ACTS Food Pantry to Close

Kristina Schnack Kotlus- [email protected]

When Action in the Community Through Service (ACTS) team members decided they had no choice but to close the food pantry until November, it wasn’t easy.  However, the team has been overwhelmed by the response of the community as news of the need has gone “viral” on everything from news sources to radio to facebook.

“I definitely wasn’t expecting the outpouring of community support”, shared Rebekah McGee, program director for emergency assistance at ACTS.  “To see the community just come together, it’s been tremendous.”

One thing that McGee wants to make sure people know is that the closure has nothing to do with the recent flooding in our area.  “We’ve been seeing an increase in need of almsot 40 percent over the last 3 months, with a 50 percent increase in the number of children who need food assistance.  Those numbers don’t reflect flood victims, it’s just a terrible economy and people need help making ends meet.”  ACTS is meeting needs up nearly 98% from this same time three years ago.

This time of year, people begin thinking about ACTS and the food pantry because of their “Operation Turkey” program, which feeds the almost 4,000 people ACTS serves each month in addition to almost 1,600 extra families who need a Thanksgiving meal.  McGee cautions that Operation Turkey is a special program in addition to the 50,000 pounds of food ACTS distributes each month.  “We’re feeding people 52 weeks a year- not just at Thanksgiving.”

McGee also stressed that they are thankful for a great group of continuous donors who give faithfully to the program.  “We couldn’t do what we do without our supporters, and we enjoy very strong working relationships with several grocery stores in the area, it’s just that the need has increased at such a rate that we aren’t able to keep up, even with those who regularly support us.”  

Community members have stepped up, too, with people doing everything from contacting grocery stores to setting aside portions of their business profits to help.  Meshell Hicks, owner of Gymboree Play and Music in Woodbridge has offered the profits from Halloween parties.  Churches,  such as Prince of Peace United Methodist in Manassas, have committed to collecting goods.  people are spreading the word like wildfire across social media and it seems to be helping, with donations trickling in as people hear about the need and more expected to come.

“I think the problem is that people think that people who need food assistance look a certain way.  They don’t.  We’re serving your neighbors, you children’s friends at school, your co-workers, you just can’t see it because they look just like you.  They could be you” said McGee.

On a tour of the ACTS facility this afternoon, shelves were bare or sparse, although several bags of recently donated items offered some small hope.  Yesterday, the shelves were completely empty.  ACTS accepts non-perishable goods as well as refrigerated or frozen items and personal items.  Online donations are also accepted at their website.