16 Spring 2017 Applegater
NONPROFIT NEWS AND UPDATES
— ACCESS Food Share Gardens —
Imagine every town in Jackson
County growing enough fresh vegetables
to help feed the hungry in its community.
That’s the hope and mission behind the
ACCESS Food Share Gardens. Since
2010 these highly productive, volunteer-
run gardens have been providing
thousands of pounds of fresh organic
produce to ACCESS emergency food
pantries.
Do you love to garden? Want to
learn? Come volunteer in a Food Share
Garden! Near the Applegate Valley,
there is a garden at the Oregon State
University Extension on Hanley Road,
Central Point. ACCESS is also planning
on collaborating with the school garden
at the Ruch Community School this year.
No gardening experience or green
thumb is required. The Food Share
Garden’s on-site garden managers will
teach you. Come to de-stress, connect
to others, and serve your community.
Volunteers are encouraged to
take vegetables home for their own
consumption because all of us can benefit
from eating more veggies—especially
those that are sustainably grown.
To volunteer or obtain for more
information, contact Kim Barnes at
541-779-6691 x309 or freshaccess@
accesshelps.org.
— Applegate Community Church —
Greetings, Applegate community,
from your neighbors at Applegate
Community Church (ACC).
Over the holidays, we reached out to
our hungry and hurting community with
20-plus boxes of food, which is probably
double the usual amount of our annual
food drive. Applegate School and the
Lions Club helped with this endeavor,
along with many generous donations
from our church members who keep
our food pantry (Joseph’s Storehouse)
stocked so we can help people whom
God brings our way.
Former President Reagan once
proposed, “If every church and synagogue
in the US would adopt ten poor families
beneath the poverty level…we could
eliminate all government welfare in
this country.” Whether his proposal
was sufficient or not, this dilemma of
neediness is of growing concern.
We are a small congregation with
limited resources. Hopefully, by God’s
grace and His empowering Holy Spirit,
we here at ACC will be a faithful
lighthouse on the hill in the center of
Applegate, pointing souls to Christ and
filling stomachs with food, all in the
name of Jesus Christ!
May our humble influence cause the
community to be a better place to live.
“He who gives to the poor will never
want, but he who shuts his eyes will have
many a curse” (Proverbs 28:27).
Parker Reardon, D.Min.
parkerreardon@gmail.com
Pastor, Applegate Community Church
— Pacifica —
Funds still needed
for new Caterpillar!
Pacifica’s beloved nature-science
program, the Caterpillar, needs a new
trailer. The current 20-year-old unit has
decayed to the point that it is no longer
roadworthy. Without a new trailer, this
program can’t continue.
The Caterpillar’s school visits have
enriched the lives of many children in
local schools for 16 years. The various
educational programs offered are the
equivalent of a field trip going to schools,
which is more economical than busing
whole classes from schools. This great
program depends on public support
to continue serving the children in
Josephine and Jackson counties.
We’re grateful to community
members who have already contributed.
Your much-appreciated donation is
tax-deductible—Pacifica is a 501(c)(3)
nonprofit organization. Mail your check
to Pacifica, Caterpillar Program, PO Box
1, Williams, OR 97544. Donations also
can be made through PayPal on Pacifica’s
website at pacificagarden.org. For more
information, call 541-846-1100.
Thank you from the staff and Board
of Directors at Pacifica!
Pacifica’s Cedar Center Improved!
Thanks to grants from the Four
Way Community Foundation, the
Carpenter Foundation, and the Oregon
Community Foundation, Pacifica’s
Cedar Center community building has
new, efficient ductless heat pumps (see
photo below). These new units replace
barely functioning heaters dating from
1978. In addition, the oak flooring has
received a durable new finish. All of this
means a more comfortable and bright
space for community events. For more
information, call 541-846-1100 or email
info@pacificagarden.org.
— Applegate ACCESS Food Pantry —
Located at the back of Ruch School
at 156 Upper Applegate Road, the
Applegate ACCESS Food Pantry is open
on Mondays from 9:30 to 11 am. There
are no sign-ins after 11 am. The pantry
is closed on the last Monday of every
month and whenever Ruch School is
not in session.
Please remember to say thank you
to all of our wonderful volunteers. We
have a great group of people who help
our operations run smoothly. I would
not be able to do this without them,
especially lately when I am not able to
make it down there myself.
For more information, contact
pantry manager Charlotte Knott at 541-
899-8381.
— Applegate Valley Garden Club —
During the holidays,
the Applegate Valley Garden
Club (AVGC) contributed to
the ACCESS Senior Shoebox
Program, which has been bringing
holiday cheer to seniors in the
Rogue Valley for over two decades.
This program serves low-income
seniors, persons recovering
from health issues, and those
with disabilities by delivering
beautifully wrapped shoeboxes full of
small, thoughtfully chosen gifts.
AVGC member and project chair
Janis Mohr-Tipton contacted Nicki Bell,
ACCESS coordinator for the shoebox
program, and found that the program
had not yet extended to the Applegate
Valley. Following Nicki’s suggestion
that we could distribute in our own
communities, club members collected
an abundance of recommended items
and created 31 shoeboxes. Among the
categories of ACCESS-recommended
items were dental care, toiletry, personal
care, first-aid supplies, stationery, books,
and nonperishable food items.
The shoeboxes were distributed to
deserving seniors and adult participants
at the December Applegate Food Pantry.
The club also created three family boxes
with appropriate items for each family
member and delivered those to Ruch
School for their holiday help program.
With the extra items, Janis created ten
gift bags for homeless teens who came
into the Maslow Project for help over
the holidays.
The club is very happy that our own
communities in the Applegate Valley
were served in the ACCESS Shoebox
Program for the first time. The members
hope to continue this service.
If you or your organization would
like to contribute or join us in creating
an even bigger program next year,
contact AVGC leader Gaye Anderson at
541-899-5952 or Janis Mohr-Tipton,
Shoebox project coordinator, at 541-
846-7501 or janismohrtipton48@
frontier.com.
ACCESS volunteers distributed
more than 1,400 shoeboxes in the Rogue
Valley in 2015 and more than 1,700
shoeboxes in 2016.
For more information on this or
other ACCESS programs, contact Nicki
Bell at 541-774-4324 or visit their
website at accesshelps.org.
— Williams Grange —
Current activities at Williams
Grange include:
• Mondays: Yoga with Abby from 9:15 -
10:45 am; Yoga with Kendra from 5:30
- 6:45 pm
• Tuesdays: Zumba with Wensdae from
9 - 10 am
• We d n e s d a y s : Yo g a w i t h T h e
Community Yoga Collective from 9 -
10:15 am; Yoga with Cassidy from 5:30
- 7 pm
• Thursdays: Zumba with Wensdae from
9 - 10 am; Aikido for Kids with Sense
Michelle from 2:30 - 5:30 pm; Williams
World Music Choir with Harmony
Haynie (through May 4) from 6 - 8 pm
• Fridays: Yoga with Cassidy from 9 -
10:30 am
• Saturdays: African Drumming with
Skijah from 3 - 4:30 pm
• Sundays: Pancake Breakfast and
Bluegrass Jam (second Sunday of each
month) from 8 am - 1 pm; Ecstatic
Dance (first, third, and fifth Sundays)
from 11 am - 1 pm
For more information or to reserve
a date, contact Cassidy Geppert at
williamsgrangerentals@gmail.com
or 707-391-6964. 20100 Williams
Highway, Williams, Oregon.
Nonprofit organizations in the Applegate Valley
are welcome to submit news and event information
to the Applegater. Email gater@applegater.org.
