Randolph's pantry out to can hunger - News - Randolph Herald ... - Wicked Local Randolph

Randolph's pantry out to can hunger - News - Randolph Herald ... - Wicked Local Randolph

By Lindsey Kennett

Fighting hunger in Randolph is a multi-faceted problem, but an ongoing concern comes down to getting food into the pantries.

“There’s an abundance of food out there,” said Janet Lynch, assistant director of the Friendly Food Pantry of Randolph. “No one should be going hungry. There is a lot of food out there and you just have to make it available, and when it is available you just have to give it out. It hurts to see somebody go hungry.”

One in nine people suffer from hunger in eastern Massachusetts, said Greater Boston Food Bank President and CEO Catherine D’Amato.

“There are over 500 agencies receiving food from the Greater Boston Food Bank, and over 90,000 people a week eating something from the food bank, and 30 percent of children in Massachusetts need some help,” D’Amato said. “That’s a very significant number.”

The Greater Boston Food Bank raised awareness during September, which was Hunger Action Month, several weeks before Thanksgiving and its traditional feast. It raised awareness of hunger in Massachusetts, which affects more individuals and families than many people realize.

“Hunger is a very silent epidemic that affects millions and millions of citizens,” D’Amato said.

And some of those residents live in Randolph, where a variety of  people frequent the pantry.

“We have elderly who are in need just about all the time because their income is so low,” Lynch said. “We have people struggling due to illness and high cost of medicine; families who have just lost their jobs.”

For some families, buying food comes second to other necessities, like paying rent or medical bills—so they often go hungry.

“People make a lot of choices with their food dollars,” D’Amato said. “They choose between food and medical bills, food and rent, food and mortgage payments.”

The amount of food given out depends on the size of each family. The Randolph food pantry serves about 130 families each month and families are allowed to shop every week.

In the next town over, the Holbrook food pantry serves approximately 95 families once a month.

Janet Horgan, co-director of the Holbrook Ecumenical Food Pantry, said a variety of families come to the pantry in all ages, sizes and income levels.           

“What we find is there are many families who you would never recognize them as needing food,” she said. “Everybody looks fine or the parents are working.”

But their wages simply don’t cover all their expenses.                

“Many of our families work, but they’re not making enough to cover the high rent and the high mortgages and eat at the end of the month,” Horgan said. “We don’t turn anyone away because everything we have is from the community, for the community.”

But it can be a struggle to keep the shelves filled.

“I think the biggest challenge is the need continues to grow, especially during the winter months,” Horgan said. “I think one of our struggles is just being able to meet that need.”

Horgan says the Holbrook Ecumenical Food Pantry is in talks with the GBFB to purchase food from the organization. While the GBFB offers food at a lower price, there is still a cost—which means the Holbrook food pantry needs to make the money it does get stretch even further.

“If we want to be able to give out the nonperishable items, we need to be able to get enough of that through donations so that we can use the funding to purchase the meat and fresh produce,” Horgan said.

Here is some basic information for those impacted by hunger:

* Friendly Food Pantry: Distribution 12:30-2:30 p.m. and 6-7:30 p.m., Mondays, including all Monday holidays except Labor Day and Memorial Day, at 1 Turner Lane (behind the fire station). Call 339-987-5577.

* Holbrook Food Pantry:  Distribution 10-11:30 a.m. every other Saturday at St John's Church, 322 S Franklin St.  Call 617-510-3988 or 781-767-4656.

* Greater Boston Food Bank: gbfb.org, 617-427-5200.