POURing into our Communities... Creating Contagious Compassion

May is Sloppy Joes Month!

POUR Inc. — 2011-04-26T19:59:00Z

What a beautiful day in May! We had the privilege of serving 142 meals on Tuesday, April 26th at the Soup Kitchen operated by Our Daily Bread. As is our custom, we like to prepare and serve meals that are as healthy and varied as possible. Today we served home-made Sloppy Joes (My Mom's tried and true recipe), a pasta salad filled with veggies and legumes and sliced apples with caramel dipping sauce.

Stacy chopping celery, onions & parsley for the pasta salad.
Also included: sliced black olives, garbanzo beans, red kidney beans and
a garlic aioli with herbs and spices. It was VERY good!

Stacy & Nick plating the meals (142 of them!)
for folks in need in the Athens community.
Now THAT's a pasta salad!

The final result - Sloppy Joes on whole wheat buns,
whole wheat rotini pasta salad & sliced apples with
the most delicious caramel dipping sauce!

Thank you for the opportunity to POUR back into our local community!

Super Heroes

POUR Inc. — 2011-04-18T16:01:00Z

Every 3-4 months we have the privilege of preparing a meal for children (and their moms) who have witnessed or been victims of domestic violence. The GOOD NEWS is it's a graduation dinner for the participants of the SuperHeroes program offered by Project Safe to teach coping skills.

Click the cake above to see photos from the event: Breakfast 4 Dinner

Volunteers Provide Lunch to Local Neighbors in Need

POUR Inc. — 2010-09-28T21:01:00Z

A HUGE Thank You to our volunteers who helped cook and serve at the Soup Kitchen today.

Amanda, Emily, Makenzie & Sarah cooked up a storm in the kitchen. Assisting were Deb, Fritz (we couldn't do all that heavy liftingwithout you, Dude!) and the members of Gamma, Sigma Sigma: Layla,Rachael, Holly, Katie, Ashley & Nicole.

On the menu today was shrimp*, zucchini & penne pasta in a tomato basil sauce, tossed garden salad with a creamy Italian dressing and a grilled cheese sandwich. Rounded out with a beverage and dessert, it was a great meal. We served 140 neighbors in need and had more than a third come back for seconds!

We are a volunteer run & lead organization.
Without YOU this would not be possible.
Thank you so much for POURing back into the Athens Community!

*We had an alternative pasta dish with cheese & tomato sauce for vegetarians, children and those with seafood allergies.

Vlog Entry: Mobile Pantry in Action

POUR Inc. — 2010-09-16T06:06:00Z

Ever wonder what we do, or why we do it?

Check out this short video clip to see what we're all about.

Help us by making a donation; then follow the money.

Volunteer with us and see what we can do with a little help from our friends!

Sow an Urban Garden

POUR Inc. — 2010-03-06T22:00:00Z

POUR, Inc., partnered with HandsOn Northeast Georgia for the 2010 MLK Day of Service. As one of our main focus areas; urban gardens for low-income seniors, this event provided local volunteers with an opPOURtunity to help build and install individual raised beds for the Garden Club members at Denney Towers in Athens, Georgia.

Lowe's in East Athens was not only one of the event sponsors providing the supplies needed to created the gardens, but also sent 15 of their employees to volunteer their time that day to get the work done. Additionally, Lowe's supplied the mini-greenhouses to get the seeds started for the gardens. A second set of volunteers met on March 6th for a grounds clean up day at Denney Towers and to collect the seeds and greenhouses. They are currently in the process of sowing the seeds at home and will meet again for a planting day on April 17th.

Thank you so much to our sponsors, volunteers and donors who make these events happen. For more information visit: www.pourathens.org or email: volunteer@pourathens.org or donations@pourathens.org

Anchors Away!

POUR Inc. — 2010-02-11T16:04:00Z

Navy School Graduating Class Honors Local Non-profit

Each class at the Navy Supply Corps School celebrates after receiving their "marching orders" with a party. A sort of "mini-roast" poking fun at class members, celebrating placements at different facilities around the world and most importantly leaving a legacy by supporting a local non- profit agency.

During the festivities, several agencies are nominated, discussed and voted upon to be the recipient of the class charity fund. This time
around the group chose to honor POUR, Inc. for their work to provide much needed food the families of local school children.

