Illinois Valley Family Coalition

12/02/2025

Thank You, Grocery Outlet & Our Community!

A huge thank you to Grocery Outlet for welcoming us into the store for our IVFC outreach bagging event! We appreciate the chance to connect with shoppers and share more about the services we offer. 🛒

And thank you to everyone who paused to hear our quick spiel, ask questions, or chat with us. Your interest helps us get the word out about resources available here in the Illinois Valley, and we’re glad we had the chance to talk with so many of you.

We appreciate you, Illinois Valley! 💙

────────────────────────────────────────

¡Gracias, Grocery Outlet y a Nuestra Comunidad!

Muchas gracias a Grocery Outlet de Cave Junction por recibirnos en la tienda durante nuestro evento de alcance comunitario de IVFC. Agradecemos la oportunidad de conectar con los clientes y compartir más sobre los servicios que ofrecemos. 🛒

Y gracias a todas las personas que se detuvieron a escuchar nuestra breve presentación, hacer preguntas o conversar con nosotros. Su interés nos ayuda a difundir la información sobre los recursos disponibles aquí en el Valle de Illinois, y nos alegró poder hablar con tantos de ustedes.

¡Apreciamos a nuestra comunidad del Valle de Illinois! 💙

11/29/2025

Community Prepared & Empowered! 💪

Over the past three weekends, IVFC staff and several community members participated in the IV CERT- Illinois Valley Community Emergency Response Team Disaster Preparedness Training- and WOW, what an incredible experience!

A huge thank you to the IV CERT team for offering this free, hands-on training and for helping make our valley stronger and more resilient.

Throughout the course, we learned and practiced essential emergency skills, including:
⚡ Disaster Preparedness
🔥 Fire Safety & Suppression
⛑️ Disaster Medical & First Aid
🩺 Triage Procedures
🔦 Light Search & Rescue
📡 Radio Communications
🧠 Disaster Psychology

We’re grateful to have trained alongside our community, local partners, and volunteers who care deeply about keeping the Illinois Valley safe. 💛


━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
¡Comunidad Preparada y Empoderada! 💪

Durante los últimos tres fines de semana, el personal de IVFC y varios miembros de la comunidad participaron en la capacitación de Preparación para Desastres de IV CERT – Illinois Valley Community Emergency Response Team, ¡y WOW, qué experiencia tan increíble!

Un enorme gracias al equipo de IV CERT por ofrecer esta capacitación gratuita y práctica, y por ayudarnos a hacer que nuestro valle sea más fuerte y más resiliente.

A lo largo del curso, aprendimos y practicamos habilidades esenciales para emergencias, incluyendo:
⚡ Preparación para Desastres
🔥 Seguridad y Supresión de Incendios
⛑️ Tratamiento Médico y Primeros Auxilios
🩺 Procedimientos de Triaje
🔦 Búsqueda y Rescate Liviano
📡 Comunicaciones por Radio
🧠 Psicología en Desastres

Estamos muy agradecidos de haber entrenado junto a nuestra comunidad, socios locales y voluntarios que se preocupan profundamente por mantener segura a la Illinois Valley. 💛

11/27/2025

🎉 Winter Magic Festival is back! ❄️✨
Join us on Saturday, December 13th, from 1–5pm (drop in anytime!) for a joyful afternoon of crafting, cider-sipping, photo-taking, and community connection at Healthy U.

We’re inviting children and families to experience the joy of giving this holiday season by creating handmade gifts and decorations.

🌿 Nature-based ornament making
🖍️ Holiday greeting card stamping
📸 Seasonal family photo booth
🍎 Hand-pressed hot apple cider from local apples
🎨 Face painting
🧸 Play area for littles

Sliding scale $5–15 per person, kids under 3 free, and no one turned away.

All proceeds support All Around Kids Community Preschool, providing sliding-scale tuition for local families who need high-quality early childhood care.

Let’s make magic together. 💫

11/24/2025

11/19/2025

💙 Join Us This Saturday at Grocery Outlet! 💙
We’re excited to spend the afternoon connecting with our community during our IVFC Outreach Bagging Event at Grocery Outlet in Cave Junction!

🛒 Saturday, 12:00–2:00 PM
Stop by, say hi, and let us bag your groceries while we share information about the programs and services available through the Illinois Valley Family Coalition. Every conversation helps us support more families in the Illinois Valley!

Our team will be there wearing blue and ready to spread kindness, answer questions, and connect with our neighbors.

We hope to see you there!

11/13/2025

The Illinois Valley Family Coalition (IVFC) is proud to partner with the Albertsons Companies Foundation to tackle hunger in our community! Thanks to a generous grant from their Nourishing Neighbors Program, IVFC can help more families access essential meal programs. We’re grateful to be part of the Nourishing Neighbors family and excited to make a difference!

