A few weeks ago, a segment on the Today show caught my eye. It was the incredible story of a woman in Seattle who had started making loaves of bread in her kitchen when the pandemic began and delivering them to a small food pantry in her neighborhood.
What started out as one woman baking and delivering 19 loaves has bloomed into over 500 home bakers all across Washington making bread as part of an all-volunteer run organization called Community Loaves.
And now Community Loaves is coming to Oregon!
They are looking for volunteers in Oregon to help them bring their gift of bread making and community to Oregon.
My husband and I have signed up to be an Oregon baker and are excited to have our kids help.
It’s been so fun to attend the information session, find out about their fun commitment to “breaducation” and how they partner with locally milled artisan flour (Oregon’s will be coming from Camas Country Mill down near Eugene!), and learn how to make their signature Honey Oat sandwich loaf. They have a ton of training videos that walk you through it all.
Twice a month, bakers throughout the region take their Community Loaves to a designated neighborhood hub. These hubs, in turn, deliver loaves directly to a food pantry -- it is an Amazing Race of freshly baked bread.
And, it isn’t just about giving away bread, heck you can do that by purchasing a loaf or two. In a time of social distancing, when we can’t hug, or even show our smiling faces, this project fosters a heart-warming connection with bakers of all levels.
Not a baker? That’s okay. There are lots of ways to volunteer.
Prospective volunteers attend a one-hour information session where they learn all about how Community Loaves works -- and they’ve created one specifically for us in Oregon on Feb. 21 at 3:00pm.
Find out more and sign up for the info session here.
Community Loaves is on the rise in Oregon (pun intended) - I’d love for some fellow girlfriends to join this fun grassroots bread brigade with me!
— Amy Varga
