Welcome to Sharenet Food Bank
We provide the greater Kingston, WA area with emergency
food provision, screened emergency power and rental assistance
for clients faced with shut off notices or eviction and a weekend
take home food program for school children.
Winner of Food Lifeline’s "Excellence in Community Resource Development”, ShareNet's mission is to fight hunger in North Kitsap County in a manner that respects the dignity of those we serve. Our service area includes Kingston, Hansville, Port Gamble, Indianola, Eglon, Little Boston, and some border addresses in Suquamish and Poulsbo.
ShareNet's Thrift Store carries quality, gently used goods at super-bargain prices. All proceeds go right back into the operation, and help fund the food bank.
We’re here to help. All you need to do is give us a call and we will do our best to provide assistance. In the meantime, feel free to take a look around our site to learn more about Sharenet Food Bank and Thrift Store. Check our thrift store page for deals!
Copyright © Sharenet Food Bank, 2010. All rights reserved.  
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Next class in Financial Education series is Thursday, May 16, 5:30-7:00pm, Bayside Church, Kingston. Childcare, dinner, and discounts available. Please call ShareNet to register.
Henery Hardware
Kingston Lumber
Kingston Metal Recycling
ShareNet’s
2012 End of Year Summary
Thank you for sharing in our mission to fight hunger in North Kitsap while preserving the dignity of those we serve! With every contribution to ShareNet, you’ve bought a “share” in helping local lives and our community’s future.
Food Distributed: 315,814 lbs.
Volunteer Hours: 5,009
Individual Service Instances: 13,973
During these challenging economic times, our families' needs have increased dramatically, but community resources have seriously dwindled. We are so grateful that ShareNet continues to be a steady, committed provider for Kingston Middle School families who are desperately trying to make ends meet. We now have almost 30 students participating in ShareNet's Weekend Food Program, and numerous parents have conveyed their appreciation for the support. Many thanks to you and to the generous donors and volunteers who have made this possible! –Dee Frank, Counselor, Kingston Middle School.
One day hunger-fighting charities may be able to write that their usage numbers are down. Today is not that day. ShareNet experienced growth in all the areas federal reporting requires from registered food banks. We distributed over 35,000 more pounds of food this year than last. We had almost 800 more individual instances of service in 2012. More service means more work: volunteers served over 1,000 more hours than in 2011.
Networked Partnerships Benefit our
Clients and Stretch Donation Dollars
As a state-registered charity operating under the 501c3 of Bayside Community
Church, ShareNet is a registered, affiliated food bank which benefits from
membership in the Kitsap County Food Bank Coalition, the Washington Food
Coalition, Feeding America, Food Lifeline, and Northwest Harvest. The purchasing power of these networks
benefits out clients and stretches every dollar you donate. They are also a primary source for best
practices regarding food safety and distribution, and innovative programs such
as Food Lifeline’s Grocery Rescue, which allows local stores to safely donate
still good food they would otherwise discard.
Remodel Adds Storage and Processing Capability
ShareNet started off 2012 with a much-needed improvement and a new challenge: 800 extra square feet of space. The remodel was done to accommodate the huge growth ShareNet has sustained since 2007, going from around 2000 individual service instances that year to nearly 14,000 in 2012. The additional space allows us to store and process more food, to serve more food to more clients, and to have a bit more room for volunteers to spread out and work in. In the new configuration ShareNet Thrift Store also gained additional donation processing space. We felt the benefits immediately, noting the value of room to breathe for not only our routine work but the larger-scale events on our calendar. Much of the construction materials and labor were donated or sharply discounted, but Neighbor Aid donations allowed us to pay for the rest and to meet additional monthly leasing costs.
Volunteers
We
have the most dedicated, concerned group of volunteers I’ve ever seen in over a
decade in social services. They are the
reason ShareNet could sustain such tremendous growth so seamlessly. Put simply, ShareNet would not operate
without great volunteer support. Volunteers
process our deliveries and our donations.
They unload trucks and stock shelves.
