Food pantries battle homelessness with your help

Did you know that fighting homelessness is one of the chief objectives of Middleton Outreach Ministry’s Food Pantry and Clothing Closet? Many clients who come to MOM are living on an insecure edge and need help to get into or keep stable housing. They may be trying to avoid eviction or need help getting into new housing. Often the cause of their housing insecurity is a one-time crisis like an illness, the loss of a job even temporarily, or trouble paying childcare bills. MOM can be a one-stop haven of help, by providing small financial grants for back rent, security deposits, or back utility bills. But the greatest help we give to stave off homelessness can be found at MOM’s Distribution Center.

Having a well-stocked food pantry and clothing closet allows MOM’s client families to cover their basic food and clothing needs while saving their limited money for non-negotiable bills like rent, utilities, and transportation costs. Our “Choice” Food Pantry allows clients to move through the food aisles selecting the foods their family will most enjoy. We try to assure that all clients receive protein foods and produce, in addition to more usual food pantry items. We especially try to give milk and other dairy products to families with children in the home. As summer approaches, this food help is especially critical for families, when school lunches are not available to help stretch food dollars.

MOM’s food donations have been down somewhat this year, even though the need keeps growing. The Food Pantry often gives out 14,000 to 17,000 pounds of food each month, and keeping the shelves and refrigerators well-stocked is always a challenge: many months our food donations from the community provide less than half of the food we give out. The rest needs to be purchased by MOM from Second Harvest or local stores. Obviously, we depend heavily on the community in and around Middleton to donate food (or money to buy food), so that we will be able to meet the needs of the 250 or more families we serve each month.

You have an opportunity Saturday, May 13th to help fully stock MOM’s pantry shelves by supporting the Postal Workers’ Food Drive. All of the food collected by Middleton’s postal workers will be given to MOM’s Food Pantry, so your generosity will make a big difference for neighbors in this community. A list of most-needed food items is posted on the MOM website: www.mompop.org. Peanut butter, meals in a can, fruits, vegetables, soups, and personal hygiene products head the list. Please be as generous as you can: leave your food donations by your mailbox on May13th. Volunteers to help unload donations and stock shelves that day will also be needed from 4:30 to 9:30pm. If you or your group are interested in volunteering, please call the MOM office—836-7338.

As always, many thanks for caring for the neighbors in need who live in our midst. The Postal Workers, MOM, and especially the recipients of the food will be very grateful.

© 2005 Middleton Outreach Ministry

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