Greetings GiveMNians! Are YOU ready to give to the max??? Give to the max day is the single day each year when GiveMN.org challenges folks to donate online to their favorite Minnesota charity. Last year, over 38,000 donors set a new 24 hour giving record by donating more than $14 million dollars to 3,434 different Minnesota non-profits.
Join in this year's challenge and donate to CAER food shelf this November 16th! Remember for every $1 you donate, CAER can use its purchasing power to acquire $9 worth of food through places like Second Harvest. Cash is a powerful tool in our fight against hunger. Join us in the fight today by simply donating online!
Extra Incentives....
GiveMN.org is going to give a $15,000 grand prize to the top money raising nonprofits in the Twin Cities. PLUS - throughout the 24 hour event, an individual donor will be randomly chosen every hour to have $1,000 added to their donation.
To Donate - Click Above
10/16/2011 - CAER Spaghetti Dinner from 4 to 7 PM
The CAER Spaghetti Dinner will be held on Sunday, 10/16/11, at the Church of St. Andrew at 566 4th St. in Elk River.
-------------------- We will serve from 4 to 7 p.m. Cost is $6 per ticket ($4 for kids under age 4)
Take out is available too! --------------------
The event includes: SILENT AUCTION featuring many theme baskets BAKE SALE Entertainment GREAT DOOR PRIZES! Fill out the back of your ticket for a free chance to win!
All proceeds benefit the CAER Food Shelf providing emergency food in Elk River, Otsego and Zimmerman. This event is co-sponsored by Sherburne County Chapter of Thrivent Financial for Lutherans.
10/9/2011 Elk River Crop Walk at Lions Park CROP Hunger Walks help children and families worldwide -- and right here in the U.S. -- to have food for today, while building for a better tomorrow. The annual Elk River Crop Walk will be held on Sunday, October 9, 2011 at Lions Park in Elk River.
Registration will begin at 3:30 p.m. with the walk starting at 4:00 p.m. Walkers may choose between two routes of differing lengths. A cookout will follow for a free will donation. Churches may participate in a friendly competition collecting non-perishable items for CAER. A percentage of the funds raised from the CROP Walk are given to CAER.
If you have questions, please contact Pastor Terry at 763-441-2555.
2011 Summer Kidz Kitz (6/13 - 9/2)
Kidz Kitz are available from CAER throughout the summer to help meet the need for additional food to feed school-aged children. The Kidz Kitz include food for breakfast and lunch for approximately 5 days. This year the program will run from June 13th thru September 2nd .
The kitz vary, but may include items such as bread, peanut butter, jelly, cereal, crackers, microwave meals, sandwiches, veggies, fruits, milk, and other breakfast/lunch items. Clients will be asked to check in at the CAER front desk each week to receive Kidz Kitz!! Clients are asked to make their request for Kidz Kitz at least one hour before we closed - just like a normal food order.
CAER would be interested in receiving donations of kid-friendly, nutritional items to include in these kits. In 2010, we supplied 250 - 300 children per week so your financial donations for this program would be much appreciated. Kidz Kitz sponsored in part by a grant from the Three Rivers Community Foundation. We are also in need of volunteers to help pack the kits. If you are interested in volunteering and / or have a youth group to participate please contact Gretch at 763.441.1020
Did you know?Within the 12 schools in Elk River, Otsego & Zimmerman, the average enrollment of children in the free and reduced program is almost 28% of the student body. With more than one fourth of our local children no longer able to access these meals through school, the issue of hungry children becomes alarmingly high during the summer.
2011 School Supply Drive
Our School Supply Drive is underway and distribution is slated to begin August 15, 2011. In 2010, a record 610 sets were provided to kids in grades K-12!!
For our School Supply Kits in 2011, we need (please deliver to CAER): • Backpacks (no wheels) • Washable or Permanent Markers • Erasers • Mechanical Pencils • Highlighters • 3-ring binders • Red Pens • Pencil Boxes • Scissors (blunt & sharp) • Glue • Kleenex • Colored Pencils • Protractors • Black/Blue Pens • Crayons • Pencils • Folders • Glue/Glue Sticks • Watercolors
JULY "Open Your Heart" Challenge
Open Your Heart to the Hungry and Homeless is kicking off its 2nd annual $100,000 food shelf challenge grant.