They pack food boxes and distribute them. They make our clients feel important, valued,
and hopeful. Volunteers do most of the
same jobs that are done at any grocery or retail store: all the work and no pay. Our little joke for a job well done is: we’ll double your wages! They do have benefits though: the community spirit and camaraderie that’s
always available at ShareNet.
Food to Grow On
“Families
are very grateful for the food packets they receive from ShareNet at school.
For many, they are just on the edge between making it or not, and these packets
allow them that little extra they need. Students are always eager to pick up
the packets just before the weekend, but perhaps the most touching is when a
parent will come in with a tear in their eye and a simple, quiet ‘thank you.’” –Ben
Degnin, Principal, Wolfle
Elementary School
Weekend
take home food for school children in need is delivered weekly to four local
schools: Wolfle Elementary, Gordon
Elementary, Kingston Middle, and Kingston High.
ShareNet works closely with school administrators and counselors to
identify students in need. Individual
food packs are transported to school offices and with the help of
administrative staff there discreetly distributed. ShareNet takes pride in sourcing the
healthiest foods possible for this pack including organics when available. Current service numbers are around 80 kids
per week during the school year among the four schools. ShareNet also serves Wolfle Elementary School’s
summer session for three weeks after the school year ends.
Thrift Store
The promise of ShareNet’s Thrift Store, which opened in 2007, is finally coming
to fruition. 2012 was the store’s highest-grossing
year yet, allowing it to support a larger segment of ShareNet’s expenses.
Emergency Utility and Housing
Assistance
In 2012 ShareNet again partnered with the Poulsbo chapter of St. Vincent de
Paul in distributing over $30,000 in financial assistance for eviction
prevention and utility shut-off prevention for our designated service
area. The amount available for this fund
depends exclusively on the success of Neighbor Aid. After appropriate screening, local residents
may receive help in moving through a temporary crisis affecting their ability
to pay rent, mortgage, or a utility bill.
"As school counselor at Gordon
Elementary I am very thankful for the all of the services of ShareNet,
specifically the weekend food program at our school. The children and parents
who receive these services are always very appreciative and are truly in need.
It is a simple equation, children do better in school and socially when they
are not hungry and have access to adequate nutrition."—Richard
Goudzwaard, Counselor, Gordon
Elementary School
Seasonal Events
A whole community worked together to make Thanksgiving
happen at ShareNet for about 200 local families in need for a total of about 600
individual persons served. On Nov. 14
twenty volunteers gathered at ShareNet for what we anticipated would be nearly
a day long job in pre-packing the non-perishable parts of the Thanksgiving
boxes. We had such great prep work and
organization from staff, and such able support from our group of volunteers
that we completed the packing in just over 2 hours. On distribution day fresh produce and turkeys
were added to the boxes, providing a complete holiday meal with leftovers to
spare. Holiday
purchasing, as well as most of our regular food budget, is made possible by
generous donations from our local community.
For 2012’s Back to School Supplies Event, ShareNet partnered with Kingston Alive Covenant to serve over 125 students at the event itself with fully appointed backpacks, and then continued to provide the mostly purchased supplies as demand lingered through the first months of the new school year. Any surplus was then donated directly to the schools for their use.
Our Gift Shop held at Bayside Community Church put big smiles on the faces of 186 children on Christmas morning.
Is incremental giving better for your budget than all at once? If so, consider a regular monthly donation via our website, sharenetfoodbank.org. The plan works at your directive, and may be altered at any time.
Neighbor Aid 2012
While we didn’t reach the record total of 2011, Neighbor Aid 2012, ShareNet’s
annual event fundraiser, raised $56,785 with our community again rallying to
support ShareNet‘s efforts fighting hunger and poverty issues in the north end.
Neighbor Aid 2012 enjoyed the support
of hundreds of local individuals, businesses, service clubs and schools, all coming
together through ShareNet to help hungry people in our community. Your support, whether time, money, or
service, ensures ShareNet can continue to operate. If you
met our clients directly, they would tell you themselves how grateful they
are. We extend that gratitude toward
you.
With heartfelt appreciation,
Mark Ince,
Executive Director