As Club Drive resident Susan Allen cut back to part time earlier this year and began easing into retirement, she started looking for a way to give back to her community. She had been a regional vice president with MTV until 2003, took some time off when her now-adult boys were ages 8 and 11, and then returned to work first part- and then full-time as an executive search consultant. 

When her boys were younger, she volunteered at their schools and enjoyed that. Now with more time on her hands, she wanted to find a meaningful way to help in the community without simply writing a check or filling a weekly volunteer spot. After reading an article about PORCH and food insecurity last year in the Inspire Atlanta section of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, she was intrigued and decided to find out more.

PORCH fights hunger through local chapters that host monthly neighborhood food drives where residents can leave donated items on a porch, thus the organization’s name. Chapters partner with nearby food pantries, schools, or other programs, striving to meet their needs. The organization was founded in 2010 in Chapel Hill, NC (where Susan attended college at the University of North Carolina), and now has 30 chapters in nine states. 

PORCH Historic Brookhaven is the third chapter in Georgia, with the first founded in Decatur in 2021 followed by Marietta about a year later. Susan reached out to the Decatur PORCH community and also spoke with the overall PORCH founder in North Carolina before deciding to move forward. 

She then began researching area food pantries. St. Vincent de Paul Society’s Chamblee Tucker Road pantry kept popping up in searches. As soon as she visited them, she knew she had found a match. “I was blown away by what I saw,” she says of her first pantry visit, which was unannounced.

While a Catholic organization, St. Vincent de Paul services a non-denominational population and is dedicated to tackling poverty and serving the disadvantaged. The Chamblee Tucker food pantry partners with 18 local grocery stores for perishables such as produce, bread, and meat but has a great need for non-perishables and other necessities. The largest population visiting the site are Latino families, many with babies and young children.

Susan has designated the second Wednesday of every month for PORCH Historic Brookhaven drives. A few days prior to that day, she’ll have tables and bins in her carport at 4196 Club Drive for neighbors to drop off items. She has recruited a few friends to help deliver to the St. Vincent de Paul pantry but is looking for additional volunteers. 

The Block Girls, made up of women from Susan’s portion of Club Drive, were the first group to host a drive for PORCH Historic Brookhaven. They collected 173 pounds of nonperishables and other items in May. In June, the Brookhaven Bible Study coordinated to provide necessary items.

Susan is looking for other groups – as well as individual households – to contribute. “I am encouraging folks to have their book club, Bible study, bridge or mahjong or other groups to host a drive,” she says. “But neighbors can also drop off on their own if they want.” 

She describes the drives as super easy and helpful. “There’s a lot of food insecurity in our area,” she says of the City of Brookhaven and Chamblee. Through her efforts, Susan and PORCH Historic Brookhaven are striving to help.

SIDE BAR TO NON-PROFIT PIECE

HEAD = PORCH Historic Brookhaven

Non-profit: PORCH Communities

Mission: Address food insecurity through local chapters and neighborhood food drives. The Historic Brookhaven chapter is striving to help end food insecurity in the greater Brookhaven and Chamblee areas by partnering with the St. Vincent de Paul food pantry on Chamblee Tucker Road.

Contact: Susan Allen at (404) 229-0867 or susan.w.allen@comcast.net

How You Can Help: Rally your book club, Bible study, or other group to collect items and donate to a monthly food drive; personally donate items; contact Susan to help organize, load up, and deliver 

Involved neighbors: Susan Allen, Robin Sangston

SECOND SIDE BAR TO NONPROFIT ARTICLE

HEAD = PORCH Food Drive Items

If you would like  to donate to a PORCH Historic Brookhaven’s food drive – either as a group or on your own – here is a list of the most needed items at the St. Vincent de Paul food pantry:

Non-Perishable Food Items:

Canned Vegetables, Fruits, and Meats (Tuna, Salmon, SPAM, etc.)

Soups & Stews

Cereal

Crackers

Peanut Butter

Jelly

Ketchup

Mustard

Dried Herbs & Spices

Household Supplies:

Multi-Purpose Cleaner

Laundry Detergent

Bleach

Toilet Tissue

Facial Tissue

Personal Care Items:

Toiletries (toothpaste, toothbrushes, floss, soap, shampoo, conditioner, deodorant, lotion)

Feminine hygiene products, such as tampons and pads

Diaper (all sizes) and wipes