Ensign Fish said " We chose POUR for several reasons: most importantly the fact that they work with school children in an effort to break the cycle of poverty and because they are a true volunteer organization having no paid staff and very little overhead. We knew our donation would be put to good use." Lt. Hawryluk added, "I had the opportunity during my time here in Athens, along with my wife, to volunteer at one of POUR's mobile food pantries and was amazed at the number of people serving and being served. POUR is definately an organization I want to support."

As Ensign Jones presented Founder & Director, Deby Sorensen with the class donation, he thanked POUR for supporting the community and for allowing the Navy Supply Corps students the opportunity to serve side by side with local residents. Mrs. Sorensen thanked them, "We wish them well in their new assignments and are very grateful for their time, their efforts and their loving support of our country and service to our local community."

For more information on volunteering or giving to POUR visit: www.PourInc.org

Calling All Volunteers!

POUR Inc. — 2009-12-07T17:07:00Z

"Remember there's no such thing as a
small act of kindness. Every act
creates a ripple with no logical end."
- Scott Adams

If you have been considering volunteering for an event with POUR, now is your chance!

We need your help to distribute approx. 30,000 pounds of food to families of elementary and middle school children who are living at or below the poverty level.

Visit our NEWS & EVENTS page to see dates and follow links to register for these events. All the information you need to volunteer for this event (date, time, location, etc.) is available when you register online.

Please direct any questions to our Volunteer Coordinator at volunteer@pourathens.org We will respond as quickly as possible. Must be 18 years old or accompanied by a parent who is also volunteering.

Volunteer today for one of our three hour events. You'll be glad you did, and you'll make hundreds of families very happy this holiday season!

If you are unable to attend, but would like to make a donation, you can do so on the NEWS & EVENTS page as well. Thank you so much for your support - and for your Contagious Compassion.

Wal*Mart Supports 1st Annual Christmas Pantry

POUR Inc. — 2009-12-04T22:54:00Z

Vonney Dail, Secretary/Bookkeeper at Winterville Elementary School and Deby Sorensen, Founder & Director of POUR, Inc., receive a check for $1,000 from Kathy Moon, Wal*Mart - East Athens, to help fund our 1st Annual Christmas Pantry.

Click here to volunteer for this event.

To donate for this event, follow this link.

Volunteer Spotlight: Spencer Frye

POUR Inc. — 2009-12-03T15:09:00Z

Spencer Frye

Executive Director
Athens Area

Habitat for Humanity

Why do I volunteer with POUR, Inc.?

Having worked in affordable housing for over 10 years in different capacities ranging from actual construction manager to executive director of a local non-profit, I feel I have a wide variety of experience by which I am able to understand the level of poverty in and around this community.

Little did I know, that nothing in my experience had prepared me for what I saw at the October 1st POUR mobile food pantry.

People were lined up in two rows of vehicles circling around a huge school parking lot and spilling out into the street. I was on the crew that put boxes of food in the vehicles.

What I realized was that almost every car had children in it. Then it hit me - without a service like this, an organization of dedicated volunteers, these children would have fewer meals to eat, have fewer nutritional options, and could go to bed hungry.

Here we are in the most blessed country in the world and we should not let our children go hungry. This is why I will volunteer again and I fully support the efforts of this remarkable organization.

Spencer Frye
Executive Director
Athens Area Habitat

To join our efforts visit:
www.pourathens.org

or email us at:
volunteer@pourathens.org

Shopping for a Cause - Tuesday, December 1st

POUR Inc. — 2009-12-01T00:48:00Z

UPDATE: Thank you to Ann Peden, her staff, friends of both Ann's Studio Store and POUR, Inc. and our faithful volunteers.
We were able to raise $522.49 as a direct result of this fund raiser. We appreciate your support! Now... C'mon out and volunteer! Check out our News & Events Page for opportunities.
____________________________________________________________

We are happy to announce a partnership with local boutique owner, Ann Peden, who has agreed to host an event to raise money for POUR, Inc. this Tuesday evening, December 1st.

Ann will be offering a 20% discount on any purchases on Ann Peden jewelry in the store on Tuesday during regular store and reception hours, and will match that 20% discount with a donation to Pour Athens.

We are so pleased to work with local business owners who understand the value of POURing back into our community.
Please come out and support POUR and Ann Peden.

Regular Store Hours: 12 - 6pm

After Hours Mix & Mingle: 6 - 8 pm

Includes refreshments, complimentary gift wrap
and an opportunity to give back to the local community
while saving money and finding unique holiday gifts!

