Food Rescue of Goodwill Northern Michigan

10/17/2026

Congratulations to four extraordinary friends of Food Rescue recognized among Traverse City Business News’s 2026 7Over70 honorees: Jim Bardenhagen, Tom Menzel, Jim Milligan, and Diana Milock.

TCBN celebrates their deep contributions to our region as farmers, entrepreneurs, philanthropists, and community leaders. Each has shared their time, resources, and care to strengthen Food Rescue and increase food security for our neighbors.

Jim Bardenhagen and his family have long provided fresh, local food to the Northwest Food Coalition, increasing access to nutritious food.

Tom Menzel has welcomed our Healthy Harvest gleaning crews to his orchard, helping bring fresh apples to neighbors facing food insecurity.

Jim Milligan and Fustini's have been generous supporters of Food Rescue for many years, providing essential funding to sustain the work of getting good food to people who need it.

Diana Milock is a deeply valued friend and champion of Goodwill Northern Michigan. Her generosity has helped transform what is possible for Food Rescue and secure its future.

It’s especially meaningful to see four friends who have helped build and sustain Food Rescue among our region’s seven honorees. We’re grateful for the many ways they uplift our work and our region, and proud to celebrate their well-deserved recognition!

Read their stories here: tcbusinessnews.com/still-writing-their-stories-7over70-2026

10/16/2026

Hop in and ride along with Food Rescue on one of our regular routes as we pick up good food from local partners and deliver it to pantries and meal programs serving all our northwest Michigan neighbors.

10/15/2026

Food Rescue is proud to partner with The Buckley Food Pantry, helping good food reach neighbors in Buckley and surrounding rural communities.

Through the hard work of its volunteers, the pantry turns rescued food into meaningful support for local families, offering groceries with dignity and care.

We are grateful for partners like Buckley Food Pantry, who help make sure good food goes where it is needed most.

10/14/2026

JUST TWO SATURDAYS LEFT

October 17 & 24 | 1–4 PM

Buy or pick apples at Wunsch Farms Third Coast Fruit Co., and they’ll donate an equal amount to local food pantries through their Pound-for-Pound Apple Donation Program!

Show your receipt and fill a bag with apples from the orchard or pre-picked bins. Pre-order here: wunschfarms.com/pre-orders

This program addresses food insecurity by helping ensure food pantries are stocked with healthy produce, supports local agriculture, and makes sure that no good apples go to waste.

10/13/2026

Now THAT’S a lot of pears! Food Rescue volunteers recently helped bring in a record pear harvest at Sayler Farms , gleaning an incredible 9,000 pounds of fresh pears that were distributed to 70 food pantries across Northern Michigan.

A huge thank you to our wonderful volunteers who made it happen, and to Sayler Farms for welcoming us back to glean their orchards and put this beautiful fruit to good use.

Thanks to UpNorthLive for coming out to share the story! upnorthlive.com/news/local/record-pear-harvest-sends-9000-pounds-to-70-pantries-across-northern-michigan

10/12/2026

Happy Indigenous Peoples' Day! The Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians has long been a leader in supporting food access and local agriculture in our community. Because of their leadership, and commitment to partner with Food Rescue of Goodwill Northern Michigan, Groundwork Center, and the Northwest Food Coalition, locally grown fruits and vegetables are consistently available at every food pantry in the region.

In addition to their leadership in food sovereignty, the GTB are leaders in environmental stewardship. By protecting our local waterways and ecosystems, their efforts will ensure food for future generations.

Please see their post below on events for today as well as their video on the history of the GTB.

Miigwetch

Take time today to learn more about the history of the Grand Traver...

10/12/2026

Since we started in 2008, Food Rescue has saved 1.2 BILLION gallons of water - enough to fill half the Boardman Lake. Water is a precious resource, but is a resource that is wasted with every pound of food that ends up in the landfill. Think of all the water needed to grow produce, feed livestock, and produce the other foods we need.

On another note, half a lake missing would create some challenges. Traverse Area Community Sailing sailors might need some muck boots. TART Trails can you move your brand-new beautiful trail?

10/10/2026

Want to help Food Rescue?

Volunteer at a local food pantry or meal program! Help sort rescued food and get it to neighbors.

Reach out to your nearest food pantry or meal program to volunteer:
northwestmifoodcoalition.org/find-food

10/09/2026

Congratulations to our friends at 5loaves2fish on receiving an Impact 100 TC
grant! We know firsthand what an extraordinary vote of confidence it is to be selected by the women of Impact100.

Last year, Food Rescue was honored to receive a grant to help fund our new produce cooler, a transformational investment in getting more fresh fruits and vegetables to neighbors across our region. We're thrilled to see 5Loaves2Fish receive this support. As a Food Rescue partner, their team turns rescued food into hundreds of meals each week, served with no questions asked at nine meal sites for neighbors experiencing food insecurity and homelessness.

Congratulations to the entire 5Loaves2Fish team! We cannot wait to see what this grant makes possible.