Food Programs in Place to Help Warren Residents

While most people throughout Michigan are staying at home right now, we are all faced with challenges every day. For some, that challenge is having access to food. Many may be facing this issue because their kids normally receive free lunch at school. Others might be suddenly unemployed and struggling to make ends meet. Some people even face the struggle of being able to get to the grocery store because of health concerns. Whatever the issue may be, there are several options here in Warren for residents to get the help they need.

Gleaners’ Community Distribution: Gleaners is hosting drive-up mobile sites throughout the Metro Detroit area. Sites change weekly and are held in parking lots of churches, schools, and more. To see when there will be a mobile Gleaners’ site in your neighborhood, click here. With additional food distribution efforts in place, Gleaners is also looking for volunteers. For information on volunteering, click here.

Mayor Fouts’ Emergency Food Hotline: Mayor Fouts has established an Emergency Food Hotline to help senior Warren residents as well as those with pre-existing conditions who are in need of food. This is only for those who are in great need. This hotline will be coordinated with local food pantries and volunteers from Warren. The hotline number is (586) 574-4526. If you would like to volunteer to assist with these efforts, please call the hotline and let them know that you would like to help.

School Breakfasts and Lunches: Warren’s School Districts are making sure their students are still eating daily. Many schools are even offering drive-thru meal pickup, giving five breakfasts and five lunches per student each week. To see what your school district is offering, visit the following links:

Warren Consolidated Schools
Warren Woods Public Schools
Van Dyke Public Schools
Fitzgerald Public Schools
Center Line Public Schools

Special Shopping Hours: Many grocery stores have special hours for seniors, people with compromised immune systems, and expectant mothers. This will allow them the opportunity to shop with less people in the store and also have access to items before the store opens to the general public. Here is a list of the special hours being offered by stores in Warren:

Aldi – Tuesday and Thursday mornings from 8:30 a.m. – 9:30 a.m.
Dave’s Marketplace – Daily from 7 a.m. – 8 a.m.
Kroger – Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings from 7 a.m. – 8 a.m.
Meijer – Tuesday and Thursday mornings from 7 a.m. – 8 a.m.
Oak Ridge – Daily from 7 a.m. – 8 a.m.
Target – Tuesday and Wednesday mornings from 7 a.m. – 8 a.m.
Walmart – Tuesday mornings from 6 a.m. – 7 a.m.

Senior To Go Meals: The Macomb Office of Senior Services is passing out brown bag lunches at two different sites in Macomb County. Meals will be available from 10 a.m. until noon, Monday through Friday, at Stillwell Manor in Warren and the Mount Clemens Farmers’ Market. To qualify, you must be a Macomb County Resident, 60 years or older, with a photo ID. There will be a limit of one meal per person. For more information, click here.

Forgotten Harvest at Warren City Hall: Forgotten Harvest will be distributing food at Warren City Hall every Monday from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m. The program begins on Monday, April 6, 2020 and will run for six consecutive weeks. Boxes of food will be supplied to unemployed Warren residents on a first come, first serve basis. Volunteers will place groceries in the clean trunk of each residents’ vehicles, in the south parking lot at City Hall.

In addition to all the resources listed above, residents can receive information about food banks and other assistance offered in the area by dialing 2-1-1.