Ann Peden Jewelry ~ The Studio Store
Colony Square Shopping Center
1021 Jamestown Blvd, Suite 229
Watkinsville GA 30677
706-769-2656 Store
706-310-1404 Fax
www.AnnPedenJewelry.com

Are you in your right mind?**

POUR Inc. — 2009-11-19T17:43:00Z

ATTN: Graphic Artists!
We are looking for someone to help create a logo for our 1st Annual Christmas Pantry. Check out the photos on our website to see what we do, then get creative. Components might include... canned food, santa hat or better yet a HALO to depict all the angels who support this cause!

It's a blank slate right now. We need a logo we can use for years to come.

The logo chosen will be featured on our website along with an article and contact information for the artist. Not to mention all the free PR we'll provide.

Not an artist?
Know someone who is?
Please forward this link to them.

NOTE: Time is of the essence - our event is just 4 weeks away. Hey - we're new, we're young -
We need all the help we can get!

**Artists get the fact that they use the right side of their brains... right?

Can you have your cake and eat it too?

POUR Inc. — 2009-11-17T08:13:00Z

Apparently the answer is YES, with our new Community Partner Coupon Book.
By purchasing a coupon book for use in your local community, you help provide a family of 5 with 10-14 meals per person! Books are available for the Greater Athens Area & Greater Gainesville Area.

So yes, you can have your cake - or BBQ or Sushi or whatever you choose - and know that a family will eat this holiday season, because you cared enough to give. So when you say a blessing over that meal, know that to someone in our community YOU are the answered prayer!

Click the Coupon Book graphic above to purchase your Coupon Book or use the link below. Bon Apetit!

http://www.coupon-book.com/pour-athens.html

POURing into Jackson County

POUR Inc. — 2009-11-13T13:50:00Z

Volunteers from POUR, The Navy Corps Training School, Jackson County School Staff, The Lion's Club, Fire Fighters, Parents, Teachers and Local Residents all came out to help distribute food to families in need in Jackson County on Thursday, November 12th.

This was truly a community event - as residents and local organizations helped to fund, promote and carry out this event. Thank you to our Agency Partner, The First Baptist Church of Jefferson, and donors including The Church at Southside, Jackson Elementary PTO, The Rosenberg Family and their friends, and many individual donors.

These events are not possible without community involvement; from raising funds for the event - to putting the boxes in the cars and sending thank you notes after the fact. Thank you to the 70+ volunteers who helped make this event a success. Because of you we were able to provide approximately 12 meals per person to:

305 families - a total of 1451 people consisting of

794 Children under the age of 18

590 Adults 18+ years, and

67 Senior Citizens

To view additional photos from this event, click here.

Follow this link, to donate to or volunteer for upcoming events.

Read the article published about this event on Access North Georgia

Mobile Pantry Brings Food to Neighbors in Need

POUR Inc. — 2009-10-20T17:59:00Z

Friends see a need, volunteer to help
By Lee Shearer | lee.shearer@onlineathens.com | Story updated at 12:09 am on 10/2/2009
Photos by David Manning/Staff

<:od>UGA senior Casey Broadway, center, moves canned food as volunteers with POUR Inc., distribute food to over 300 families at JJ Harris Elementary School on Thursday, October 1, 2009 in Athens, Ga.

Above, Larry Reynolds uses a forklift to carry a pallet full of peanut butter as volunteers with POUR distribute food to families Thursday at J.J. Harris Elementary School. Right, University of Georgia senior Casey Broadway, center, moves canned food to hand out at the school. Below, Clara London helps people with paperwork.

Clara London helps families with paperwork as volunteers with POUR Inc., distribute food to over 300 families at JJ Harris Elementary School on Thursday, October 1, 2009 in Athens, Ga.

A volunteers with POUR add a bag of beans to a box to distribute families at J.J. Harris Elementary School on Thursday.

Volunteers with POUR sort through canned food to distribute Thursday at J.J. Harris Elementary School.

A small group of Athens-area friends started a new charity for a simple reason, according to Deby Sorensen, the director of the new group called POUR.

"We saw the need," Sorensen said.

POUR officially was incorporated June 24, born out of a men's group that met weekly to do minor home repairs for widows and single women who couldn't afford the costs of hiring someone to do the job. They called the group POUR because that's what they hope to do: "Pour back into the community," Sorensen said.

The organization's first official charitable act came Thursday, when group members met at J.J. Harris Elementary School to distribute a truckload of food from a mobile food pantry to needy children and their families.

POUR plans to do a series of mobile food pantries, especially at Thanksgiving and Christmas.

