As more and more folks find themselves in need of assistance from food pantries, especially this time of year, donations to such charitable organizations are in high demand, and Park Layne Food Pantry asks that residents consider donating to them this year, as contributions to larger food banks are rarely distributed to their pantry.

Ethel Blue said she saw a need for the Park Layne Food Pantry and created the organization two years ago with the support of Park Layne United Brethren Church and a few friends. She said their pantry does not limit their services to a certain area, providing assistance to Park Layne families as well as some from Springfield, as their pantry is on a county-wide list published by Catholic Social Services.

Blue said that 90 percent of their stock comes from the Catholic Charities’ Second Harvest Food Bank, with the rest contributed by three or four private citizens.

“It is amazing how many people we get,” said Blue. “We’ve been getting a lot of senior citizens lately—they really need the service,” she said, adding that they also see many people who truly require disability benefits but cannot receive them.

She said that the pantry, which is open each Wednesday from 6 to 7:30 p.m., has been serving around 18 families each week, which includes some very large family units. Blue said that serving this many people each week is quite a feat considering their amount of donations and the small space they use to operate, as the pantry is roughly the size of a smaller utility room. She said she is grateful for the church and Pastor Albert for allowing them to use the space, as well as keeping electric running to the pantry’s freezers.

Blue said that up until last year, the Park Layne Food Pantry did not receive any of the community’s contributions to the Postal Service food drive, as they all went to Bethel Churches United in New Carlisle, but noted that they did begin receiving some from that drive. She said she firmly believes that items donated in large scale food drives should remain in the neighborhood in which they were generated, noting that she believes a centralized distribution center would likely ensure that each pantry received its fair share of goods.

To donate to the Park Layne Food Pantry, call the church at 849-0611, or Ethel will schedule a pickup by calling her at 849-0482. Donors may also stop by on Wednesday nights from 6 to 7:30 when the pantry is open.

Blue said that the pantry will be open tonight, Wednesday, November 25 during regular hours.