This post was written by my wonderful reader Gayle
I wanted to share something else that will help you stretch your grocery bill and save money as well as helping local churches and people in need. After losing my job, my husband and I were struggling and as everyone is aware, the job market is not so great. My grandmother told me about a program through her church called Angel Food Ministries.
The Angel Food program produces food packages for discount prices for people that need help with groceries. At first, we were skeptical because sometimes the quality of food from these programs is not top quality and we were not sure if we would like the products. So I signed up and we tried them for a few months. Boy were we surprised! Most of the food products are top quality (not always brand names) but often we find organic foods that people pay top dollar at health food stores and they taste great. Also there are specialty packages geared toward seniors, children, and people with food allergies.
Now, do not get me wrong, from time to time we will find something we do not like but the majority of the time we love the food in the packages. It is like anything else, you have to watch prices, quantity and make sure the contents of the package is geared toward your family’s needs.
My family (husband, daughter, and me) purchase the Bountiful Blessings box with a specialty box (chicken nuggets, produce, etc); this is usually around $61.00 and it includes meals for four plus many extras (we actually received 8 full meals, not 4). Comparing register receipts from Wal-mart, the items totaled up to $132.97, so we saved $71.97 in groceries for two weeks! The money we saved went towards stocking up on things like toilet tissue, shampoo, and non-food items.
The Angel Food program has menus right on the website that you can see all items included in the various packages, prices are posted, and they have great recipes to use with many of the products from the packages. You can find a location near you right on the website, which is usually distributed through a local church.
I wanted to share this with you so that you could inform your readers of the magnificent savings. That $71.97 (or whatever one may save) can be a good chunk towards paying debts, vacations, and more.
Gary says
I’ve ordered from them twice now. I have been impressed at the quality of the food for the price you pay. Such a great opportunity. They buy in bulk, can distribute much cheaper and bless people in the process.
They really go to much effort to ensure “no shame”. The only qualifying factor is that “you eat”. If you eat then you’re good to go. I’ve told all my friends.
robyn says
i looked in the area that we are moving to and they don’t have one but there are some where i live now they are great to bad they don’t have them in maine
Kelli says
Another wonderful program in my area (which I use in addition to Angel Food Ministries) is Treasure Box. You can get a box of food that will feed a family of 4 for a week for $32, plus they also have special boxes that rotate from month to month, such as the Kids Box and the Breakfast Box (also $32). So far they’re only in California and Arizona, plus I think they recently opened a site in Las Vegas.
Stacy says
Our church is a host site as well and our family was very involved with it for a long time. It isn’t meant just to help those who need assistance it is meant to help people. Any one for any reason is encouraged to use it. There aren’t limits to how much you can order so there is no reason for anyone to feel like they are taking from someone who may have financial issues. It isn’t an “assistance” program it is just another option you have to cut your costs. That said we have also found that sometimes the meat isn’t that great. Sometimes it is wonderful other times not as much. Do make sure the items would suit your family taste and if there are a few things in your box you wouldn’t use find somewhere to donate it where there really are people who are in need. Our church also does a food pantry people come to once a month by apt and can make a box of food for free. If there were ever things in our Angel Food box we wouldn’t eat we donated it to our “Sparrow’s Nest”
Candace says
“There are no qualifications, minimums, income restrictions, or applications.
Everyone is encouraged to participate. Some churches even encourage participants to apply the money they saved to help someone else in need.”
This is from their website!
Gerry says
Don’t forget, this is geared to helping people who aren’t able to pay for their groceries due to financial reasons. While we are all looking for ways to trim our food costs, you should only use this if you are truly in need of assistance.
Kelli says
This is *not* just for people in need… it’s for everyone who eats. In fact, the more people who use it, the more it guarantees that the program will stay in your local area.
Kerry L. says
Our church is a host site for Angel Food Ministries also. We have purchased it a few times ourselves. When my 2nd son was first born, we bought a box of the frozen meals (the Senior Box). Each meal was plenty of food (and pretty tasty) for myself and my then 2 year old son to split for lunch. It was so helpful to have prepared meals when I was too exhausted from having a newborn and a 2 year old!
Donna B says
My family has used Angel Food Ministries in the past. Sometimes the food is absolutely wonderful & other times the meat is fatty. The menu shanges slightly each month but it is a GREAT value (for the most part). You will never know how good/bad it is until you give it a try!
Becky says
Not sure about where you live, but I used to live in the Memphis area. The meat that came with this was really fatty and cooked away.
Kathie M says
I looked in my area (Kansas City) and the “bonus packs” included 4 pounds of steak (8 – 8oz) for $24. I thought that was really high since it’s supposed to be a service to help cut costs, I never spend $6/lb on meat unless it’s a special occasion and then I’d want to pick it out myself!