Volunteers and Food Donations are Needed for Tutu’s Pantry

Founded by a Thurgood Marshall family in 2009, Tutu’s Pantry provides Thurgood Marshall families in need with backpacks of food sent home with students at the end of each week. Led by family volunteers, Tutu’s partners with TME families, community members, and organizations around Seattle to stock the pantry with food donations to help fill our families’ kitchens and provide snacks to classrooms. To accomplish this, Tutu’s relies heavily on donations and on family volunteers.

For the 2024/25 school year, we are looking for parents who are available from 2 to 4 hours per week for packing bags on Wednesdays or Thursdays and bag delivery to classrooms on Friday afternoons. We also need a TME family member(s) with a child in 3rd grade or below to transition into the coordination role for the pantry for the 2025/26 school year; this role is approximately 5 to 10 hours per week on average, both behind the scenes and at the school.

If you are able to fill any of the above roles and/or if you have connections at any community resource/organization for food or financial donations to the Pantry.

Tutu’s Pantry Donations support over 51 families with backpacks filled with food every Friday.  Food supplies for the pantry are down and we are seeking donations of the following items:

• Jam & jelly
• Canned goods
• Dry pasta: spaghetti, penne, and elbows
• White rice, bags or microwave packs
• Pasta sauce of any kind in all sizes
• Cereal, boxes and single serve packs
• Condiments, ketchup & mayonnaise
• Cooking sprays & oils
• Halal & Kosher foods
• Peanut butter, almond butter, and sun butter

If you are able to donate, please bring unopened, non-expired shelf-stable donations to the school office.

Thank you for your donations!