Thanks Namaste Foods!

The Tampa Gluten Free Food Pantry would like to say a big Thank You to Namaste Foods for their recent donations to help Gluten Free families in need!  It is often difficult to secure GF food donations in the summer but Namaste Foods was very generous in sending us many of their products!  Namaste Foods has donated many of their GF pasta products such as Say Cheez, Taco Pasta, and Pasta Pisavera.  Namaste Foods has also donated products such as their GF bread mix, GF waffle and pancake mix, GF vanilla cake mix, and their GF spice cake mix.  To learn about their great products which are gluten free, dairy free, casein free, soy free, corn free, potato free, and peanut free....please see their website:  Namaste Foods Website.  

Thank You to Gluten Free for Life Expo for all of the GF Food Donations!

The Tampa Gluten Free Food Pantry would like to say a big THANK YOU to the Gluten Free for Life Expo Coordinator Carolanne for asking us to participate in the Expo and collect GF food donations at the event.  We went away from the event with a whole truck full of GF food donations! 

We would also like to thank the following GF companies who donated many nonperishable food donations at the end of the Expo:  Namaste Foods, Udi's, Glutino, Enjoy Life Foods, and Pirate's Booty.  We appreciate your help in feeding GF families in need in Tampa Bay! 

Tampa Gluten Free Food Pantry Collecting at Gluten Free for Life Expo in St. Pete

Tampa Gluten Free Food Pantry will be collecting donations at the door to the upcoming Gluten Free for Life Expo at the St. Pete Coliseum on Saturday March 23rd.  The GF Expo will feature many great speakers, local and national companies offering samples of gluten free products, gluten free raffles, and more!  Please bring a $10 donation for Camp Weekaneatit for entry into this event and a GF nonperishable food item to donate to the Tampa Gluten Free Food Pantry.  The coordinator of the Tampa Gluten Free Food Pantry, Katrina Tiller, will be just inside the doors of the St. Pete Coliseum collecting GF food donations throughout the event.  Thank you in advance for your support of Gluten Free Families in Need and for attending such a great community event to connect and support gluten free families and individuals throughout the Tampa Bay area!  To learn more about the upcoming Gluten Free For Life Expo, go to http://glutenfreeforlifeexpo1.blogspot.com/.  We will look forward to seeing you there!!

Spring Update on Tampa Gluten Free Food Pantry

Tampa Gluten Free Food Pantry would like to say a big Thank You to Namaste Gluten Free Foods for their recent GF food donations!  Namaste donated GF pizza crust mix, GF pasta pisavera mix, GF taco pasta mix, GF bread mix, GF pancake/waffle mix, and some of their GF seasoned coating mixes for chicken.  Namaste's foods contain no wheat, gluten, corn, soy, potato, dairy, casein, tree nuts or peanuts. Thank you Namaste Foods for helping Gluten Free Families in Need!  If anyone would like to learn more about Namaste's products, their website is http://www.namastefoods.com/.   Shown below is a recent photo that was taken after stocking the shelves with donations from Namaste and donations from our local community that were picked up at the food barrel at Nutrition S'Mart of Carrollwood.  Tampa GF Food Pantry Coordinator Katrina Tiller will continue to collect GF food donations that people donate when shopping at Nutrition S'Mart of Carollwood http://www.nutritionsmart.com/stores/carrollwood.html.   Thank you Nutrition S'Mart for continuing to let us collect GF food donations at your store! 

Recent Photos of Tampa Gluten Free Food Pantry with Namaste's donations:

Please help GF Families in Need for the Holidays!

Katrina Tiller from Gluten Free Friends of Tampa went to Metropolitan Ministries on Monday to drop off a few Gluten Free nonperishable food donations for the Tampa Gluten Free Food Pantry that were donated by the Tampa Celiac Support Group. She discovered that the Tampa Gluten Free Food Pantry is very low on GF food donations!  Please help GF Families in need for the holidays by donating items from the GF Holiday Food Drive List to food barrels that will be at both Nutrition S'Mart locations in Tampa for the next 3 weeks (December 15th through January 5th).   We need your help!!!

While at Metropolitan Ministries, Katrina was told a story by a Metro Market food pantry volunteer that reinstilled her drive to help GF families in need.  "We just had a mom with a little girl come in the other day who needed some food from the Tampa Gluten Free Food Pantry.  When the little girl saw the gluten free food on the shelves, she lit up like she was in a candy store!  She right away started picking out some GF food off the shelves.  The mom commented that it was so hard to find places that had GF food like this."

