead and think we might be short for the upcoming month because we expect more people to come to our sites, it then allows us to adjust our other expenses or ask for more donations to be sure we are covered and can serve anyone who stops by.

Ultimately, when a nonprofit can plan and prepare better, they are able to serve more people. And isn’t that the goal of any nonprofit?

2) Frees up organization’s resources

When the majority of a nonprofit’s income are on auto-pilot through monthly giving, it allows the staff to focus on other things, like building relationships, than constantly looking for donations.

Leadership can focus on ways to grow the organization to reach more people. Staff has more time to get to know others in their towns, like leaders and other nonprofits, that they can partner with to work together and strengthen their communities. It might even allow the nonprofit to be able to thrive with less paid staff so that a higher percentage of their income goes directly back into their programs and services.

3) Makes it easy

This last one is not only a benefit to the nonprofit, but also the monthly donor.

We know your intentions are good and you meant to send in that donation, but life happens and maybe that check never got in the mail. Did you know most organizations can set up auto-pay for you so you don’t have to hunt for a stamp every time you want to give?

Setting up a recurring donation through your credit card or bank account takes forgetfulness out of the equation. You know you are truly helping your favorite nonprofit every month, and that nonprofit can count on you. But you know who benefits the most? The people the nonprofit serves.

 

So what are you waiting for? Sign up to be a monthly donor today, at Feed the Need Missions or another nonprofit you are passionate about. Your gifts will go further and make an even greater impact in your community.

 

Did you know?

On average each Feed the Need Missions community needs $2,500 in monthly pledges to cover all costs. That means all we need is 125 people from each community to commit to giving $20 a month to cover all costs for that community.

Plus, right now for a limited time, when you sign up to give $20 or more monthly, we will send you a free t-shirt as a thank you for partnering with us. So what are you waiting for? Sign up today!


 

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Gobble Kits Impact

This Thanksgiving Feed the Need Missions partnered with churches and businesses to provide those in our community with a Thanksgiving meal kit through our Gobble Kit program. It was the first year we did this and the impact we saw in the community was incredible.

We had 467 families sign up across our seven Feed the Need locations, and with the help of the community, EVERY family who signed up was provided a Thanksgiving meal to serve their family.

We are so thankful to the churches and businesses that partnered with us to make a difference this Thanksgiving. And we are so thankful to the people who took the time to gather the supplies, donate funds, and volunteer to put the Gobble Kits together. It truly made a difference in the lives of these 467 families.

Margaret, who received a Gobble Kit, said “I wouldn’t have a Thanksgiving meal if it wasn’t for you guys.” And when she came to pick up her Gobble Kit she said “My heart is overjoyed with your team’s generosity.”

We also put together this video about our vision and experience during this first year we launched this Gobble Kit project. We hope you take a few minutes to watch a little insiders perspective to our hearts and desire to make an impact in our communities, especially during the holiday season.

 

Thank you to those who participated in providing a Gobble Kit this Thanksgiving. Because of you each family was blessed this season.

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The Beyond Gala Recap

This year’s The Beyond Gala was a roaring good time! We are so thankful for everyone who was able to come out and support Feed the Need Missions that night.

Our event this year raised $44,000, our best response to this event yet! This income, as well as donations we have already raised, puts us well on our way of meeting our goal of $180,260 to cover our Bastrop-area sites for next year.

If you weren’t able to attend our event, it’s not too late to give. Would you consider making a monthly commitment of $20 or even $100? Your generosity will make a difference in so many people’s lives now and for the year to come. Simply click the donate button at the bottom to give today.

We LOVED seeing everyone in their fancy “Roaring Twenties” attire, it was even better than we could have imagined. Check out the awesome video recap of the evening above. It truly was a fun and festive evening!

Thank you to everyone who came out to support our organization this past weekend at The Beyond Gala. We loved seeing so many new and familiar faces, and we can’t wait to see what God does through your generosity this next year.

DONATE NOW

 

Thank you to Joshua Helms for the video and Madison Grace for the photo booth photos.

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Help Us Be Prepared

Feed the Need Missions has been providing disaster relief since 2011. To date we have responded to 17 disasters and have served many communities near and far that have been devastated by floods, tornadoes, fires, and hurricanes. We do this with a hot meal, listening ear, and encouragement.

Check out this video from Jonah Beyer, Feed the Need Missions’ President, and learn a little more about our heart for disaster preparedness. While you do, we hope you consider partnering with us by making a donation today so we can reach as many people as possible during these urgent times of need.

 

Help us be prepared for the unthinkable today.

DONATE TODAY

Did you know September is National Preparedness Month? Since 2011 Feed the Need Missions has served communities hit with devastating floods, tornadoes, fires, and hurricanes with a hot meal, listening ear, and encouragement.

Can you help us be prepared to respond to the next disaster and make a donation today? Your gift of $10, $25, or $50 will help us respond quicker and serve more people when disaster strikes.

While we never hope for a disaster, we know your support will help us be even more prepared to respond when disaster does come our way.

 

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