MEDFORD, Ore. – Any given Thursday, hunger or the fear of it keeps folks in Jackson County waiting up to an hour for a food box from the Teresa McCormick Center.

“It speaks volumes to the need and how desperate people are,” says Amy Belkin, Executive Director of the Teresa McCormick Center, a nonprofit supported by Harry & David and its parent company, 1-800-FLOWERS.

“We get people calling us, and they’ll be seniors maybe, and say, ‘I’ve never needed help in my life, but I could just use some extra food.’ And we say, ‘Please come and we will help you in every way we possibly can.’”

“Every way we possibly can” goes way beyond food. The Teresa McCormick Center, a nonprofit partner of Oregon Community Foundation, offers a clothing closet, free tax filings, emergency assistance and even refurbished bicycles. Belkin says the breadth of services reflects the gaps in the community’s social safety net.

“We weren’t doing anything with bicycles … and then we realized, people really need transportation. It’s a huge issue. They’re on foot trying to get to work, or trying to land a job, or trying to get their kids where they need to go. We try to be responsive to what people need while remaining in our wheelhouse and true to our mission which is to help people in need.”

The Teresa McCormick Center is named for the Harry & David employee who noticed 20 years ago that some of her fellow workers could not afford the closed toed shoes required to work in the plant. Teresa McCormick led a shoe drive that generated 700 pairs, then kept finding ways to help until she died suddenly in 2007. Harry & David honored her by creating the Center, which now serves anyone in Jackson County.

Dee Anne Everson knew Teresa and helped found the Center.

“The impact of this ‘small but mighty’ staff has grown from this simple idea of providing shoes to people who needed them to a wide array of services,” says Everson, CEO/Executive Director of the United Way of Jackson County and a board member for Oregon Community Foundation. “And yet, that idea remains as powerful as ever: Listen to the needs of your community and step up to meet people where they are.”

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, demand for supplemental food boxes continues to grow in Jackson County. Most of the food the Teresa McCormick Center gives away is donated but Belkin says the organization has had to take the additional step of buying more. Two pallets can cost $5,000. With support from its donors, Oregon Community Foundation provided a grant in 2024 to cover the cost of four pallets.

Belkin says despite the many challenges, she is inspired by the 42 volunteers who keep the organization running. She says they sign up for shifts, arrange their vacations around the work and thank her for the opportunity to volunteer at the Teresa McCormick Center. All of this, Belkin hopes, would make the nonprofit’s namesake proud:

“I think she would have been embarrassed because she didn’t want something that was named after her. Yet, I think that she would just be amazed that what she started has grown into something that has become a lifeline for a lot of people.”