The group is focusing on children at three elementary schools, J.J. Harris, Fowler Drive and Howard B. Stroud, Sorensen said. More than 90 percent of the children at each school are eligible for free and reduced-priced lunches because their families make so little money, she said.

POUR is not just trying to get food to hungry children, according to Sorensen.

"We're trying to go one step further and feed the whole family," she said.

And their goal is to ensure families have enough food during long holiday breaks, not just during the times when school is in session, she said. Sorensen and other group members are trying to raise about $1,150 to cover start-up costs associated with their mobile food pantry.

POUR's volunteers plan to keep operating expenses as low as possible. "The office is my notebook and my purse," she said. The less money and time they have to spend on organizational costs, the more they can use to help people in need of help, she said.

She paraphrased the English evangelist John Wesley: "Do all the good you can to all the people you can for as long as you can."

To learn more about POUR, visit the group's Web site at www.pourathens.org

Originally published in the Athens Banner-Herald on Friday, October 02, 2009

Read the article in the BluePrint Section of the Athens Banner Herald here:
http://www.onlineathens.com/stories/100209/blu_499928151.shtml

Stay tuned....we have 4 more events over the next two months scheduled and we will need Volunteers & Donations to make these happen!

Make sure to join our mailing list so you are up to date on all the opportunities to get involved and POUR back into our local community.

Scenes from the Citywide Unwanted Treasure Sale

POUR Inc. — 2009-09-09T19:42:59Z

Thank you to all our volunteers, shoppers and viral marketers - YOU ROCK!

Our first annual Labor Day Event was a huge success:
We raised enough money to provide 12,480 meals for neighbors in need.

We are still raising funds - as there are 22,000+ meals on the truck for our Oct. 1 Mobile Food Pantry.

Please consider partnering with us to raise the money for this event.
Donate below...and ask your friends to join us, too.
Don't forget to join the mailing list for continued updates.



Join Our Email List Email:

For Email Marketing you can trust

Peanut Butter Bonanza

POUR Inc. — 2009-09-09T19:23:00Z

As a thank you for participating in the Food2Kids September Peanut Butter Drive...
here's a little recipe for using up some of that PB you got for yourself. Thanks to Cookie Madness for posting the half batch recipe on her blog.

Half Batch Chocolate Peanut Butter Fudge Crunch Bars

3 1/2 oz semi-sweet chocolate (divided use) or a heaping half cup of chocolate chips
1/2 tablespoon unsalted butter plus 1 stick (4 oz) butter
1 1/2 cups Rice Krispy Cereal
8 oz peanut butter
1/8 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup to 1 ½ cups powdered sugar (to taste)

Line a 9×5 inch loaf pan with non-stick foil or regular foil. If using regular foil, spray it with cooking spray.

In a medium saucepan, melt 1 1/2 oz chocolate with 1/2 tablespoon of the butter. Stir in 1/2 cup of the peanut butter. When well mixed, stir in 1 cup cereal. Spread in bottom of pan and chill for 15 minutes or until firm.

Clean out saucepan and set over medium heat. Add 1 stick (4 oz) of butter and salt. Cook over medium until melted then stir in remaining 1/2 cup of peanut butter. When smooth, stir in powdered sugar to taste. Pour a little less than half of the peanut butter mixture over the chocolate crispy mixture. Sprinkle remaining ½ cup of cereal over peanut butter mixture, pressing it gently into peanut butter mixture.

In a microwave-safe bowl, melt remaining 2 oz semi-sweet chocolate. Add melted chocolate to peanut butter mixture and carefully spread over Rice Krispies. This part is a little tricky, as the Rice Krispies want to go with the chocolate peanut butter mixture.

Chill until set. Lift from pan and cut with a big knife.

Makes 8-12, depending on how you cut them.

Creating a Ripple Effect: Contagious Compassion

POUR Inc. — 2009-07-23T21:42:00Z

Tim Sanders retells the Timberland Story at Catalyst 2008.

This presentation helped to move POUR from thought to an action.
From an idea to a concept, to a reality eight months later. Enjoy!


Will YOU join us in creating that Ripple Effect here at home?

As Tim asked: "If not you, who? If not right now, when?"

Please consider parterning with us on a monthly basis - even as little as $10 each month.  Consistency that is key for us to continue to POUR back into the community.

Make sure to visit our NEWS & EVENTS page for updates on activities.
Contact us for volunteer opportunities.   volunteer@pourathens.org

Pour, Inc.
Mailing Address:
PO Box 216
Madison, GA 30650
706-296-5037
info@pourathens.org
www.pourathens.org