A Message from Father Rick...
Early on in the pandemic, when it was clear that I would be spending a lot less time doing home and hospital visits, I started giving a few hours a week to the Food Bank Network of Somerset County.
I don’t do anything major. And, I’m not in charge of a single thing! (Which is kind of nice, I have to say.) I make deliveries of food from the main warehouse in Bridgewater to several of their satellite distribution centers.
I’ve really, really enjoyed getting to know and work alongside some of the other volunteers and staff of the food bank. It is an incredibly dedicated group of people who are united under a common cause: to get food to the hungry in our local communities.
One of the things that the Food Bank has done over the past year is completely change the way that food is given to people. In years past volunteers would pre-load bags of food with a standard formula of items. Today, the distribution looks like a store. Shelves of food, refrigerator and freezer doors filled with all manner of things, and a section for fresh fruits and veggies. Clients pick up a grocery cart at the door and “shop” for their food, just as you might do at your local ShopRite. They get only what they want and need—and a LOT of dignity has been added to the process.
These past few months though, every Wednesday when I arrive, there is a line out the door of clients waiting to enter to get their food. The demand for food is only going up.
That’s why I’m so glad that St Mark’s is right at the center of the can-art project, where we’re making sculptures of canned food that will then be brought to the food bank. It’s a great way to raise food, but also a great way to raise awareness of hunger right in our own communities.