Patty McAllister fills the food pantry in the basement of the Yellow Springs Methodist Church with food donated locally. (Photo by Megan Bachman)
Food Pantry feeds local families in need
- Published: July 23, 2010
In troubled economic times, the Yellow Springs Community Food Pantry continues to offer free food and household goods to local families.
The pantry is open on the second and fourth Thursday of the month from 2 to 4 p.m. in the basement of the Yellow Springs Methodist Church.
Recently demand has been high for the canned goods, boxed meals, cleaning supplies and sometimes fresh vegetables the pantry provides free-of-charge to local households in need.
“We are aware of the need now for this,” said food pantry-organizer Patty McAllister, who estimates that 15 to 20 local families utilize the pantry.
Local church and community members donate most of the food in the pantry directly from their cupboards. The rest comes from products discarded from Tom’s Market and fresh produce from local farms, McAllister said.
The pantry also accepts monetary donations, which McAllister uses to buy the paper towels, laundry detergent and dish soaps that are in high demand.
“We do a good job with the assortment of goods,” McAllister said. “The bigger need is paper products and cleaning products,” she said, because federal food assistance programs only cover food and not other household necessities.
The pantry moved to the Methodist Church five years ago after being started by Mary Ann Bebko in her garage. Food is only available to residents of Yellow Springs and Miami Township.
Community members interested in donating can bring non-perishable food and goods to the church, or send a check made out to the Yellow Springs Methodist Church with “food pantry” in the memo to 202 South Winter Street, Yellow Springs, Ohio 45387.
For more information on the pantry, call the church at 767-7560.
The Yellow Springs News encourages respectful discussion of this article.
You must login to post a comment.
Don't have a login? Register for a free YSNews.com account.
No comments yet for this article.