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Referral Agencies

       

Eligibility

Manna has referral relationships with hundreds of peer agencies throughout Montgomery County.  If you are interested in establishing an agreement, please contact referral@mannafood.org or call (301) 424-1130, ext 20.

For those organizations already on our roster of referring agencies, please remember:  

  • Your agency establishes eligibility for referring participants. Participants can also be eligible by being part of any kind of public assistance program (ex. WIC, SSI, SNAP, etc).
  • Participants must live in Montgomery County and must have proof of residency.
  • Participants must earn less than $76,000  for a family of four or $36,000  for a single person. These figures are based on the 2012  self-sufficiency standards for Montgomery County. Income Eligibility Temporarily Waived Due to Covid-19 
  • Participants can receive food once every 30 days.
  • Participants need a new referral from your agency each time they come to Manna.
  • Participants are eligible to receive one food pickup per household, not per person.
  • If your participant has special dietary needs, you can request a  diabetic or vegetarian box.
  • If your participant has infants or toddlers in their family, please let us know and we will try to provide baby food and formula when it is available. Please indicate the stage of baby food or brand of formula.

Information Needed to Make a Referral

Referrals must be made by 12:00 p.m. the (business) day before a pick up.

Schedule Food Pick-up Hours: Monday through, Friday, 9:00 am to 3:00 pm

Office Hours: Monday through Friday, 8:00 am to 4:00 pm. Our office is located at 12301 Old Columbia Pike on the corner of Tech Road and Route 29.

You need to provide the following information for each participant you refer:

  • Agency Name
  • Your name as the agency contact
  • Your phone number
  • Participant’s Full Name
  • Participant’s Complete Address (P.O. Boxes are not acceptable)
  • Participant’s Date of Birth
  • Participant’s Phone Number
  • Participant’s email address (If available)
  • Number of adults & children in a participant’s family
  • Date & location of desired food pick up
  • Employment status
  • Monthly income amount (Gross)
  • Indicate any assistance they currently receive with the amounts (ex. SSI, SSDI, SNAP, etc.)
  • Ethnicity
  • Race
  • Emergency Contact

Referring a Participant

Download the Manna Referral Form, linked in English and Spanish at the top of this page.

If you wish to submit a referral by email or fax, please use this form.  It must arrive by 12:00 p.m. on the business day before an order is to be picked up.  Manna is not able to fulfill referrals submitted by voice mail.

Vegetarian and diabetic food boxes are offered for those with special dietary needs. Baby food and formula are available for clients with infants or toddlers. Please indicate the formula brand or stage of baby food.

Process for Food Pickups

  • The participant must show a current photo ID that includes a CURRENT Montgomery County address in order to pick up food.  Passports are accepted so long as they are accompanied with a document that shows their current address.
  • A participant may pick up food for one additional client who has a referral by bringing a copy of the other participant’s photo ID that includes a CURRENT address. Passports are accepted so long as they are accompanied with a document that shows their current address.
  • A referring agency staff may pick up for up to 25 participants with their agency ID.  Please indicate when you are going to make a bulk order.

Please make sure your participant is aware of the following:

  • Knows WHERE to pick up their food.  Please click here for a list of distribution sites and hours
  • Knows WHEN to pick up their food
  • Knows to BRING the participants photo ID with an address to pick up food
  • Is prepared to transport the food which can weigh as much as 70lbs.
  • Knows to contact you to reschedule the pick up if he/she cannot make it to Manna as planned. Referrals are only good for the date and time you have set up.
  • Understands he/she need a new referral EVERYTIME they pick up food.

Holidays and Inclement Weather

Manna sites are closed in observance of the following holidays: New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, President’s Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Thanksgiving, the day following Thanksgiving, and Christmas Day.

In the event of inclement weather, please check Manna’s website for more information. We typically follow the Montgomery County Government’s operating status, but we may close a satellite location if it is not safe for our drivers and clients to be on the road.

If closed, Manna automatically honors all referrals the next day.