Natick, MA- November 11, 2026
On a warm afternoon in late October, staff and volunteers from A Place To Turn and many of their 17 partner agencies gathered to celebrate a year of the Community Food Program. "It was a celebration of what we can accomplish when we work together and listen to the community," said Executive Director, Rebecca Gallo. The Community Food Program grew from the realization that even as the number of families visiting the pantry has more than doubled in the past five years to over 1,100 a month, there were community members in need of food assistance who couldn't access the pantry for varied reasons. This sparked conversations with community partners, including the MetroWest Health Foundation, who provided funding for the pilot program. In October of 2025, the Community Food Program launched with the goal of bringing fresh food to people where they live and congregate in partnership with other social service agencies.
Haley Jeansonne, Community Food Program Director, emphasized that “collaboration” is pivotal to A Place To Turn’s success. Food insecurity has increased by 11% in Middlesex County since 2019: “when there is such a high need for hunger relief, we need to work together to build effective strategies, especially as government benefits become more unreliable.” Jeansonne’s efforts to build the Community Food Program began with almost two months of meeting with potential partner organizations:
“We wanted to hear from service providers about what the community needs most and where. The pantry has been around for decades, but initiatives like mobile markets were new for us. By working with service agencies, we could lean on the trust they have built with those they serve and leverage our resources to fill the gap in food access they identified."
Jeansonne commented that this teamwork, “has helped us grow the program quicker than any of us expected.” It has certainly grown quickly. The Community Food Program served just 162 families in October 2025. As of October 2026, they now serve almost 1,000 families each month, and this number stands to grow. In 2027, A Place To Turn will begin a home delivery service to homebound individuals. This will complement the Program's core initiatives including a preordered grocery delivery and pickup program, supplemental produce deliveries to distribution partners, and four monthly mobile markets hosted at high-need locations in Framingham, Natick, and Marlborough.
As they are looking to the future of the Program, the celebration was a chance to reflect on the impact over the past year. "We understood there was a need to meet people where they are with food, but we never imagined the program would grow like it did," said Gallo. "It has only been possible because so many community parters are willing to say yes to working together with the common goal of making sure everyone has healthy food. I am grateful for the amazing leaders in this community who step up every day to make this a place we all want to live."
Looking for ways to help your neighbors this holiday season? Join A Place To Turn’s efforts to increase access to nutritious food. You can make a donation at www.aplacetoturn-natick.org/donate. Also, consider holding a food drive, buying a little extra to donate when you do your Thanksgiving shopping, or even bring your gently used paper bags. It all makes a difference.
About A Place To Turn
A Place To Turn provides healthy food choices, diapers, and personal care items to MetroWest residents. We are committed to addressing hunger by serving with dignity, equity, and empathy.
A Place To Turn has been serving the community since 1979. What began as a small neighborhood pantry, has grown and evolved to meet changing community needs. The pantry, located in Natick, serves over 2,000 residents of 12 MetroWest communities every month at the pantry and in the community. For more information go to www.aplacetoturnforfood.org.