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04/03/2020 12:00 AMWith residents donating over 675 pounds of food in one day, and a plan that relies on continued food donations coming in from the community during the COVID-19 crisis, Food Pantry of North Branford (FPNB) re-opened its doors April 1 and got back to assisting 156 local families in need.
Non-profit FPNB had to shut down for two weeks in March, after being faced with food shortages on grocery shelves and at the Connecticut Food Bank, where the pantry can purchase food for pennies on the dollar. For FPNB, which distributes over 4,000 grocery meals for families per month, it was an especially stressful time, said FPNB president Rita Ney. Not only were the pantry's shelves bare in spots, but many of those assisted by the organization don't have the financial means to stock up, or cannot safely get to a store to do so, she said.
During the down-time, FPNB's leadership worked to re-tool ways they could provision the pantry, located in the lower level of St. Andrew's Episcopal Church, 1382 Middletown Ave. in Northford. A big part of the answer was to ask the community for help, said Ney.
"We said, 'On a day that were' not open, let's put it out to the community and let people know we're going to be here for donations," she said.
FPNB posted a call for help on several North Branford-based community social media pages, asking for specific items to be brought by the shelter between 3 – 6 p.m. on Tuesday, March 31.
That day, "...I was originally here myself, not expecting a huge turnout," said Ney. "After 15 to 20 minutes, I had to call for back up! It was just amazing support from the community, as always."
Community members drove in over 675 pounds of food in three hours. Many contributed specifics FPNB had requested as "much-needed" items, including pasta, pasta sauce, tuna, soup, canned beans and boxed rice. Others contributed other grocery meal staples to help fill boxes for families, including paper products and more.
"Two gentlemen from our community backed in their truck, and the next thing you know they were off-loading cases of oranges and bananas," said Ney.
On Wed. April 1, Ney, together with FPNB executive director Fran Murphy and board members Judy Bannon, Julius Marcarelli and Jim Dulong, donned face masks and gloves and set up boxes of provisions outside, for families to pick up from them at the pantry's parking lot.
"I'm smiling behind my mask," said Bannon, as she and the others hustled to set up, while also keeping a safe social distance, before the first families arrived at 4 p.m.
FPNB will continue to operate on a revised scheduled during the COVID-19 crisis, said Ney.
"Going forward, our plan of action is we are not open on Tuesday for (food) pick-up, however we are going to be here 3 – 6 p.m. on Tuesdays strictly to accept donations. And then on Wednesdays, we'll be here from 4 - 6:30 p.m. for pick up."
FPNB hopes to continue to see plenty of donations dropped off by community members each Tuesday from 3 – 6 p.m. Donations can also be placed in the FPNB collection box at North Branford Big Y World Class Market any time.
Due to the continuing shortage of food items at both CT Food Bank and on local grocery store shelves, where many staples are restricted to just two per customer, at this time FPNB asks that anyone who wants to contribute to please donate food items rather than giving financial support.
"On [March 31] the question was being asked, would we prefer more of a financial side or the food to help out? And at this point, it's the food," said Ney. "We need to keep the shelves full. I know that, with the overall the challenges out there, a lot of what we need is what everybody needs; so the grocery stores are kind of purged. Also, there are limits on what you can buy. So we're asking for a little of each from everyone."
Ney said she will continue posting which items are especially needed prior to Tuesday collections on FPNB's Facebook page, and sharing the post on North Branford community Facebook pages.
"We'll continue to update needs week-to-week, and put the word out on community pages about what we're asking for," she said, adding that everyone at FPNB has been overwhelmed by the extraordinary community support being shown during this time.
FPNB is also bracing for the potential that even more families will be calling on the pantry for assistance.
"We're not getting a lot of food from the Connecticut Food Bank, and assessing the situation, and watching how the unemployment numbers are climbing, we just want to stay ahead of the curve," said Ney.
For more information, find Food Pantry of North Branford on Facebook or visit www.foodpantrynb.org