For many years, our parking lot has been an ideal location to host the Mobile Food Pantry. During the time of greatest urgency, weserved up to 500 families. More recently, we’ve seen the demand for food decrease. This is due in part to the multipleorganizations that we have in our village dedicated to feeding families in need.
Northern Illinois Food Bank, which provides the food that we distribute, has reworked their program with the goal of reaching thecommunities where food insecurity is greatest. As a result, it has been determined that our parish will no longer be a Mobile Food Pantry location.
So many of you have been serving in this ministry for years, and we are so grateful for your assistance, sometimes in the rain,extreme heat, cold or snow. Thank you for being a blessing to all of those who found themselves needing some help withproviding nourishment to their families. Special thanks to Beth Cockrell for being the St. Mary’s liaison with PEMA, CatholicCharities and Northern Food Bank, and helping the process run so smoothly.
For those of you who still would like to help with the Mobile Food Pantry, here are the upcoming locations and dates:
- August 16 – 10:00 a.m.–11:30 a.m. – St. Joseph Catholic Church, 211 N. Center Ave, Bradley
- August 19 – 4:00 p.m.-5:30 p.m. – St. Lawrence Catholic Church, 165 Rice Rd, South Wilmington
Contact Derek Schultz, Agency Event Coordinator, at dschultz@cc-doj.org or 815-724-1160, to sign up to help.
Check the Catholic Charities website for up-to-date information regarding future opportunities to serve: https://catholiccharitiesjoliet.org/mobile-food-pantry-dates/.