Poverty does not discriminate.  It can affect people of all different ages, backgrounds, races, religions, and health situations.  It is even more difficult for Gluten Free families in need because of the higher price of gluten free foods in stores and the health problems that can result if they choose to ingest gluten over starvation.  Please help to provide Gluten Free food so that these struggling families do not have to choose between starving or eating food that does contain gluten and will make them extremely sick. 

Please bring all GF food donations to Nutrition S'Mart of Carrollwood  or Nutrition S'Mart of Wesley Chapel during the next 3 weeks for the 2nd Annual Gluten Free Holiday Food Drive.  Questions or want to know more about ways to help the Tampa Gluten Free Food Pantry?  Contact Katrina Tiller at glutenfreefriendsoftampa@gmail.com.  

2nd Annual Gluten Free Holiday Food Drive

November has arrived and that means it is time for the 2nd Annual Gluten Free Holiday Food Drive to benefit the Tampa Gluten Free Food Pantry at Metropolitan Ministries!  Please help GF families in need to be able to have traditional family holiday dinners this season by donating GF non-perishable foods that would be served at a holiday meal.  This GF Holiday Food Drive will be for all of November and December.  Please bring all food donations to the blue food barrels at Nutrition S'Mart of Carrollwood on N. Dale Mabry Road in Tampa.   Here is their website for directions and more information about this store:
  Nutrition S'Mart of Carrollwood.   

If your family or your organization has a large amount of GF food to donate, please contact Katrina Tiller at glutenfreefriendsoftampa@gmail.com.  She will be happy to discuss an arrangement to pick up large food donations.  Thank you in advance for your support of these wonderful GF families!  Below you will find a list of the type of food donations that are most needed for the Gluten Free Holiday Food Drive.


                                                    Gluten Free Holiday Box of Hope:
  

• 1 Gluten Free Whole Turkey or Gift Certificate for a Turkey
• GF Mashed Potatoes (1 box)
• GF Gravy (1 container)
• GF Stuffing (1 box)
• GF Rice (1 box or bag)
• GF Canned Black Beans (2 cans)
• GF Canned Vegetables (2 cans)
• GF Canned Fruit or Jars of Applesauce (2 cans)
• GF Cranberry Sauce (2 cans)
• GF Canned Pumpkin (1 can)
• GF Bisquick or GF Multipurpose Flour (1 box)
• GF Dessert Mix (1 box of GF Cake Mix or 1 box of GF Brownie Mix)
• GF Cookies (1 box)
• GF Pudding (2 boxes)
• GF Cereal (1 box)
• GF Oatmeal (1 box)                                                       

 If you are interested in helping more with the GF Holiday Food Drive, please contact Katrina Tiller at glutenfreefriendsoftampa@gmail.com.   If you are interested in helping more with Metropolitan Ministries' efforts to help all families in need during this holiday season, here is the website for more information:
Metropolitan Ministries Holiday Central.

Summer Update for Tampa Gluten Free Food Pantry

Tampa Gluten Free Food Pantry would like to thank Gluten Free Friends of Tampa, the Tampa Celiac Support Group, and the Largo Gluten Free for Life Support Group for their recent donations of nonperishable gluten free foods.  Many people took the time, effort, and money to purchase a few GF foods to donate at the blue food bin at Nutrition S'Mart of Carrollwood and we appreciate that!  We will continue to leave the blue food bin at the store so that people can continue to help Gluten Free families in need!  Also Katrina Tiller, Coordinator for Tampa Gluten Free Food Pantry, will continue to attend support group meetings to collect gluten free food donations.

Right now all donations to the Tampa Gluten Free Food Pantry are going to the Gluten Free Food Pantry section at the emergency food market (Metro Market) at Metropolitan Ministries here in Tampa.  In the future, we hope to coordinate with several other emergency food pantries in the area as well.  If anyone has any suggestions for future locations of the Tampa Gluten Free Food Pantry, please e-mail Katrina Tiller at glutenfreefriendsoftampa@gmail.com.  

Thank you again for all of your support!  Here is a photo taken today when Katrina brought donations to put on the shelves at Metropolitan Ministries!