During the summer, with the kids out of school, many families come to CFOC for emergency supplies to feed their families. Every year we see the demand for food rise as donations often decrease.

Would your company or organization be willing to host a food drive for CFOC’s Emergency Food Box? Email Mark Perez to learn more!

Great items to donate include:

-pop-top cans (vienna sausages, tuna, Chef Boyardi products, soups)
-peanut butter
-canned fruits and veggies
-pastas/noodle soups
-cereals
-granola bars
-hand sanitizer

Thank you for your support!

Community Food and Outreach sees hundreds of families every day; families who are struggling to put food on the table and make ends meet. These are people who are trying to regain their hope and dignity. One such person we recently helped is Teresa Hamblin.

With no work in North Carolina and a victim of an abusive relationship Teresa felt her only option was to move to Florida, where her family promised to help.   However, those who claimed would help either could not, or would not. She quickly faced the stark reality that she might be homeless for the first time.

Teresa walked into our Crisis Center disoriented and hopeless. She thought the best choice would be to temporarily stay in a hotel until she could save enough money to put a deposit down on an apartment. However, her expensive weekly stays and limited income would not allow her to save the necessary money to get a place of her own. She was barely even making her hotel payments. Our Crisis Center staff used the wealth of resources and partnerships to help find an organization that could help Teresa with her housing issue. Jewish Family Services, a close partner of CFOC, was able to work with Teresa immediately. Teresa and her kids are now in a Family Stabilization program that will have them out of the hotel and into an apartment very soon.

CFOC is committed to maintaining a relationship with our clients, and we will continue to follow Teresa and her family on a weekly basis to ensure they are working to get back to self-sufficiency. With the support of folks like you, we are able to continue offering these holistic services to our clients to they can regain their pride and dignity in these tough economic times.

Our popular Summer Read & Feed program is back for a brand new spring session!

In honor of National Volunteer Week, we want to thank all of our wonderful volunteers who help make the work we do here at CFOC possible. Whether you are part of a church group, corporate day of service, or a traditional volunteer, we rely on our volunteers to help us continue to fight for hurting families in Central Florida. And we are eternally grateful. THANK YOU!

FLORIDA EGG FARMERS DONATE 64,000 EGGS TO CFOC – JUST IN TIME FOR EASTER!

We are happy to announce that, once again, Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. is joining in the fight against hunger by donating more than 64,000 eggs to the Community Food & Outreach Center on March 20 at 9am.

The eggs will be provided to Central Florida families who are struggling to put food on their tables, with a portion set aside for parents of Pineloch Elementary School students. The school has been a tremendous partner of Community Food & Outreach Center, and the eggs will help ensure that the students are well-nourished as they take their FCAT exams.

More than 48 million Americans live in food-insecure homes, and are turning to food assistance organizations—like CFOC’s grocery cost-share program—for help. Sources of high-quality protein are among the most needed items at organizations like CFOC, and fresh eggs are a great help. According to the USDA, one large egg delivers six grams of protein and 13 essential nutrients, including choline, folate, iron, and zinc.

“We’re thrilled to donate much-needed protein to the Community Food & Outreach Center just in time for the Easter holiday,” stated Alan Andrews, Director of Marketing for Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. “We take pride in giving back to our local communities.”

“Spring is a season of hope and newness for many children and families who are struggling with hunger, and this generous donation of eggs will encourage hurting families in our community that help is on the way,” stated Scott George, co-founder of the Community Food & Outreach Center. “Cal-Maine’s kindness and generosity during this critical time of year will help Community Food & Outreach continue to offer help and hope to so many in need.”

“Year-round our generous farmers donate fresh eggs to their local food assistance organizations,” stated Chad Gregory, president and CEO of United Egg Producers. “We come together during the Easter season to give a little extra and make fresh eggs available to food insecure families across the country.”

This is the sixth Easter season that the United Egg Producers have organized a nationwide effort to provide fresh eggs to food insecure families. This year, US egg farmers are donating nearly nine million fresh eggs to local organizations, bringing the total number of fresh eggs donated to 69 million since 2008. Consumers can also participate in this effort by going to www.facebook.com/UEPCertified and pledging to buy UEP-certified eggs. For every pledge received, United Egg Producers will donate one carton of eggs to a local food assistance organization.

THANK YOU TO CAL-MAINE, INC AND THE UNITED EGG PRODUCERS FOR MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF CENTRAL FLORIDA’S FAMILIES!

On April 20th, 2013, the Dave Matthews Tribute Band will return to Orlando to headline this year’s Firm Fest.  The event will be hosted by the Harry Buffalo and is presented by The Orlando Family Firm.  All proceeds go directly to the Community Food and Outreach Center.

The event starts at 6:00 pm and will feature drink specials, dinner and live entertainment prior to the Dave Matthews Tribute Band taking the stage.

There will be several ticketing options available so please visit http://firmfest2013.brownpapertickets.com/ and take a moment to review the options before purchasing.

If you have any questions, please email jonathan@theorlandofamilyfirm.com.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Take part in the 2012 Community Food & Outreach Center Fall Needs Drive from November 5th-December 2nd 2012

96.5 WDBO brings you Neighbors Helping Neighbors presented by BB&T Bank!

Call 407-849-4673 (HOPE) to donate now!

 The Central Florida Community Food & Outreach Center strives to provide a hand up for those in need, helping them to break free from poverty by offering hunger relief, crisis care, transformative education,  and employment training opportunities.

