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Programs & Services
Our Accomplishments

Need up sharply in 2011:

In 2011, there was a dramatic rise in use of NSC Programs: 

- Food Pantry was up 9%, following an 8% rise in 2010.

- Clients served by our Case Managers was up 7.4% in 2011.

- NSC served well over 600 families, including 535 children & 120 elders.

In 2011, NSC provided:

2,258 separate visits to the Food Pantry - serving 4,820 people

Over 11,000 bags groceries to Natick residents

Over 100,000 pound of food to Natick residents

Over 200 families with housing and heating assistance

Over 400 children, teens, and elders with holiday gifts

125 children and adults with access to preventative dental care

233 backpacks full of back-to-school supplies 

620 people with Thanksgiving food baskets

Over 150 volunteers with a way to make a difference

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FOOD PANTRY

Top 10 Most Wanted Items

Cereal
Toilet Paper
Jelly
Hamburger Helper
Canned Fruit
Juice
Coffee & Tea
Tuna
Shampoo
Toothpaste

Health & Wellness:

The Living Well Project

A Behavioral Health & Intervention program for Natick Residents

 The Natick Service Council is pleased to announce “The Living Well Project”, a program, funded by local health foundations and designed to increase the penetration of evidence-based mental health and substance abuse screening and intervention programs for all Natick residents, especially older adults.

 The program, initially funded by the Foundation for MetroWest, received a substantial grant from the MetroWest Health Foundation to increase the program’s penetration within Natick.  We’re excited to partner the South Middlesex Opportunity Council (SMOC) and many town-wide Natick organizations on this project.  Further details to come in the near future!

Crisis Counseling

Case managers are available Monday through Friday from 9am – 5pm to provide support, information, and resources to anyone who is experiencing a crisis. This support is provided with the goal of assisting individuals to become safe and stable so that they can continue to progress toward their goals.

The Healthy Pantry Initiative

The Healthy Food Pantry Initiative is a partnership between NSC and the Natick Community Organic Farm (NCOF). The initiative aims to increase access to nutritious foods grown at the farm and distributed to clients of NSC’s Vi Tutuny Food Pantry. The initiative brings NCOF’s fresh, high-quality produce to Food Pantry clients through direct distribution of produce, appetizer-size tastings of high-nutrient vegetables, take-home nutritional information, and healthy cooking classes. We’re very excited to partner with NCOF on this new initiative.

 Mental Health

The Service Council is grateful for a recent $5,000 grant from Foundation for MetroWest to provide access to mental health care for low-income Natick residents who are uninsured or can’t afford insurance co-payments. 

This project is a collaboration with SMOC (Southern Middlesex Opportunity Council) in Framingham which is providing counseling through their licensed mental health clinicians. 

For more information call the Service Council at 508-655-1791. 

 

Obesity Prevention Program

 

Across the nation, obesity is a growing epidemic, especially among children. The NSC is taking a proactive stance in the community by offering key strategies, guidelines, and programs to increase awareness and prevent obesity, including:

  • Healthy cooking classes – for all NSC clients
  • Monthly health recipe initiative – volunteers provide healthy recipes and donate all of the necessary ingredients.
  • Health Education – healthy eating and exercise material is provided to clients