The recession has impacted more than half of the nation?s working adults, pushing them into unemployment, pay cuts, reduced hours. CAER is dedicated to serving our community and meeting the growing needs with dignity and kindness, but we need your help to continue to meet the need.
This summer CAER is providing weekly "kidz kitz" to families with school-age children in an effort to ensure that kids aren't going hungry during the summer break from school. In addition, CAER will be providing school supplies to ensure that our community's children are prepared to learn. Just one more way that we provide more than just a full tummy. We provide hope. Join us with your gift today and help us continue our mission.
For every $1 you donate, CAER can use its purchasing power to acquire $9 worth of food through places like Second Harvest. Cash is a powerful tool in our fight against hunger. Thank you for joining us in the fight by sending us a donation in the month of July!
CAER Classic Golf Tournament- 6/22 6/29/2011 SIGN UP TO PLAY TODAY!! The 4th Annual CAER Classic has been re-scheduled for June 29, 2011 (due to a soggy course on the original date) at Riverwood National Golf Course. This 4th annual tournament will again include light lunch, golf, cart, dinner, silent / live auctions, raffles, games, prizes and more!! Register for the 2011 by clicking here.
PLEASE contact CAER if you've registered previously and the new tournament date will not work for you or your group.
Paul Martin is the 2011 Golf Tournament Title Sponsor!
This is your opportunity to have a great time while also benefiting the CAER food shelf. CAER provides emergency services such as food and financial assistance to more than 1,500 families from the communities of Elk River, Otsego, Zimmerman, Big Lake and Becker.
At this time CAER is seeking sponsors and donations for our raffles, and silent & live auctions. These donations are crucial to our fundraising efforts at these events! Perhaps you have a hobby or craft? Maybe you make bird houses, quilts, bean bag toss games, jewelry or you have some other talent. Please consider sharing your talent as a donation for one of our fundraisers. CAER is also seeking donations and sponsorship money from businesses as well. Items such as gift cards, merchandise, etc. CAER is a 501 (c) 3 non profit, and all donations are tax deductible as allowed by law. Want to be a corporate sponsor? Get more info and sign up online by clicking here.
Get ALL the tournament details including sign-up and sponsorship info by clicking here!
Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive - 5/14/2011Each year the National Association of Letter Carriers holds the nation's largest food drive to combat hunger and in 2011, the drive was conducted on Saturday, May 14. On that day, letter carriers collected non-perishable donations from homes as they delivered mail along their postal routes. In 2011, they collected over 9,000 lbs of food for CAER!! Thanks for filling up your "stamp out hunger" food bag and giving it to your postal carrier.
Our goal for 2011 is to collect 100,000 pounds of food/dollars during the largest food drive in the state of Minnesota. It is estimated that 14% of Minnesotans do not have enough food to feed their families. Please help support CAER and fight hunger in our area.
Want to hold a cash or food drive? Please call Jenny at CAER 763 441-1020 for more information, posters, etc.
And remember that for every $10 you donate, CAER can provide 36 meals to those in need!
PLUS donations made during March are partially matched with funds from the statewide campaign!
GREAT NEWS! CAER collected over 128,000 lbs of food/dollars during the 2011 March Campaign so THANK YOU!
Lake Orono Shiver Plunge - February 12th at 10 AM
$1815 was raised at the Plunge in 2011....special thanks to all those who sponsored plungers and of course to the plungers who dared the cold!
Brrrr! Take a dip in Lake Orono and benefit your favorite charity
Check in begins at 9:00 a.m. The first plunge is at 10:00 a.m.
This year, a team of 4 Plungers from the Elk River Bank will be taking a dip to benefit CAER - Dusty Bredlow, business banker; John Babcock, bank president and CEO; Kevin Strobel, manager of the bank's Zimmerman office; and Michelle Thatcher, loan analyst. Contact the ER Chamber of Commerce at 763-441-3110 to sponsor one of these plungers today!