The programs offered by the Community Food & Outreach Center focus on giving working poor families a positive hand up during their greatest time of need.

We’ll end our drive with a live broadcast at the Community Food and Outreach Center, on the weekend of December 1st and 2nd. Join us for food and drinks and take a tour of the Center to learn more about helping your neighbors in need.  Thanks to our listeners and clients, we raised over $17,000 last year but we need YOUR help to raise even more this year!

Learn more on WDBO’s website »

COMMUNITY FOOD & OUTREACH CENTER EXPANDS ITS SERVICES TO THOSE IN POVERTY WITH THE OPENING OF A CLINIC & COUNSELING CENTER ON ITS CAMPUS TO OFFER MEDICAL CARE, CLINICAL COUNSELING, AND DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SERVICES.

The Community Food & Outreach Center, one of Central Florida’s largest charities helping serve the hungry, the homeless, and families struggling in poverty had a grand opening ribbon cutting event with Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer on Tuesday, November 27th at 10:00am at their downtown Orlando Campus. The event marked the opening of the Community Food & Outreach Center’s Clinic and Counseling Center on its campus, in partnership with the local charities Health Care Center for Homeless, The Harbor House, and The Grove Counseling Center. This collaborative program expansion allows the Community Food and Outreach Center to provide health care, mental health counseling and domestic violence services to hundreds of families per day on its campus.

“Families are struggling in Central Florida in record numbers, and need comprehensive help overcoming a wide range of issues like hunger, homelessness, domestic violence, mental health, unemployment and others to break free from poverty. This program expansion at the Community Food & Outreach Center’s campus marks another big step in our goal to give families comprehensive services at our downtown campus,” said Andrae Bailey, executive director of the Community Food & Outreach Center. The charity provides hunger relief programs, crisis case work, education classes and other programs for more than 400 families in need every day at their Central Florida campus. “We need to do more than just help people get food and get their basic needs met; we need to help them get back to the place of self sufficiency,”said Bailey, who has run the organization as its Executive Director since its inception in 2009.

Health Care Center of the Homeless will run and supply the staff for the new medical clinic which will be able to serve families with comprehensive primary and preventative medical care, dental care, and other critical medical services. “This health clinic will increase access to quality, affordable health care services for members of our community who may not have a primary care provider or utilize emergency departments as their main source of health care.….” said Bakari F. Burns, Chief Executive Officer of Health Care Centers for the Homeless, which provides primary and preventative medical, dental, and behavioral health services to homeless and uninsured people living in Orange, Osceola, and Seminole Counties.  In the calendar year of 2011 the Health Care Center for the Homeless, Inc. which operates the Orange Blossom Family Health Center provided health care services to over 12,000 unduplicated patients.

In addition to medical care, the new expansion offers services to domestic violence victims through onsite counselors from the Harbor House. “Many people don’t know this, but the number one reason that women and children end up homeless is because of domestic violence. It makes so much sense for a charity trying to help the poor and homeless, and a charity trying to fight domestic violence to work together,” said Carol Wick, CEO of the Harbor House, Central Florida’s largest provider of services for those facing domestic violence.

“To see these charities partner to help the poor and needy of Orlando is inspiring,” said Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer who will be cutting the ribbon at the grand opening ceremony on November 27th. “Something amazing happens when nonprofits like these come together and combine their resources and energy to help those in need,” said Dyer. The City of Orlando will be working with the new Clinic and Counseling Center through its ORLANDO CARES initiative in 2013. ORLANDO CARES is the City’s service initiative designed to address youth crime prevention and education.

The Clinic & Counseling Center is the next phase in Community Food & Outreach Centers plan to develop its campus to offer holistic services to families in poverty in Central Florida. Community Food & Outreach Center currently offers programs on nearly 30,000 square feet of its campus, and plans to expand those services to nearly 55,000 square feet in the next 24 months. “Families are in need of real help to break free from poverty, and we want to have everything they need right here on our CFOC campus.” Said Scott George, Co-Founder of the Community Food & Outreach Center.

About Community Food & Outreach Center: 

Community Food & Outreach Center provides food and hope to those in need in Central Florida. We do this by helping struggling families get a hand-up to get their basic needs met, connecting those in crisis with the resources and tools needed to get back on their feet and prevent homelessness, and
providing the training and skills needed to help our neighbors get back on their feet, regain hope for their lives, and achieve their dreams.



About :
The Health Care Center for the Homeless (HCCH) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization committed to providing the health care needs of the homeless and uninsured residents of our community in an atmosphere of dignity and respect. Our Health Center is located just a few blocks west of downtown Orlando and we currently serve the homeless population of Orange, Osceola, and Seminole counties with the goal of returning our patients to lives of self-sufficiency. Our programs include primary medical care, oral health services, behavioral health and substance abuse counseling, an on-site pharmacy, vision services, residential TB shelter, mobile health services, and an aggressive street outreach program – the HOPE Team

About Harbor House
Harbor House is Orange County’s only state-certified domestic violence facility and seeks to eliminate domestic abuse in Central Florida by providing safety, shelter, empowerment, education and justice. Harbor House provides safe shelter, a 24-hour crisis hotline, counseling, and emotional support, and legal advocacy for tens of thousands of domestic violence survivors and their children each year. Harbor House helps survivors return to the community—connecting them to resources that will enable them to live independently, safely and peacefully.