Meals for Poor & Homeless Women & their Children

A staggering 1 in 3 adults in Massachusetts are considered food insecure, meaning they have uncertain access to adequate food[1]. Open 365 days per year, our Dining Room is the heart of Rosie’s Place where we welcome women with both nourishment and friendship. Demand for our Dining Room program is up 55% over last year, with lunch service increasing by a staggering 80%. We provide healthy and culturally inclusive breakfasts, lunches, and dinners served by staff and volunteers to have onsite or to take to-go. For most of our guests, sitting down for a meal in the Dining Room is an entry point to the full array of emergency and stabilizing services at Rosie’s Place.

This year, we served more than 100,000 meals in the Dining Room—nearly double the number from last year and to more women than we served prior to the pandemic. The meals we provide help our guests save on food costs, allowing their budgets to go toward rent, utilities and other essentials.

We are grateful for your support through GlobalGiving. Thanks to your generosity, Rosie’s Place can respond to the hunger crisis in our community and provide stability to women in need.

[1] The Boston Globe May 30, 2023

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• More about Rosie's Place

We are grateful for your support of the Food Program at Rosie’s Place through GlobalGiving. With your help, our Food Program has grown significantly in response to increased food insecurity in our community. The Food Program is an entry point to Rosie’s Place for so many women who are struggling. It is through the Food Program that we build trust with our guests so they know that they can come to Rosie’s Place for friendship and longer-term, stabilizing support—all without judgement.

In our Dining Room women come for nourishment and community. The kitchen prepares and serves wholesome, nutritious, and culturally inclusive meals 365 days a year, in a cheerful environment. We offer breakfast, lunch, and dinner during the week, and brunch and dinner on weekends and holidays. We regularly accommodate food allergies and health-related dietary needs, and offer meals to-go. We have monthly birthday celebrations, special meals on holidays and bring in live music for events. The majority of women served in the Dining Room are homeless, some have housing but are struggling to make ends meet, and children are always welcome.

Our Food Pantry provides housed women with 3 days’ worth of free, nutritious groceries. Women are able to visit weekly, Monday through Friday, and receive fresh fruit/vegetables, a protein, and pantry staples. Groceries include variety, are culturally inclusive, and meet dietary needs and preferences. Our pantry also distributes household supplies, toiletries, at-home covid tests, masks, information about our other services, and healthy recipes related to the groceries. In FY22, the Food Pantry tripled its capacity to fight food insecurity. Prior to the pandemic, we served 100 women each day through the Pantry and women could visit once a month. Now, we serve close to 350 women each day—over 1,700 unique women each week—and women are able to visit once a week.

From July – December 2022, Rosie’s Place served 63% more healthy and nourishing, culturally-varied meals to poor and homeless women in the Dining Room than we did the previous year. We had a 39% increase in the number of visits to the Food Pantry, where guests receive 3 days’ worth of fresh, nutritious groceries for their families.

With your support, we anticipate to reach the following outcomes across our Food Program in 2023:

• Approximately 12,000 women and 5,000 children will receive healthy, nutritious food through the Food Program.
• Our guests will receive close to 100,000 nutrient-rich meals, including special menus for holidays and celebrations such as Black History Month, Kip Tiernan’s Birthday (founder), and Thanksgiving in the Dining Room.
• Housed women, living in poverty, will receive healthy and culturally varied groceries and close to 40,000 non-food items through over 87,000 visits to the Food Pantry.

With your generous contribution, Rosie’s Place is able to provide a safe and nurturing environment that helps poor and homeless women maintain their dignity, seek opportunity and find security in their lives. On behalf of everyone at Rosie’s Place, we would like to thank you for your commitment to our work and for supporting women in need.

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• Find out more about Rosie's Place