Want to take the plunge? Register to be a Shiver Plunge plunger, sign up to take the dip, and then collect pledges for CAER. The first year, 100% of the funds raised will be given to the charity designated. Each Plunger must raise at least $100 in pledges. If you are pledging a Plunger, Thank You!!! Contact the Chamber of Commerce and we will add your pledge to any non-profit you choose or a specific plunger.
Minnesota Give To The MAX Day (11/16/2010)
Greeings GiveMNians! Are YOU ready to give to the max??? Give to the max day is the single day each year when GiveMN.org challenges folks to donate online to their favorite Minnesota charity. Last year, over 38,000 donors set a new 24 hour giving record by donating more than $14 million dollars to 3,434 different Minnesota non-profits.
Join in this year's challenge and donate to CAER food shelf this November 16th! Remember for every $1 you donate, CAER can use its purchasing power to aquire $9 worth of food through places like Second Harvest. Cash is a powerful tool in our fight against hunger. Join us in the fight today by simply donating online!
Extra Incentives....
GiveMN.org is going to give a $20,000 and $10,000 grand prize to the top two nonprofits in the Twin Cities and the top two nonprofits in Greater Minnesota that attrat the largest number of individual donors on Give to the Max Day. PLUS - throughout the 24 hour event, an individual donor will be randomly chosen every hour to have $1,000 added to their donation.
Pack The Jerry For CAER (10/15/2010)
Elk River High School is giving back to the community and setting a great example for other schools by holding a food drive during this week’s home football game. It is Elk River’s second annual football food drive for CAER Food Shelf.
The Elks will play host to Buffalo on Friday night (10/15/2010); the field is named after former athletic director Jerry Schempf and is affectionately known as “The Jerry.” Friday’s event is being billed as a “Pack The Jerry Food Drive for CAER (Community Aid Elk River).”
Football fans are being asked to bring donations of food to Friday’s game. Students bringing donations will be admitted for only $2 and all fans are encouraged to wear red. The event is sponsored by Elks Football, Elks Youth Football and CAER.
CAER Spaghetti Dinner-Sunday,10/10/10, from 11:30-5
The CAER Spaghetti Dinner will be held on Sunday, 10/10/10, at the Church of St. Andrew at 566 4th St. in Elk River.
We will serve from 11:30 to 5 p.m.
Take out AND Delivery services available during those hours. Call 441-2750 for delivery. ($2 charge per address)
The event includes: SILENT AUCTION featuring many theme baskets BAKE SALE Entertainment GREAT DOOR PRIZES! Fill out the back of your ticket for a free chance to win!
September "Open Your Heart" Challenge
Open Your Heart to the Hungry and Homeless provided a new approach to Hunger Awareness Month (September) with a $100,000 food shelf challenge grant.
The recession has impacted more than half of the nation’s working adults, pushing them into unemployment, pay cuts, reduced hours. CAER is dedicated to serving our community and meeting the growing needs with dignity and kindness, but we need your help to continue to meet the need.
For every $1 you donate, CAER can use its purchasing power to aquire $9 worth of food through places like Second Harvest. Cash is a powerful tool in our fight against hunger. Thank you for joining us in the fight by sending us a donation in the month of September!
Summer Kidz Kitz
Kidz Kitz were available from CAER throughout the summer to help meet the need for additional food to feed school-aged children. The Kidz Kitz included food for breakfast and lunch for approximately 5 days. We completed the program on Friday, 9/3/10.
The kitz varied, but may have included items such as bread, peanut butter, jelly, cereal, crackers, microwave meals, sandwiches, veggies, fruits, milk, etc. Clients were asked to check in at the CAER front desk each week to receive Kidz Kitz!! Clients were asked to make their request for Kidz Kitz at least one hour before we closed - just like a normal food order.
CAER would be interested in receiving donations of kid-friendly, nutritional items to include in these kits. We supplied 250 - 300 children per week so your financial donations for this program would be much appreciated. We also were in need of volunteers to help pack the kits. If you are interested in volunteering and / or have a youth group to participate please contact Gretch at 763.441.1020
School Supply Drive
Our School Supply Drive is complete for 2010. Thank you for your support! A record 610 sets were provided to kids in grades K-12!!
