Fighting Hunger with NETWorks Cooperative Ministry
Tell us about why you applied to the Hands On Hunger Program and what you're goals are for the next two years.
Increase number of volunteers; improve volunteer retention
Tell us about your organization - what's your mission, and how does it impact our community?
Our mission is to respond with the hospitality of Christ to the food and financial needs of residents and to partner with them to find long-term solutions to poverty. We provide a client-choice pantry 3 days a week, year-round.
What's the history of your organization? How and why did it get started?
NETWorks was started in 2004 by a group of pastors in the area. They realized that people came to the local churches for help, but the churches did not have the expertise of means to serve people well, so they decided to pool their resources and start a nonprofit to serve the community.
How do volunteers support your mission? What impact do they have on your work? What is possible through the support of volunteers that would not be possible otherwise?
NETWorks distributes 140,000+ through our client choice pantry and mobile food pantries each year. We also grow fresh vegetables through our hydroponic garden program, Growings! We do all of this with 6 staff, and lots of very dedicated volunteers. On a weekly basis, 100+ volunteers help us run our programs.
What community problem is your organization trying to solve? Can you tell us more about the issue?
The cost of living continues to increase, and wages are not keeping pace. People who have retired or are on disability find that their fixed income does not make ends meet. Part of our mission is to help people walk out of poverty, but we know that people cannot accomplish this goal without access to fresh, healthy food. Through our client-choice pantry, we can provide a significant amount of the food a family needs at no cost. Our pantry and other programs are designed to maximize opportunities for staff, volunteers, and neighbors to form relationships that matter.
Can you share some impact stats or comments about the work being done by your organization? For example, how many meals/families/individuals do you serve monthly?
In January 2026, we distributed 41,851 pounds of food to 3,440 people.
What kind of programming do you offer the community?
Client-choice pantry, mobile food pantries, financial assistance (rent, utilities, sometimes hotel), hydroponics gardening education, financial education, mail service (for people living houseless), referrals for other assistance.
What types of projects do you offer? Tell us about a few different offerings. Do you have monthly or weekly recurring opportunities? How about your seasonal or annual events?
We have weekly recurring opportunities, including our client-choice pantry (3 days a week, and one evening per month), warehouse/pantry prep, retail pickups, office/clerical work, and working in the hydroponics garden. Seasonally, we offer 2 shops, Back to School school supply shop and a Christmas shop, both of which have volunteer opportunities to prep for the shops, and run the shops when they are open. We also run several fundraising and educational events throughout the year that have need for volunteers.
Tell us about what it's like to serve with your organization. How many volunteers do you host every month?
Many of our volunteers work with us one or two times a week, but we typically host 400+ volunteers in a month.
Tell us about how volunteers can jump in and get involved. How can they best support you?
We do not require prior training, instead we match up new volunteers with seasoned ones to learn a particular task. Some volunteer jobs do require additional training, so when a volunteer indicates interest in a more complex job, a staff member will work with them to schedule training that suits the individual volunteer.