Stuff The Truck to Benefit Gifts of Love

Founded in 1989, Gifts of Love is a non-profit organization that started when a woman living in Simsbury witnessed friends who had been laid off struggling to make ends meet.

She bought extra food and collected hand-me-down clothing and stored them in her garage for her friends to take.

“It’s an organization that helps families in need in financial crisis…food, clothing, household items, electronics, fuel assistance in the winter time, giving [kids] food over the weekend, Adria Giordano, Gifts of Love events coordinator, said. “We try to help families as best as we can.”

The non-profit charity’s mission has not changed since the program expanded to serving families and the Farmington Valley and Greater Hartford area. Volunteers collected foot outside area grocery stores Saturday at the organization’s Stuff the Truck event to provide for families experiencing financial hardship.

The collections on Saturday, done in the organization’s new truck, included stops at Fitzgerald’s Foods in Simsbury, Big Y in Avon and ShopRite in Canton. 

Gifts of Love has at least 105 volunteers, 35 of whom are Avon High School students, who collaborate with Gifts of Love as a part of a district community service requirement.

“Volunteering is super important because it helps the community. It helps everyone,” Northwest Catholic High School junior and Avon resident Caroline Davenport said. “It especially helps people in need during such a bad economy. You want to help”

Gifts of Love, partners with local food pantries in Avon, Farmington, Canton and Simsbury, as well as Food Share, as part of the Farmington Valley Hunger Collaborative, to collect food for families in need. Gifts of Love has inventory of organic food from a local community farm.

“I think that people need a place out there to go for help, and I think organizations like this are good for people to know about if they need help,” West Hartford resident Maureen Curran said after donating food to Gifts of Love. “I donated because there are people out there that need more than I do.”

Applicants can contact Gifts of Love to inquire about eligibility.