Published: December 03, 2008 10:53 pm         

Food pantry prepares for donation drive

DANVILLE — The current economic crisis has increased a need that’s nothing new to those who operate the Danville Area Food Pantry.

This year marks the tenth annual Frostbite Marathon, which encourages donations to the food pantry via a Pepsi trailer set up outside County Market at Towne Centre.

“The need for food in our community continues to increase,” Chuck Brooks, food pantry chairman, said. “Of the over 400 people we served last month at the food pantry, 77 were first-time users.

“That number is up from 300 people served the month before,” Brooks said.

“We continue to see an increase in the number of seniors using the pantry,” he said. “Some of them have their children and their grandchildren moving in with them.”

The food pantry’s partnership with the grocery store reaches beyond this two-day event.

“We are fortunate to have County Market as our partners,” Brooks said. “They host this event, but they also help us all year.

“Scott Stanton (store manager) lets me know when he sees deals we can use at his suppliers. These specials sometimes only last a few hours or a day. They save us money.”

The staff at County Market helps with the Frostbite Marathon in another way. Assistant manager Pat Calton said the store labels items appropriate for donation to the food pantry.

“We must put up at least 100 signs for them,” Calton said. “That way, people who are shopping can buy an extra item or two and donate it on their way out of the store.”

People can also bring items from home or elsewhere to the donation sites.

Those items include canned vegetables, soup, cereal, canned pasta, tuna and spaghetti sauce.

“We used to give flour and sugar,” Brooks said, “but people weren’t interested in that. They go for convenience.

“We spend about $35,000 on food a year as it is,” Brooks said. “We get donations from the churches, the unions and the com-munity. All these people, groups and events like this one help us out.”

TO HELP

Danville Area Food Pantry will have its 10th annual Frostbite Marathon from 8 a.m.-8 p.m. Friday and Saturday in the Pepsi trailer outside County Market in Towne Centre. There also will be a non-perishable food collection barrel at County Market in the Village Mall.