Our Story

Healing with Food + Love

Our Mission

Fostering health and healing with food and compassion.

Food For Thought is a nonprofit organization dedicated to meeting the nutrition needs of people living with serious medical conditions at risk of food insecurity.

 

What We Offer

  • Free Weekly Medically Tailored Groceries: Fresh produce, healthy proteins, nutritional supplements, and vitamins
  • Medically Tailored Prepared Meals: Prepared with care to meet each client’s individual dietary needs
  • Custom Meals: Each household chooses which groceries and meals based not only on medical needs but also personal and cultural preferences
  • Nutrition Counseling: Guidance from registered dieticians to help people navigate their new or existing medical conditions
 
Client Hans

Who We Serve

  • People living with HIV, cancer, diabetes, heart disease, and other serious medical conditions in Sonoma County
  • Pregnant mothers experiencing food insecurity and their families
  • Patients and clients of community partners who work with people facing homelessness, along with severe mental and/or physical health conditions.
 

How We Serve

  • Custom Pick Up Orders: Many clients come to us and “shop” for their custom orders in our food bank set up just like a local grocery store. 
  • Language Support: In house assistance in both English and Spanish. Translation services are also available for other languages.
  • Home Delivery: For those unable to leave their homes due to illness or lack of transportation we provide customized doorstep delivery of groceries.
  • Serving the Homeless: Easy to prepare meals for those living without shelter in partnership with Catholic Charities, West County Health Centers, Santa Rosa Community Health Centers, and Petaluma Health Center.
 

Get Involved

  • Volunteer: Join the over 700 volunteers that help deliver food, work in our food bank, tend to our organic garden, collect donations at a food drive, or help with various administrative tasks. 
  • Donate: Your generous support enables us to keep our services going.
  • Share: Inform people in your network about the meaningful work that Food For Thought is doing and how they can get involved.
 

Client Stories

  • Michael’s Story

    Michael’s Story

    Program:
    HIV Nutrition

    Long-time client and volunteer Michael appreciates the true sense of belonging and dignity that Food For Thought provides to people through its many services.  He first became aware of FFT, while working as a volunteer at Face to Face, an…

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  • David’s Story

    David’s Story

    Program:
    HIV Nutrition

    The entire team at FFT is just so wonderful. I really appreciate how present and engaged everyone is when working with clients. I am HIV positive and unable to work full-time, something that is required to make ends meet in…

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  • Hans’ Story

    Hans’ Story

    Program:
    Welcome Home

    We met Hans in spring 2019 when he was discharged from Sutter Santa Rosa Regional Hospital. A former truck driver, Hans has lived and worked in Sonoma County for many years, raising his daughter here as well. Life has had…

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Diversity Statement


APPROVED UNANIMOUSLY BY THE FOOD FOR THOUGHT BOARD OF DIRECTORS IN 2021:

At Food For Thought (FFT), we respect diverse life experiences and heritages, and we strive to practice diversity, equity, and inclusion at the center of our daily work. 

  • We believe that our workplace should reflect the rich diversity of the community we serve in Sonoma County, and it should be a place where everyone feels they truly belong.
  • We strive to support the health and healing of our clients by ensuring equitable access to our services.
  • We value the visible and invisible qualities that make each person unique.
  • We aim to engage diverse voices and perspectives in our decision making in all levels of the organization.

We acknowledge that the County we serve is unceded indigenous land and the historical wrongs which have caused and continue to cause injustice in opportunity, status and recognition of people who have been oppressed. We honor with gratitude the land itself and the Southern Pomo, Coast Miwok, and Wappo people who have stewarded this land throughout generations.