Community Impact

At the heart of The Junior League of Gainesville’s mission is improving our community. For over 80 years, our 450+ volunteers have continued to positively impact the Gainesville community. From serving underprivileged children and families during holidays at Miracle on Main Street, to encouraging healthy eating habits in children through Kids in the Kitchen, the Junior League of Gainesville is invested in developing long term initiatives and programs that meet the ever-changing needs of our community.

After an in-depth study conducted by the IBCI Task Force in 2016, food insecurity was identified as a major concern for many families throughout Alachua County. In North Central Florida, 17.9% of families are food-insecure and 1 in 4 children go to bed hungry each night. Because the JLG is invested in changing these statistics for the better, our community programs and partners will be focused on combating hunger issues facing Alachua County over the next five years. The Junior League of Gainesville is committed to providing food and resources to area children to reduce the number of food insecure families and hungry children in Alachua County.

How can you help?

  1. Join the League! We are working with several community partners to deliver woman-powered volunteerism and resources to programs that are already tackling food insecurity in Alachua County.
  2. Make a pledge to our annual fund! This fund is used to directly support our mission of promoting voluntarism, developing the potential of women, and improving the Gainesville community through the effective action and leadership of trained volunteers.
  3. Donate food items! Community partners accept food donations directly — Food4Kids BackPack Program and Bread of the Mighty Food Bank — are accepting food donations for local families. Some items that our local food pantries always need include:
    • peanut butter
    • boxes of instant oatmeal packets
    • canned fruit in juice
    • canned vegetables
    • canned beans
    • low-sodium soups, stews
    • canned tuna in water
    • canned chicken
    • rice, quinoa, pasta
    • nuts and seeds
    • shelf stable milk and milk substitutes
    • low-sodium pasta sauce
    • popcorn (microwave or loose kernels)
    • apple sauce
    • olive or canola oil
    • chicken, beef and vegetable broths and stock