11/13/2025

Please consider helping out our local Food & Friends location in Cave Junction 😊

Call (541) 955-8839 for more information

Want to make a difference with a hot meal and a smile? Food & Friends is looking for dining center volunteers! 😊🍴

🔹Ashland (Fri.)
🔸Central Point (Wed. & Fri.)
🔹Cave Junction (Mon. Wed. & Fri.)
🔸Jacksonville (Thurs.)
🔹Rogue River (Tues.)

For more information, please call either 541-734-9505 (Jackson County) or 541-955-8839 (Josephine County).

11/11/2025

Pop up food pantry is happening this evening, Tuesday 11/11, at IV Family Coalition 4:30-6:00pm 🥖🥕🍎
535 E. River St Cave Junction

11/07/2025

November SNAP benefits have been loaded onto EBT cards.

The federal government remains shut down, but ODHS was able to issue full November SNAP benefits. People in Oregon who receive SNAP will see 100% of their November benefit amount beginning on November 7, 2025.

Before going to the store, check your EBT card balance to make sure your benefits are available. Use only the official EBT Edge website or the EBT Edge mobile app (Apple or Android). ODHS does not guarantee the safety of any other EBT management websites or apps.
https://www.oregon.gov/odhs/news/Pages/snap-updates.aspx
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Los beneficios de SNAP de noviembre se han depositado en las tarjetas EBT.

Aunque el gobierno federal sigue cerrado, ODHS pudo mandar los beneficios completos de SNAP de noviembre. Las personas en Oregon que reciben SNAP verán el 100 % de sus beneficios de noviembre a partir del 7 de noviembre del 2025.

Antes de ir a una tienda, revise el saldo de su tarjeta EBT para asegurarse de que los beneficios estén disponibles. Use únicamente el sitio oficial EBT Edge o la aplicación móvil EBT Edge (Apple o Android). ODHS no garantiza la seguridad de otros sitios web o aplicaciones para administrar su tarjeta EBT.
https://www.oregon.gov/odhs/news/Pages/snap-updates.aspx

11/06/2025

🍎 Food Resources in the Illinois Valley

We’re sharing updated food pantry lists for both Josephine County and the Illinois Valley in the post below to help our community find local food support during this time.

Emergency Pop-Up Food Distributions During Government Shutdown:
🥫 Every Tuesday, 4:30–6:00 PM — at the Illinois Valley Family Coalition (535 E River St, Cave Junction)
🥦 Every Tuesday, 6:00–7:30 PM — at the YMCA (Grants Pass)

📅 Please share this information so neighbors know where to find food support during the federal shutdown and SNAP benefit delays.
No one in the Illinois Valley should go hungry — we’re here for you. 💚

📍 Visit us Monday–Friday, 9–5 PM for additional resources and information.

───────────────────────────────

🥦 Recursos de Alimentos en el Valle de Illinois

Estamos compartiendo listas actualizadas de despensas de alimentos del Condado de Josephine y del Valle de Illinois en la publicación de abajo para ayudar a nuestra comunidad a encontrar apoyo alimentario local durante este tiempo.

Distribuciones de alimentos de emergencia durante el cierre del gobierno:
🥫 Todos los martes, de 4:30 a 6:00 PM — en la Coalición Familiar del Valle de Illinois (535 E River St, Cave Junction)
🥦 Todos los martes, de 6:00 a 7:30 PM — en el YMCA (Grants Pass)

📅 Por favor comparte esta información para que nuestros vecinos sepan dónde encontrar apoyo alimentario durante el cierre del gobierno y la demora de los beneficios de SNAP.
Nadie en el Valle de Illinois debería pasar hambre — estamos aquí para ayudar. 💚

📍 Abiertos de lunes a viernes, de 9 AM a 5 PM, para más información y recursos.

11/06/2025

Halloween Highlights from IVFC! / ¡Momentos Destacados de Halloween en IVFC! 👻

🎃 Thanks for a Spooktacular Halloween!

We had such a great time seeing everyone’s costumes and sharing info about our programs at IVFC!💚
A big thank you to the Illinois Valley Safe House Alliance for organizing the event!

💀 Sally from The Nightmare Before Christmas was perfectly spooky,
🐮 the cow brought plenty of smiles,
🎩 the Mad Hatter added some Wonderland charm, and
🦖 the dinosaur had us all roaring with laughter!

📸 Show us your favorite Halloween costumes in the comments- we’d love to see them!
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

¡Gracias por un Halloween Espeluznante! 🎃

¡Nos encantó ver todos los disfraces y compartir información sobre nuestros programas en IVFC! 💚
¡Muchísimas gracias a Illinois Valley Safe House Alliance por organizar el evento!

💀 Sally de El Extraño Mundo de Jack se veía perfecta,
🐮 la vaca trajo muchas sonrisas,
🎩 el Sombrerero Loco añadió un toque de fantasía, y
🦖 el dinosaurio nos hizo reír a todos.

📸 ¡Muéstranos tu disfraz favorito de Halloween en los comentarios- nos encantará verlo! 👻