Food for Thought

In normal times, Second Harvest prepares hundreds of meals a day in our 6,500 square-foot Community Kitchen for after-school and summer feeding programs.  These programs help at-risk children get the key nutrition they need every day. When schools abruptly closed and thousands of families and seniors suddenly found themselves homebound, our kitchen staff and volunteers... Read More

Since March, the lives of millions in Louisiana have been turned upside down. Countless neighbors are suddenly out of work, thousands of families are at home with their children and without a paycheck, and senior citizens need meals and groceries at a time when they must stay isolated. The Second Harvest response is on a... Read More

Since the emergency lockdown of our communities began in March, hundreds of thousands of our South Louisiana neighbors suddenly found themselves in need of food assistance, often for the very first time. Miss Elaine is 66 and lives in Metairie. We met Miss Elaine at one of the hundreds of emergency food distributions our staff... Read More

On behalf of our staff, Board, volunteers and those we serve, let me personally extend our deepest gratitude. Our team has helped thousands of our neighbors in need thanks to everyone who has donated time, money, food, and resources over the past weeks and months. Second Harvest has responded to dozens of disasters and emergencies... Read More

HOW YOU CAN HELP and GET HELP: Click here for info about all the ways you can help our response, including monetary donations. The Need Thousands of our neighbors are food insecure, and due to the COVID-19 pandemic and extended school and business shutdowns, the need is overwhelming and increasing to levels we have rarely seen before. ... Read More

Your generous support for Second Harvest is helping thousands of senior citizens make ends meet.  Miss Pearl is just one person who recently shared her story with us.  After working her entire life, she said it’s difficult to need help from a food pantry, but she feels fortunate to live in a community where neighbors... Read More

We met Leon (left) and Joe (right) at the New Orleans Mission on Christmas morning. The Mission is one of the hundreds of shelters, pantries, and soup kitchens across South Louisiana supported by Second Harvest. “I’ve been clean for seven months now,” Leon said.  “This food is a blessing. It’s so much easier to stay... Read More

Feeding hungry children is a cornerstone of our mission at Second Harvest. And our after-school Kids Cafe program is an important way your support helps at-risk children. Every week during the school year, Second Harvest volunteers and drivers prepare, package, and deliver thousands of hot meals and snacks to children across our 23-parish service area.... Read More

In South Louisiana, we’re blessed with some of the best food and restaurants in the world. But, one big problem is the meals that go to waste when extra food is left at the end of the business day. That’s where our new Rescue Runner program comes in. Rescue Runner utilizes an online app to... Read More

Charitable bequests make an enormous difference to an organization like Second Harvest Food Bank. Cecelia Medley was a compassionate member of our New Orleans community. Throughout her life, she was involved with her church, volunteered as a pharmacist with the St. Vincent de Paul Community Pharmacy, and was a long-time donor to Second Harvest. She... Read More

A message from Second Harvest President & CEO Natalie Jayroe:  When people think of Second Harvest, many people think of the countless boxes of donated food that we provide to soup kitchens, pantries, schools and shelters across the state. Indeed, in the last year, our staff and volunteers provided 34 million meals to these vital... Read More

Following the government shutdown this year, we received this very special note:  Dear Second Harvest, On behalf of the Coast Guard Spouses’ Club of Greater New Orleans, local Coast Guard service members, and their families, I would like to sincerely thank you for your assistance during the recent government shutdown. Our active duty members and... Read More