Events

Community-Wide Food Drives

Families Forward hosts Community-Wide Food Drives each year. Check back for upcoming dates.

Families need food all year long – but often during the year, our food donations dwindle and our pantry shelves can be nearly empty. To prepare for these slower times, Families Forward partners with local grocery stores and community groups for one weekend in the Spring, Summer, and Fall to collect food donations to be able serve hungry families every month of the year.

Volunteer Groups are needed at grocery stores to ask shoppers to purchase additional food items and to bring all collected food donations back to the Food Pantry. Volunteers are also needed to help unload cars and help stock our shelves. To watch a brief, informative video about volunteering for a food drive, please click here.

If you are interested in collecting donations at a grocery store for an upcoming event, please contact our Volunteer Assistant at  us at emhernandez@families-forward.org or (949) 379-8373.

Back to School Backpacks

Back to School Backpacks – July & August

Do you remember that end-of-summer feeling with “Back to School” signs on every store window? Having those new supplies in your hand on the first day made it fun to go back.

We invite the community to come together and give every student that same opportunity by participating in our Back to School program. Grade-appropriate school supplies and backpacks will be distributed to low-income elementary, middle, and high school students in July-August. These supplies will help students start on the same foot as their peers and build their confidence for the coming school year. We also collect new and like-new clothing and shoes for school-age children. Families in our Back to School Program will select school clothing that fits their child’s needs.

Due to the pandemic, our Back to School program is being modified. We are giving out backpacks and school supplies to students K-12 as we do every year; however, this year we will not be conducting the clothing drive or having clothing shopping for our families due to current safety and health standards.

• Click here to read more and see our list of needed school items.
• Click here to be directed to Back to School Volunteering information.
• Click here to sign up to host a Backpacks/School Supply drive.

Thanksgiving – November

Each year, Families Forward holds a Thanksgiving-themed grocery distribution for local families in need. The weekend before Thanksgiving, families come to our program center to receive all of the traditional Thanksgiving fixings to cook a warm, delicious holiday meal.

With community support, Families Forward is able to provide nearly 800 families with a special holiday meal to share with their loved ones.

How you can help:

• Donate Thanksgiving themed food and/or host a Thanksgiving food drive during the months of October and November. For more information on how to host a food drive, click here. For the Thanksgiving food items we need most, click here.
• Volunteer with us for our Thanksgiving Program!

Adopt-a-Family – December

Holidays can be a very stressful time for families who struggle to make ends meet. The Adopt-a-Family Program gives individuals, companies and community organizations the opportunity to spread warmth and bring holiday joy to families in need. Last year, we provided holiday cheer to more than 800 struggling families, providing gifts for more than 2,200 children. Donations are accepted from the beginning of November through early December, so the children’s “wish lists” can be filled. In order to participate in this program, you must be able to deliver donations to our office in Irvine.

Click here to Adopt-a-Family.

Shop online to have our Wish List items delivered to our Program Center (Gifts for teens are especially needed)

Volunteer with us for our Adopt-a-Family Program!