Dave’s Notes: May & June 2025

Summer is here!!! It's been several weeks since I last wrote to you all and quite a bit has happened since then. During the last several weeks, Our Place has been very busy, and I am excited to be able to update you on some of the recent activity. The first announcement is a name change. We have decided to stop using the Drop-In Center tagline and replace it with Community Food Center. Our Place Community Food Center more accurately reflects our mission and better highlights the work we do within the community. We hope you love it as much as we do. 

Next, no name change is complete without a new logo. With a great deal of advice and expertise from our wonderful friend Anne Manner-McLarty, we have been able to give our organization an updated identity and cohesive image. I want to thank Anne here for her help with this project and the many other projects she is actively helping with here at Our Place. Her help has been transformative. The new logo represents the diverse nature of our clientele, incorporates the spoon and fork denoting our obvious roots in food, and further symbolizes the circle of love we try to create within the community. 

The new logo inspired an update of our website, including new colors, a new site structure, and new content. A huge thank you to Liz Bergstrom and Madeline Bergstrom at Bobolink Communications in Saxtons River for their hard work on this project and for putting up with me while getting this task done. We still have a little expansion to do on the new site, but we are proud of the refreshed look and more informative online presence for the organization. We will shortly be using the new website motif and logo to update our social media presence. If you’re not already a follower, please like us on Facebook!

Lastly and certainly not least, Our Place has received a very generous donation earmarked for a complete renovation of the exterior of our building. Over the past several years, Our Place has been considering finding a new location for our operation. Leadership looked closely at several properties, but none have been just what we need. After much back and forth, Our Place leadership has agreed that staying on “The Island,” in our current location, is what's best for Our Place and the community we serve. We will be staying at our current location for the next decade at least. A local builder has been contracted for the exterior renovations and will begin work this summer. We are looking forward to sharing the progress with you all as construction begins. 

These changes will improve Our Place and better instill client dignity, fulfill our mission, and enhance the services we provide to our community. We believe that by creating a more functional and aesthetically pleasing environment, we will more effectively show our dedication to providing food in a safe, respectful and non-judgmental atmosphere. We are very proud that the financial support to make all these changes has come directly from the community, from people like you. So, thank you for being a supporter of Our Place. 

I can say that everyone here at Our Place is very appreciative of your support and the ongoing support of the local community. That outpouring of generosity has made it possible for us to continually fulfill our mission of helping meet the basic human needs within our community. I would like to invite you to continue to help us do that work.  There are many ways you can contribute. To start, we have recently formed a development committee that is taking the reins of the fundraising for Our Place and is still looking for committee members.. You also can volunteer to work at the center running the pantry for a shift or making a meal for the day. You can volunteer for a fundraising event—or if you're feeling bold, you could start your own. You can start a food drive at your business, school, or other organization. We are also still looking for board members—this is a rewarding way to be involved in a nonprofit organization doing critical work. Finally, we ask that you continue your financial support. It's a simple fact that without the generosity and dedication of folks like you, Our Place cannot fulfill our mission. 

I will close with a big thank you to those of you who have shared many encouraging words with me about this newsletter. I am humbled and buoyed by the kindness, encouragement, and generosity of so many of you in this community. To continue learning, I want to personally encourage all of you to visit us here, give me a call, or drop me an email. I’d really love to hear your thoughts, ideas, or concerns. This is the start of many wonderful things here at Our Place—but without you, we simply will not be able to do it.

Dave

David Billings, Executive Director
Our Place Community Food Center 
dbillings@ourplacevermont.org
Office: 802-463-2217
Cell: 732-261-8900