Three Ways to Serve
Lindsey, Jason and their two pre-school kids moved to Portland from California nine months ago.
On Thursday morning, Lindsey called the pantry. She had no food to give her kids breakfast that morning. “We moved here because my husband got a job, but right after we moved, he got COVID and could not work for 3 weeks”. She continued, “He is still not doing good at all but felt he had to go to work to not lose his new job.”They have one car and she had just returned from dropping her husband off at work. Lindsey came to the pantry that day and received food for her family. In addition, she was instructed to sign up for our drive-up pantry where she could order online and drive up to pick up her food every week. She cried and was most grateful for the support.
Many of us have moved on from COVID, but the disease continues to affect the lives of individuals.
The unexpected happened to Lindsey and her family, but through the support your contributions provide, they will be able to move forward in their new town.
Our pantry has three different service lines to be able to meet the diverse need of our community.
For those of you who are new to this distribution I wanted to familiarize you with the different ways we provide food:
Our walk-up pantry. On Tuesday and Thursday families can walk up and choose the food they want for their families. It’s a great way to build community and many take this time to socialize and meet their neighbors.
The drive-up pantry. Families can go online, choose the food they want, then drive up on Tuesday or Thursday to get their specially ordered food box. For families like Lindsey this is ideal because she has two young kids to manage. The food she ordered is placed in the back of her car when she arrives.
Our delivery program. Here the elderly and disabled can have their specially made food box delivered to their home while remaining in the safe comfort of their homes. This program is ideal for people like Sam.
Sam is a 47-year-old male who suffered a traumatic injury to his face, leaving him with two blood clots in his frontal lobe. He is disabled. His friend had been coming to the pantry for several months picking up food for him. Sam recently called the pantry because his friend is no longer able to pick up his food. In a very emotional phone call Sam spoke of the trauma he had experienced that collapsed the life he knew. When he was told about the delivery program, he didn’t hold back the tears. “I can’t believe how difficult the simplest things can now be, things like getting food to eat, who would have ever imagined?”.
That very day, special arrangements were made for Sam to get food. He had had nothing to eat for a few days. We were thankful for the relationship he had built with us that gave him the courage to call and ask for help. You helped him receive the food he needed when he needed it.
The delivery program is in desperate need of delivery drivers. If you or someone you may know would like to volunteer with us, please go to POBCPANTRY.COM, and put in a volunteer application. We deliver food at this time on Tuesdays and Fridays and would love the opportunity to tell you more. It’s a simple yet wonderful gift for people and provides a huge amount of encouragement.
Submit a Volunteer Application
Thanks again for your continued donations, they keep us going. If you would like to donate or even become a monthly donor, please go to the link below and it will take you to our site. The pantry has been running for over nine years. Our numbers continue to escalate, and I’m always baffled at how in the world we have never run out of food. Thank you for your prayers and continued support. It is an adventure every week and a constant reminder of how precious is each life.
Thanks for your support,
Betty Brown
Executive Director
POBC Pantry
