At the food pantry inside the Friendly House in Worcester, Massachusetts, volunteers are working hard to meet the increasing needs within the community.
“I think it is a really tough time of year and I think people are feeling pinched," Friendly House Executive Director Trish Appert said.
Between the holidays and daily meals, food pantry director Josefina Velez said the increased need they’ve seen since the start of the pandemic has only grown with the suddenly skyrocketing prices of everything from utilities and rent, to gas and groceries.
“Now with the prices so high – the gasoline, the supermarket, you go into the supermarket, and you know it’s kind of like a very, very expensive everything, so many people turn to our food pantry for extra food," Velez said.
It's no easy task, though, to keep food pantries like this one stocked.
That’s where BankHometown and its customers have stepped up to fill the gap – with their “Neighbors Helping Neighbors” fundraising drive.
"We ask our customers to consider giving us a monetary donation and what we do is we match it dollar for dollar, up to $2,500," BankHometown President and CEO Rob Morton said.
That’s a matching donation of $2,500 per person – and over the program’s 19 years, they’ve donated more than $250,000 to local food pantries.
“Last year we were able to write checks of $2,800 each to 15 area food pantries," Morton said.
“A little bit from everybody helps, when you put everything together, you make a village,” Velez said.
BankHometown’s "Neighbors Helping Neighbors" fundraising drive runs through Nov. 30, and donations are accepted at all bank branches.