For our School Supply Kits in 2010, we needed: • Backpacks (no wheels) • Washable or Permanent Markers • Erasers • Mechanical Pencils • Highlighters • 3-ring binders • Red Pens • Pencil Boxes • Scissors (blunt & sharp) • Glue • Kleenex • Colored Pencils • Protractors • Black/Blue Pens • Crayons • Pencils • Folders • Glue/Glue Sticks • Watercolors
Community Aid Elk River (CAER) food shelf hosted a hilarious fundraiser on Sunday, July 18th at the Sherburne County Fairgrounds. The 2nd annual Cow-A-Bunga Bingo Raffle was an "udder" success and we raised about $3,800!
A large 1200 square grid (each square is 2 feet by 2 feet) was painted on the field. At 4 PM, two well-fed cows took to the field to dropo a cow pie drops. Bessie deposited her "donation" in 12 minutes and LaDonna won the grand prize of $1000! For more information and to see photos of the 2010 event, click HERE.
THANKS to all who bought a raffle ticket (or two!) and to the volunteers who helped at the fairgrounds all week.
CAER Classic Golf Tournament- 6/23/2010 Thanks to all who donated or participated in the 3rd Annual CAER Classic Golf Tournament! It was held on June 23rd, 2010 at Riverwood National Golf Course in Otsego. It was a very successful event to help raise $13,500 for CAER - - and the 100 golfers only got a LITTLE wet! New Jersey Devil's Star and Elk River native, Paul Martin, was in the action again this year. JON ENGEN from BOB radio hosted with his trademark humor. Check out the photos of the 2010 Event by clicking here.
4/25/2010 Elk River Crop Walk CROP Hunger Walks help children and families worldwide -- and right here in the U.S. -- to have food for today, while building for a better tomorrow. The annual Elk River Crop Walk was held on Sunday, April 25th, 2010.
Each area church had a grocery cart designated for them to fill with food donations for CAER. THANK YOU to all who gave so generously as the grand total was almost 6,700 pounds of food!! We must say "Thanks a TON...or two!" to The Crossing who brought us over 2 tons of food in a dumptruck!
THANK YOU!! CAER's donation total for MN FoodShare: 106,910 lbs & dollars!! CAER's goal for 2010 was to raise 85,000 lbs/dollars in the month of March PLUS...The Postal Service brought in over 12,000 pounds during STAMP OUT HUNGER!!
Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive - 5/8/2010Each year the National Association of Letter Carriers holds the nation’s largest food drive to combat hunger and in 2010, the drive was conducted on Saturday, May 8. On that day, letter carriers collected non-perishable donations from homes as they delivered mail along their postal routes. This year they collected over 12,000 lbs of food for CAER!! Thank you to the postal carriers and all those who so generously contributed.
4/10/09 - From now through December 31st, the Healing Choices therapy center in Elk River will be offering 60 minute massages by a certified therapist to raise money for CAER. The massage costs $35 ($5 of which will be donated to CAER). In order to receive the donations, clients must present this massage certificate at their appointment.
4/8/09 - Thank you to everyone for helping to make our March Food Campaign such a success. Our goal for this year was to collect 83,000 pounds of food/dollars and we surpassed that goal collecting a total of 84,632! Thank you for supporting CAER and fighting hunger in our area.
Click on the PDF icon below to get all the detail regarding this campaign!
For the 12th consecutive year, Alan Shawn Feinstein will divide $1 million among hunger fighting agencies nationwide using it to help them raise funds during March and April, 2009.
The Elk River Cropwalk is now online. Just click here for more information on how you can help fight hunger both across the world and locally. 25% of all proceeds collected will be donated directly to CAER.
CAER extends a very heartfelt THANK YOU, to all the sponsors, participants, and wonderful volunteers who helped make the inaugural CAER Classic Golf Tournament such a great day! Approximately $13,000 was raised to support CAER’s mission to strive to ensure that no one in our community goes to bed hungry or without basic needs. Thank you all, and we look forward to seeing you all again next year.
NOTE - the 2009 CAER Classic tournament has been set for June 24, 2009. Click here for more information.
CAER is a registered 501(c)3 non-profit. All contributions are tax deductible (as allowed by law).
