BY JIMMY SHOCKLEY, Eastern Shore Post —
Cheriton United Methodist Church started what it calls the Beyond the Food pantry earlier this year to provide free items that are not covered by Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, benefits.
The church offers household items — trash bags, laundry detergent, shampoo, razors, toilet paper, and more — to those in need.
“Everyone that has come through has been really grateful. We’re here if people need these things,” said Sandra Lewis, a retired Northampton High School teacher and a member of the church.
The church has had a “blessing box” on the corner in front of the sanctuary for years. It is where people can take food items they need and leave what they are able.
Lewis said that someone who regularly stocks the box said that certain items, household items like toilet paper, go quickly, which sparked an idea.
At the next church meeting, the idea for the Beyond the Food pantry was born, not by any one person, but as a group effort by the congregation, Lewis said.
The first day of the program was Feb. 1, and Lewis said only one person showed up to the church to get items. But the church was not deterred.
Parishioners got the word out by distributing flyers, telling other churches, and more.
Now, the church gets about 30 visitors monthly.
While the church does two events per month, it urges people to not attend both — so there are enough supplies for everyone who attends, and so people are not taking more than what they need.
The church has also reached out to organizations, businesses, and the public to donate to buy the supplies.
Red Bank Baptist Church, the American Legion, and the Cape Charles Lions Club donate every month.
“The community has been so loving and giving,” Lewis said.
Going forward, the church is planning to give lunch to those who show up at the pantry events — and the blessing box on the corner is still going strong and is open all the time.
Donations for the Beyond the Food pantry are welcomed. Make donations payable to Cheriton United Methodist Church. Mail checks to: Beyond the Food Pantry, c/o Cheriton United Methodist Church, P.O. Box 106, Cheriton, VA 23316.
