Neighbors on Nextdoor App Launch Successful Donation Drive for Lighthouse

PONTIAC, MI (February 4, 2026) – Southeast Michigan residents have come together once again via the Nextdoor app to connect neighbors interested in helping others. Last year, Troy retiree Patrice McDonald Rowbal decided to use the app for something different – to mobilize support to help her neighbors in need at Lighthouse Pontiac, where she volunteers along with her husband, Alan, and hosted the first Nextdoor for Lighthouse Winterwear Drive to collect coats, hats and mittens.

“As regular volunteers at Lighthouse in Pontiac for over a year, Alan and I have seen firsthand how much is needed right here in our own backyard. We’re retired---and wanted to give of our time in a way that makes a difference locally,” Rowbal said. The couple volunteers in the food pantry every month, organizing donations, stocking shelves, assembling boxes of food, and delivering them to people’s cars.

“After last year’s Winterwear drive,” Rowbal continued, “I began receiving messages on Nextdoor from folks, asking what and when the next donation drive was being held. It was a lightbulb moment, one that I grabbed to make a difference.”

In 2025, Rowbal decided to host a different-themed drive every quarter, to encourage her neighbors to make meaningful and manageable contributions. Last February’s winterwear drive was followed by a Spring Cleaning drive in April which collected household items and personal care products. In June, there was a Summer Food drive to provide extra help while the kids were out of school--that turned into a Mac n Cheese vs. Cereal contest, resulting in an amazing 80 boxes of cereal (equal to 498 servings) and 110 boxes of mac and cheese (345 servings!) -- everyone was a winner! September’s Back-to-School drive focused on school supplies and needed student items. In November, there was a good old-fashioned canned food drive that brought in a lot of non-perishable food for Thanksgiving boxes. And in December, a virtual holiday drive was held leveraging Lighthouse’s Amazon Wish List to purchase needed items like gift cards, new toys and shelf-stable food items to help make the holidays merry for Lighthouse clients. Nextdoor neighbors contributed an amazing $3,850 from the wish list!

For the February 2026 drive, Rowbal focused on ways to help Lighthouse clients transport the food they receive to where they live. Many clients do not drive, they walk to Lighthouse, and it’s hard to carry the things they need home, especially in the cold weather. The “New Year’s Transport Drive,” asked for rolling suitcases, backpacks and plastic reusable shopping bags. Once again, her neighbors showed out in fine form, dropping off more than a dozen rolling suitcases, 5 backpacks, 77 shopping bags, along with other items not on the list like hygiene products, children’s games, toys, and winter wear.

And her neighbors have really stepped up their donation efforts. “I have met some of my neighbors in person when they were dropping off items—they’ve become ‘regulars’--and it’s been so cool to put faces to the names!” One regular donor knits, and she dropped by with a bunch of homemade blankets, hats, scarves and mittens--things that are always needed in the winter. Another neighbor drives in from Royal Oak with their donations and always remembers to bring a treat for Rowbal’s dog. Folks have also reached out to find out how they themselves can become Lighthouse volunteers, bringing Rowbal’s effort full circle. “I feel like my friendship universe has expanded as a result, and don’t we all need all the friends we can get?” It was great to see the focus on the community site take a break from snow shoveling reports and missing pets shift to discussions of how to help others. “Nextdoor was the vehicle. The people are the power,” concluded Rowbal.

Lighthouse Pantry Lead Amber Ruple agrees: “It’s always great to see Patrice and Alan during their volunteer shifts at our food pantry, and we really appreciate their energy around the different drives they’ve done for Lighthouse.” “It really shows what can happen when a community comes together.”

Lighthouse’s mission is to build equitable communities that alleviate poverty in partnership with and in service to individuals, families, and organizations. They help youth, families, and individuals experiencing homelessness find shelter and provide food and other resources.

Lighthouse provides food, shelter, rental/utility and other financial assistance, crisis referrals, affordable housing development, and more, all with the goal of helping people become self-sufficient.

For more information about Lighthouse, visit lighthousemi.org

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