Dear friends,

Across the country, families continue to face rising costs and difficult choices — and the need for reliable food support remains high. But alongside that need, we continue to see something equally powerful: communities stepping up to care for one another.

Together, we’re turning compassion into action — and it shows in the momentum we’re building:

• In appreciation: We are honored to be selected as one of Band Together’s Mighty Giveback Impact Partners for 2026, supporting music and community nonprofits across the Greater Triangle of North Carolina. This partnership will help fuel our mission, and we look forward to sharing more in the coming weeks — including how you can join us on Saturday, October 10th, for a night of music and meaningful community impact.
  
  

• Because of you: As the need continues, so does our growth. This past quarter, we welcomed 13 new pantry partners and launched 33 new PORCH neighborhoods — expanding our reach and strengthening our ability to serve communities with consistent, neighbor-driven support.
  
  
• Come grow with us: PORCH Communities offers flexible, hands-on volunteer opportunities that make it easy for companies and their employees to take part in the fight against food insecurity. We help teams gain a deeper understanding of hunger in their own communities and how simple, consistent actions can create lasting change where they live or work. Learn more about how your company can get involved.

With gratitude,

Christine Makhuli Cotton

CEO, PORCH Communities

At the Heart of PORCH are our Volunteers!

April is National Volunteer Month — a perfect time to recognize the people who make our work possible. At PORCH Communities, our volunteers are at the heart of everything we do. As a grassroots organization powered by more than 1,000 volunteers and just a handful of staff, our impact is driven by neighbors who generously give their time, month after month — fueling our mission and strengthening communities. We thank and deeply appreciate all our wonderful volunteers.

VOLUNTEER SPOTLIGHT: This issue, we’re proud to spotlight Daniel Zhong, whose journey with PORCH Communities is a powerful example of how one volunteer can grow alongside the mission and help expand its reach.

One of the many pantry partners bringing PORCH’s mission to life is the Faith Pantry at Faith Lutheran Church in the Marietta, GA community. They were recently featured alongside PORCH Marietta in a CBS News Atlanta story. Each month, the pantry receives food collected by PORCH volunteers and transforms it into meals for local families and seniors in the community.

As Faith Pantry volunteer Mitzi Lewis shared, PORCH Marietta is a vital partner in making this work possible: “Every month we get a delivery. We take approximately 175 to 200 bags over to Brumby Elementary for the families. Twenty-five of those being for seniors that are over 75 to 80-year-olds with smaller things in them. These are only possible because of PORCH. There is no way we could do this volume without them, just no way.” She added, “If we can take something off mom and dad — that they have a couple of meals — that now they can pay the light bill — that’s the goal.”

Faith Pantry is just one of more than 200 pantries that rely on PORCH food donations each month, with many receiving nearly 40% of their donations through our network. This kind of impact is only possible because of you, our community of PORCH supporters. Every bag of food left on a porch, every financial gift given to help launch and grow new PORCH chapters, ensures pantries like Faith Pantry have a steady, reliable supply of food for the neighbors they serve. Thank you for making this work possible — and for helping ease the burden for families facing impossible choices every day.

At PORCH Communities, we’re working toward a simple but powerful vision: a PORCH in every community. Reaching that goal means starting and growing PORCH chapters in more communities to make it easier for neighbors everywhere to support local pantries and families in need. 

And it takes more than passion to make that happen. Ongoing support, especially financial support, helps us provide the tools, training, and infrastructure needed to launch and sustain new PORCH chapters across the country.

That’s exactly what Polly Fuller made possible when she started a PORCH in Youngsville, NC. What began as a simple “aha” moment has grown into something much bigger — supporting a local pantry, connecting neighbors, and creating an easy way for busy people to give back.

“PORCH is a win, win, win, win, win!” Polly tells us. “A win for you, a win for your neighbors, a win for food donors, a win for local pantries, and especially a win for families in need.”

And she says the best part? “Getting started was quite easy… everything you need is already in place. From step-by-step guidance to ready-made materials and ongoing support, the PORCH team makes it simple to launch and sustain real impact in my community.”

Could you Start-a-PORCH — or help us bring one to a new community?