EZRA Health Program and Pantry Coordinator

The EZRA Multi-Service Center is a community-based service center that provides emergency services to residents of the Edgewater, Uptown, Lakeview and Rogers Park communities in Chicago. The Health and Nutrition department promotes wellness and food security as well as community support for EZRA clients. Four programs - JUF Uptown Café, Healthy Advantage, Client Choice Food & Hygiene Pantry, and the community garden - provide the framework for granting EZRA clients access to necessary services.

The Health Program and Pantry Coordinator understands the connection between proper nutrition and physical wellness, coordinates the food & hygiene pantry, connects with community healthcare organizations to bring health education and screenings to EZRA, provides staffing and client support for the JUF Uptown Café, provides benefits screenings for department clients, and collaborates with community partners on issues advocacy regarding food security and healthcare. Specific duties include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Food & Hygiene Pantry
  • Serve as the primary liaison to the Greater Chicago Food Depository (GCFD), as well as organizations and individuals that provide donations.
  • Provide pantry and hygiene bags to clients
  • Coordinate volunteers to assist with food delivery, pantry restocking, fulfilling pantry orders, etc.
  • Sort and organize pantry and hygiene closet donations.
  • Assist in the collection and distribution of fresh produce from the EZRA garden and local Farmer's Market.
  • Coordinate, plan, and staff EZRA's annual Hunger Walk efforts
  • Promote food items in the pantry to encourage distribution
  • Perform frequent inventory and restocking, creating a list of supplies needed.
  • Perform monthly reports and orders from the GCFD based on supplies needed and client food requests.
  • Supervise GCFD deliveries including offloading the delivery truck.
  • Maintain pantry "wish list" and work with volunteers to promote donations to the food pantry.
  • Discard expired, damaged, or unsafe food items in a timely manner.
  • Check pantry refrigerator and freezer temperatures regularly.

• JUF Uptown Café
  • Participate in all tasks required to run JUF Uptown Café 3 times per week, including set-up, volunteer orientation, and milieu management.
  • Establish relationships with Café clients to assess interest in and recruit participation for health programs, as well as food and hygiene needs.
  • Educate volunteers about EZRA mission and supportive services.
  • Maintain food service certification.
  • Assess client healthcare and food needs.
  • Conduct group survey as needed.
  • Participate in department program planning, promote upcoming programs to clients.
• Health Programs
  • Develop and/or partner with community providers to bring health education programs and health screenings to EZRA.
  • Foster relationships with community-based healthcare providers.
  • Promote department programming utilizing community contacts through emails, flyering, and other outreach methods
  • Coordinate, plan, and staff yearly health fair.
  • Provide staffing and support for other Health and Nutrition Team and agency programming as assigned.
• EZRA community gardening project
  • Organize client and community participation in planning, planting, maintaining, harvesting, and distributing produce.
  • Work with Mercy Housing Lakefront and other local organizations to create new opportunities for community gardening.
• Issues Advocacy
  • Engage clients in activities surrounding food advocacy.
  • Serve as the lead contact for community health and nutrition organizations.
  • Attend monthly NAHN general and advocacy meetings.
  • Attend monthly Lakeview Action Coalition Healthcare Task force.
  • Attend appropriate GCFD and other workshops and trainings.
• Statistics and Data collection
  • Maintain food and hygiene bag distribution statistics
  • Maintain confidential client records.
  • Work with Health and Nutrition manager to collect programming attendance.
  • Provide vignettes for grants team.

DAYS/HOURS:

Sunday 9:30am-1pm, Monday/Tuesday 10:00 am-7:30pm, Wednesday 9am-5pm, Thursday 9am-6:00pm; must be willing and able to work Sundays and some secular holidays

REQUIREMENTS:

• Bachelor's Degree minimum required. Interest in Public Health, Public Policy, or related field.
• Strong interest in community building, advocacy work, and food justice.
• Ability to work in a calm and collected manner.
• Strong communication skills, both written and verbal.
• Knowledge of and willingness to learn about public healthcare options and government nutrition programs.
• Sensitivity to and experience working with low-income vulnerable populations including families with children, seniors, people living with chronic illness and/or disabilities, and people who are homeless.
• Resourcefulness with expert networking and collaboration skills.
• Demonstrated proficiency using MS Office, with the ability to learn other programs as needed. Experience with MS Access preferred.
• Strong desire to work for a multi-disciplinary anti-poverty agency with a Jewish social justice agenda.
• Ability to lift up to 40 lbs.