‘Green Bag’ donations essential to St. Vincent de Paul Food Pantry

The Sedona Conference of St. Vincent de Paul, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, has been the recipient of the generosity of the Village of Oak Creek “Green Bag” Collection since the program began (2013). We provide food items to clients once a week at our Food Pantry, located at the St. John Vianney Church. The Green Bag collection continues to provide a variety of quality food items to our clients.

We typically receive more than 1,500 pounds of food items at each “Green Bag” Collection, amounting to more than 9,000 pounds of food in a year. Thus far in 2022 the “Green Bag” has provided more than 4,500 pounds of food. Based on results of our total food distributions in 2021, we expect that food contributions from “Green Bag” donors will represent at least 20% of all food we will distribute in 2022. This reduces our cost to provide food to our clients, thereby increasing the funds we have available to help others with financial assistance for rent, utilities, and medical expenses.

At the pantry, open Thursdays 9-11 a.m., our clients can fill up a grocery bag; therefore, relatively small packages or containers of shelf stable food are selected first to allow the selection of a variety of items. After the indoor pantry, other items that may be available outside are meats, breads, desserts, fresh fruits and vegetables, cereals, milk, eggs, and donated prepared, frozen, or refrigerated foods. The items listed below are shelf stable items we have room for on our shelves in the pantry except for packaged cereals, which we provide outside. 

If you contribute to the next Green Bag collection, Dec. 10, 2022, here are present lists of “need” and “not need” foodstuffs. The lists change from time to time based on what we receive from our Phoenix food banks (St. Vincent de Paul and or St. Mary’s).

We do not need:

No canned green beans of any variety.

No canned pasta/spaghetti (Chef Boy-R -Dee type stuff)

No canned corn of any variety

No spaghetti sauces

No spaghetti

No canned tuna or chicken

No canned fruits

No peanut butters

No jelly/jam

No canned peas or carrots

No canned black or pinto beans

No mac and cheese

No dried milk

No canned mixed veggies

No tomato soups

We can use or need

• Canned tomatoes, tomato sauce and paste

• Baking goods including cake or brownie mixes and the like

• Cookies - small packages

• Saltine Crackers - we use the “sleeves” of crackers - 4 to a box

• Snack crackers - small boxes

• Canned salmon or sardines

• Vienna Sausages

• Packaged noodles - around 16 OZ packages

• Dry rice - 16 OZ packages

• Side dish packages - Rice-a-Roni, envelope packages, easy fixing

• Packaged pastas - almost any variety - around 16 OZ, not spaghetti

• Condiments - olives, salad dressings, mustard, ketchup, mayo, etc - small containers

• Soups - any kind but tomato

• Non-dairy drink - almond milk, etc

• Mashed potatoes packages. small - Costco has Idaho instant potatoes that come in a 1/2 or one pint old style milk container - 8 or 10 to a package 

• Desserts - packages of cookies, individually wrapped cakes (small like Debbie’s)

• Snacks - granola bars, energy bars, etc

• Drinks -16 oz or less, energy drinks, fruit drinks, etc

• Cereals, dry - not the individual packages, but not the huge ones either. Low or no added sugar varieties are the most desired

• Cooking oils - small bottles please

• Bathroom tissue - a favorite 

Bless all of you for your time and effort in supporting your SVdP Conference and Pantry at St. John Vianney.