About Us

Loaves & Fishes Food Pantry exists to provide food assistance to families and individuals in need in Charlottesville and surrounding communities. 1 in 6 people in Charlottesville struggle with hunger. This struggle can take many forms – families may not be able to afford adequate food and so family members may skip meals, or they may have to choose between food and other important expenses such as housing, utilities or medical bills.

This is where Loaves & Fishes steps in. By providing groceries once per month to low-income families, we help low-income households stretch their food budgets further as they try to get on their feet financially.

We work with many area partners including: student groups, scout troops, church groups, the United Way and others. We are also the largest partner of the Charlottesville branch of the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank.

History:

Although Loaves & Fishes came into existence as a corporate entity in 2011, it first began as an outreach ministry of Charlottesville’s First United Methodist Church in 2004. In 2011, with a desire to build on broader partnerships across the community, Loaves & Fishes incorporated as a Virginia corporation, and received our 501(c)(3) status from the IRS. In January 2012, we relocated to Greenbrier Drive in Albemarle County to be able to better serve our expanding client base and to include space for refrigeration equipment.

In June 2013, we added our first full-time employee, an Executive Director, to provide oversight to our program and to help us build capacity.

Executive Director

Margaret McNett Burruss

Board of Directors