Loading...Inspired by author Sara Miles's visit last fall, when members of St. Matthew's Church heard of her charismatic ministry to feed people as we feed our spirits at the Communion rail, they began moving rapidly to turn a long-term dream into reality.
On Saturday, March 21, if all goes as planned, parish volunteers will staff the church's first monthly Dare to Care Food Pantry, dispensing boxes of food from a station in Saints Hall to as many hungry people as we can accommodate.
Dare to Care officials say St. Matthew's will be the only Saturday food-pantry option in the East End for now, suggesting the potential to serve a large number of people, including workers at area malls and shopping centers and low-wage workers who can't take time off to go to food pantries on weekdays.
What's more, St. Matthew's will also be planting a community garden on the grassy area west of the church, with a portion of the garden produce going to supplement Dare to Care's food boxes with fresh, healthy vegetables.
"This is our opportunity to roll up our sleeves, get our hands dirty and start fighting hunger in our own community," said St. Matthew's parishioner Brian Good, organizer of the food pantry project.
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Dare to Care, the nation's largest hunger relief agency based in Louisville, recently reported that a recent landmark study on emergency food assistance has revealed a 67 percent increase in clients served annually. The study, the agency reports, the first "to capture the significant connection between the recent economic downturn and an increased need for emergency food assistance." Read more about the study
