BY JEFF B. FLINN Managing Editor
With Thanksgiving firmly in the rearview mirror, most Boerne residents have turned their focus to the approaching Christmas holiday – buying gifts, making travel arrangements, deciding which relative is going to host this year’s get-together.
But for a segment of Kendall County, just finding the next meal remains a pressing concern.
The elderly, the homeless, families dealing with joblessness, single-parent families – the needs remain great for these people as the holiday approaches.
Four Little Free Food Pantries are continually offering food and meal prep items to those in need, the latest of which was opened in March and remains stocked on a daily basis.
Lynn Bellow, outreach elder for St. Mark Presbyterian Church, talked about their Little Free Food Pantry on West Bandera Road, joining three others that were up and running prior to St. Mark’s pantry opening in late March: the Boerne YMCA on Adler Road; Hill Country Family Services, on West Advogt; and St. Helena Episcopal Church, at Rock Street near Main Street.
Bellow said St. Mark established its food pantry on the south side of town, near Interstate 10, being so close to H-E-B and Walmart.
“It’s difficult to live in Boerne on a fixed income, especially with the way prices have soared,” Bellow said. “The other food pantries are on the opposite side of town, so we wanted to bring the service to residents here.” She told of receiving a telephone call about a family in need and directed them to one of the pantries.
“Someone called me because they knew of a family of five, living off a single income, and they needed help,” she said. “I told them, ‘Do you know right next to you, there is the YMCA food pantry?’ They had no idea.”
She said she met with the mother of the family. “We had conversation, and the conversation went well beyond food. But they were very much appreciative.”
Even before the food pantry was erected, Bellow said homeless people -- including some who wander off I-10 to find a meal -- would stop in the church office and ask for food, blankets or hats.
“The motivation was to be a helping hand,” she said, “especially for the homeless or those on a fixed income, or with no income, who would benefit the most.”
Popular items run the gamut, she said. And the little free food pantries aren’t just for St. Mark parishioners to stock, either.
“We want, and invite, everyone to participate,” she said. “If you’ve just left H-E-B, it doesn’t matter your denomination, you can drop off an extra item – that can of soup, something with a pop top.
“Some families would like jars of spaghetti sauce” to create a spaghetti dinner for the entire family, she said. “We go through lots of Ramen noodles, canned ravioli, and peanut butter is always a big one. The little macaroni-and-cheese containers are a big hit, and microwavable items seem to be a hit as well.”
Bellow said food recipients take what they need for a meal or two without hording.
“You see what’s there, and you’re grateful for that,” she said of recipients. “They know to take what they need and leave things for someone else. They realize there are others in the same situation.”
Since the free food pantry was established in March, “I’ve never seen it empty. They are taking little bits at a time, and it changes every day. Items disappear, others are dropped off.”
Thanksgiving was a big hit with the free food pantries – as will be the Christmas season.
“The day before Thanksgiving, Maty’s box (at St. Helena Episcopal Church) was overflowing full. They (all four free food pantries) were all well taken care of.”
She said she expects the same with the Christmas holiday swiftly approaching, as some residents and families struggle with balancing income between meals and gifts.
“I think people get bigger hearts in the winter, and during the holidays. We do encourage people to leave notes of encouragement to those who are coming,” she added.
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