Outreach in Action

Got Milk? Clients of Stockbridge Community Outreach do!

by Jo Mayer and Paul Crandall

Thanks to funding from Ingham County, clients who shop the Stockbridge Community Outreach food pantry also get “milk bucks” coupons—each good for a gallon of milk. The coupons are redeemable at three area Mugg & Bopps stores and at Plane Food Market in downtown Stockbridge.

How they work: As milk bucks are spent, the milk’s price is noted and then used as the basis for an Outreach reimbursement to the stores. In this way, the partnership supports both the local Outreach client community and local businesses.

Outreach volunteer Cindy Ashley says customers regularly remind her about milk bucks. Photo by Jo Mayer

Ingham County has supported various Outreach programs for over a decade, with efforts in recent years centering on the Milk Bucks program. And it’s a hit with clients, said Outreach food pantry volunteer Cindy Ashley.

“They always remind me about the milk bucks,” said Ashley, “So I never have to worry about forgetting to give them out.”

Outreach also collaborates with Mugg & Bopps in Gregory, Stockbridge and Munith to provide gas certificates to clients. The certificates help cover transportation costs to and from medical appointments. These have been a big help, especially nowadays with high gas prices and everyone having to travel out of the area for medical care.

As with Mugg & Bopps, the Plane Food Market collaboration with Outreach extends beyond milk bucks.

Outreach collaborates with Plane Food Market on milk bucks and more. Here, co-owner Deanna McAlister is pictured with some of the goods shoppers can find in the Downtown Stockbridge market. Photo by Jo Mayer

Plane Food opened in 2020 to provide quality, local food and kitchen-related items to the community, explained co-owner/manager Deanna McAlister.

“Then friends and neighbors started asking if they could also do consignments, and it kept growing from there,” McAlister said.  “Outreach’s booth at the market was just a natural expansion of that idea.”

Upstream in the Outreach supply chain for these consignment sales is a handful of talented crafters who donate their talents. Proceeds from the booth at Plane Food Market help support the work of Outreach.

Outreach volunteer Sherry Bush. Photo by Jo Mayer

“We’ve had a variety of items for sale at Plane Food—cards, aprons, stuffed animals, woolen critters, face masks and more,” said booth coordinator Sherry Bush. “We currently have fun stuffed animals and felted wool critters that would make a great addition to an Easter basket,” Bush added with a grin.

At Outreach, we like to “milk” every opportunity for helping the community. So if you’re looking for a way to put your crafting talents to good use as a community contribution, Outreach is the place to start!

Items for sale at the Outreach booth at Plane Food Market. Photo by Jo Mayer.

Outreach is always looking for small kitchen or food-related artisan items to sell in our corner booth, for more information please email outreach49285@gmail.com or call 517-851-7285.

This column is sponsored by Stockbridge Community Outreach, our local food pantry, crisis, and referral center located in the Stockbridge Activity Center (old middle school) near Cherry and Elm streets in Stockbridge. Office hours are 1-3 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Friday and by appointment. Outreach49285@gmail.com, 517-851-7285, or find us on Facebook.