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As of September 2020, the Census Bureau reported that 34 million people lived in poverty in America, and in 2019 The National Alliance to End Homelessness reported that 567,715 people were experiencing homelessness in America. More than 30 million people in America need the government’s help to keep from going hungry, including 5.3 million elderly individuals as of 2018. Many families struggle to receive adequate nutrition. For many children, school breakfast or lunch may be the only real meal they receive per day, though the quality of these meals varies.

  • 211: the Massachusetts hotline to find community health and human services through government and non-profit organizations, support groups, and other local resources. Also provides volunteer opportunities. Alternate number: 877-211-6277
  • Chelmsford Food Pantry: Located behind Town Offices at 50 Billerica Road. food pick-up times are Wednesdays 5:00-8:00, Thursdays 2:00-4:00, and Fridays 6:00-8:00. If you can offer support, drop-off hours are Thursdays 10:30-1:00, and there is also a drop-box at the Chelmsford Library.
  • Community Teamwork: Headquartered in Lowell, Community Teamwork is a non-profit community action agency delivering services to low-income people, aimed at empowerment toward stability
  • Emergency help for housing costs - apply for RAFT: Residential Assistance for Families in Transition (RAFT) can provide temporary emergency funds to cover the cost of rent or mortgage, utilities, or other expenses.
  • Greater Boston Food Bank: GBFB is the largest hunger-relief organization in New England and among the largest food banks in the country.
  • HomeBASE: The Commonwealth’s re-housing benefit created to provide families who are in the emergency shelter assistance system an opportunity to overcome some of the financial barriers to ending their homelessness.
  • Housing Families: Provides safe, temporary shelter and quality affordable housing as well as individualized supportive services to help families maintain permanent housing.
  • Massachusetts Coalition for the Homeless: Committed to making sure everyone has a place to call home, they work to maintain awareness of the accelerating challenges of poverty and homelessness. 
  • Massachusetts Housing & Shelter Alliance: MHSA is a nonprofit, public policy advocacy organization that has evolved to include nearly 100 community-based member agencies throughout Massachusetts.
  • Merrimack Valley Food Bank: Volunteers welcome!
  • The Open Pantry of Greater Lowell: Located at 13 Hurd Street in Lowell and open weekdays 9am – noon and Wednesday evenings 5:30pm – 7:00pm. Check website for holiday hours and how to make donations. 
  • Project Bread - Food Hotline: 1-800-645-8333
  • The Shift Project: Based in the Harvard Kennedy School, the Shift Project conducts research into the working conditions of the 25,000,000 Americans employed in the service sector, studying the precarity of the work lives of the largest non-public sector workforce and the impacts on overall wellbeing of workers and their families.
  • Table of Plenty in Chelmsford: A non-profit organization serving a free weekly meal to alleviate hunger and social isolation for individuals and families in a friendly and welcoming environment. ALL ARE WELCOME — no questions asked, ever.
  • WIC - WIC is a nutrition program that provides healthy foods, nutrition education, breastfeeding support, and referrals to healthcare and other services, free of charge, to Massachusetts families who qualify.

Tutorials from Niche Academy:

  • CARE International: CARE works around the globe to save lives, defeat poverty and achieve social justice.
  • Feeding America: A network of 200 food banks across the country feeding 40 million people at risk of hunger, including 12 million children and 7 million seniors.
  • National Coalition for the Homeless: A national network of people who are currently experiencing or who have experienced homelessness, activists and advocates, community-based and faith-based service providers, and others.
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