ThisWeek CW 01/19/2012
Canal Winchester Human Services opened the doors to its new food pantry last week for a food blessing ceremony before serving its first clients at the new location.
The grand opening celebration on Wednesday, Jan. 11, also meant a new name for the pantry: the Community Food Pantry is now located at 360 W. Waterloo St.
“Many people, including all of you here today, worked very hard to get us where we are today,” Canal Winchester Human Services adminstrator Penny Miller said. Thirty people representing local volunteers, churches and partner organizations attended the opening.
The Community Food Pantry now is located at the Weiser Development building in a 4,000-square-foot section of warehouse with neatly lined and organized shelving, giving it the feel of a small grocery store.
According to food pantry volunteers, the expanded space helps clients feel comfortable picking out the items they most need or will use so that nothing gets wasted.
Steve Frecker, who relies on a motorized wheelchair for mobility, said he was excited that the new pantry location is more accessible for people with physical disabilities.
“I love it. This is fantastic,” said Frecker, who is also intake administrator for the food pantry.
The chance to actually see the pantry itself, he said, was a revelation to him.
“I knew the size of our clientele was growing, but I didn’t realize how much food we needed to stock. In the old location, I couldn’t get into the pantry itself, just the offices,” Frecker said.
Jo Weiser, whose family owns the building where the new pantry is housed, was a founding member of Canal Winchester Human Services. She said she wanted people in need, volunteers and donors to know Human Services and the food pantry are open for business.
“I’m just tickled to death by all of this,” Weiser said. “The United Church of Christ did this so successfully for over 30 years and we hope to expand on that good work, like doing a summer lunch program for students after school is out.”
One expansion of services, according to Miller, is that the food pantry will now serve Lithopolis and Carroll, along with some designated areas of rural Fairfield County under the guidelines put together to allow the organization to participate in the Mid-Ohio Food Bank’s bulk food donations.
“I want to specifically thank Home Depot for providing us with paint and flooring and donating time to work on our space and redo the bathroom here,” Miller said.
Lisa Zurbriggen said she was excited to continue as the food pantry coordinator.
“This process has personally been such a journey, and I’m so looking forward to serving our clients in this new space,” Zurbriggen said. “I just want to remind people that we’re completely community-supported so food and monetary donations are always needed.”
The food pantry plans to host a “Souper Bowl” community open house from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 5. Lunch will be served and there will be a silent auction and facility tours.
For more information about the food pantry or on how to donate, call Canal Winchester Human Services at 834-3888. To make an appointment for assistance, call the pantry voice mail at 464-6811.