CHOP Updates

Logan’s Christmas for the Children Giving Campaign took place during the 2021 holiday season. The campaign was held in memory of Logan Abbott, who tragically lost his life in a motor vehicle accident on July 21, 2021. The Abbott Family approached Child Hunger Outreach Partners to set up a memorial fund in memory of Logan. The donations received were designated specifically to help provide Christmas gifts to children within our community.

In the past, leading up to each Christmas, Logan would work with local agencies independently to assure local children woke up to gifts under their tree. With a list in hand, Logan would shop, wrap and deliver the gifts back to the agencies or directly to the families, often delivering right up to Christmas Eve.

CHOP is honored that the Abbott Family selected the organization to help continue the legacy of Logan’s generosity. During the 2021 holiday season, CHOP was able to provide gifts for five local families within Bradford County, including 11 children.    

Logan had a huge heart, and it is with great hope that this fund will continue to support local children for years to come. The family of Logan Abbott wishes to thank all those that donated, and for their continued community support.

Child Hunger Outreach Partners (CHOP) is honored to be the recipient of Scooter’s Food Drive that will run Feb. 14 through March 18, 2022. Funds and non-perishable food items collected during the drive will benefit CHOP’s programs, including In-School Pantries, the Backpack Program, Pop Up Pantries and Summer Meal Program.

Bill Joseph Snyder, III, known as Scooter to many, was deeply dedicated to the community, including to Stuff The Bus, which helps CHOP collect nonperishable food each fall.

“Dani Ruff, of CHOP, identified the winter months as being their slowest donation time. We wanted to carry on with something that was so important to Bill, had a list of people that he wanted to memorialize with a food drive, now we will hold this one for him. We hope that future food drives will honor both Bill and someone from his list.”

“Scooter’s involvement in Stuff The Bus was vital to the success of the event,” shared Dani Rufh, CHOP CEO and Founder. “We are deeply saddened by the loss of Scooter, but are all simply better for knowing him.”

Donations of nonperishable good will be accepted at drop boxes at each of  the following businesses:

• Jones’ Store in Warren Center, Pa.
• Friendship Star Quilt Shop and FWF Wellness in Sayre, Pa.
• Oalmer Manufactured Homes in Waverly, N.Y.
• Ad Graphics in Milan, Pa.
• Western Alliance Emergency Services in Troy, Pa.
• The Hair Mill and Wysox Merchant Center in Wysox, Pa.

Online donations are also being accepted as part of the drive and can be made by clicking here.

If a business or organization would like to be a donation drop-off site or if anyone would like to volunteer to help with Scooter’s Food Drive, contact Liz Terwilliger at 570-731-0822 or email.

Child Hunger Outreach Partners (CHOP) will be hosting Purse Lotto during the month of February to help raise funds for our programs.

“I got the idea from purse bingos that I see organizations do. Our service area is so large, and I wanted to be able to include everyone, so we went with a virtual model. Now, I have people from all over the country participating!” said Dani Ruhf, Executive Director/Founder.

Tickets are 2 for $25, with no cap on ticket purchases. All proceeds stay local to help children through our Backpack Program, In-School Pantries, Summer Meals and Pop Up Pantries.

Live drawings begin Feb. 1 and are held daily all month long. Non-local winners will have their purse shipped to them.

To look at the purses, visit the Purse Lotto Facebook group. Winners will be posted nightly in the group.

To purchase tickets for the event, visit www.chopouthunger.org/take-action/purse-lotto/ 

“The majority of our funding comes from grants, but we use the purse lotto money to fill in the gaps or to run programs that pop up, or to bring on new schools quickly before funding has been established.  We can feed a child for a month for $5 so every purse lotto ticket equates to five children,” said Ruhf.

Child Hunger Outreach Partners (CHOP) will be hosting the first annual Cornhole Tournament on February 20 at Keystone College. The event proceeds will help to fund CHOP’s programs, including In-School Pantries and Backpack Program.

The fun-filled event is open to teams and singles. All single players will be paired with another single registrant to make a team for the tournament. The cost is $25 for single players and $50 for teams. 

Cash prizes will be awarded to first ($300), second ($200) and third ($100) place winners. 

Click here to register.
Click here to learn more about sponoship opportunities

Child Hunger Outreach Partners is grateful to our corporate partner, Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield. With the help of their generous grant, CHOP will be able to open a new In-School Pantry in Sullivan County High School.

The In-School Pantry will provide nutritious snacks and to-go meals during the school day for all students. By being available to the full student body, we are able to reduce the stigma associated with food insecurity, and teens who are experiencing food insecurity can easily access items that they can use throughout the day, and take home.

“We simply could not do the work that we do without the dedicated support of community partners, like Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield,” said Dani Ruhf, CHOP Executive Director and Founder.

To learn more about CHOP’s programs, click here.

After recently going through a mod change in their stores, Dandy Mini Marts was kind enough to palletize their unused food and deliver it as an in-kind donation to Child Hunger Outreach Partners (CHOP) for redistribution through children’s programs in nine Pennsylvania counties.

Child Hunger Outreach Partners (CHOP) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit that, in just three years, has been able to combat child hunger for more than 15,000 children all across Northeastern Pennsylvania, with the ambition to add another 9,000 by the year’s end.

“We’re just happy to continue to partner with you over the years! The stores worked hard to pull the products for donation, and it was important to them knowing that it was all being done for a great cause,” shared Bill Bustin, Dandy Marketing Director. 

“As always, CHOP is beyond appreciative and thankful for all the help local businesses, like Dandy, provide. Without them, our ability to continuously seek expansion in an effort to do all we can to accomplish our mission of putting an end to U.S. child hunger,” said Dani Ruhf, CHOP CEO & Executive Director.

CHOP relies on volunteers and community partners to meet the local need. You can help by lending your time to pack and distribute food boxes at a pop-up pantry or making a monetary donation. Whatever action looks like for you, it has a ripple effect within the young lives in our communities!
To learn more, find food or support CHOP, visit www.chopouthunger.org or call (570)485-5050.

Child Hunger Outreach Partners is honored to announce that the Central Maryland Chamber of Commerce (CMC) recently announced that CHOP Maryland is the 2021 Business Partner of the Year during the 2021 Community Awards.

We know that this award is the result of the team commitment of our team and our network of volunteers and partners!

Stephanie Clark – Program Manager of Wyoming and Susquehanna Counties, PA

We are saddened to announce that Stephanie Clark is relocating. In her short time at CHOP, she: grew the program from one county to three counties, built a large, solid volunteer base that supports our operations today, led a warehouse relocation and expansion, and fed over 1,000 children each weekly.

We are so thankful for all that she has dedicated to CHOP and our communities. She is an irreplaceable member of our team and we’ll miss her terribly.

We are excited to Nick Montoro, Development Associate

Nick Montoro joined the team on June 1 as Development Associate. As a recent graduate of Temple University, Nick will be leading events, marketing, and donor relations for CHOP.

“After four years of undergrad at Temple University, my experiences have allowed me to uncover a strong personal desire to serve others.

Upon graduating this past May and finally beginning my professional career, I like to introduce myself as an extremely motivated young philanthropist striving to make a positive impact on the lives of many!

I am extremely grateful and honored to take my first career step with Child Hunger Outreach Partners. The mission is something that really hits home and aligns with all my professional and personal values of service.

I truly look forward to getting started with the team and integrating myself into their amazing community.”

Click here to see the full CHOP Team.