Coastal Employees Help Pack 50,000 Meals April 10, 2025 Two dozen coastal Samaritan employees spent a few hours on a recent sunny Saturday inside a cool and cavernous brewery warehouse in Newport. Wearing hair caps and beard covers, latex gloves and disposable aprons, they joined other community members to pack an astonishing 50,000 meals to combat hunger locally. Samaritan Health Services was one of the sponsors for the Lincoln County Day of Action on Saturday, April 5, a project of United Way of Linn, Benton & Lincoln Counties. The Samaritans who signed up to help were doctors, nurses, social workers, executives, foundation board members, family members and more, including Lesley Ogden, MD, CEO of both Samaritan hospitals in Lincoln County. “It was exciting to see how many people showed up to help with this important project, not just from Samaritan but from the overall community,” said Dr. Ogden, who also serves as a United Way board member. “We all jumped into work, listening to good music, ringing a cowbell every time a box was completed. There was a lot of laughter and fun,” she said. “But more gratifying is knowing that we helped struggling families put a meal on the table.” The United Way will deliver the completed food packages to these local charitable organizations and governing agencies: Agape Respite Center; Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians; Faith, Hope and Charity; and Lincoln County Health & Human Services. These groups, in turn, will provide the food to qualifying families. “This is a community-driven event that directly supports families in need,” said Michael McClain, resource development director for the local United Way. “We are proud to partner with others to serve community members with compassion, dignity and care.” United for ALICE Information provided at the event talked about United for ALICE, which stands for asset limited, income constrained, employed. An ALICE is someone who is earning more than the Federal Poverty Level but not enough to afford the basics and to save for emergencies. The ALICE research quantifies and describes the number of households that are struggling financially. According to recent data, 33% of Lincoln County households fall within the ALICE threshold, many of them seniors age 65-plus or households led by single mothers. Learn more, including a county-by-county breakdown, at unitedforalice.org. In photo from left, Amy, Georgia and Jon were among the two dozen Samaritan North Lincoln Hospital and Samaritan Pacific Communities Hospital employees, and their family members, who helped to package meals.
