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LOIS A. GRIMM/Staff Photographer Gary and Sandy Houseknecht, Black Creek Township, check expiration dates on food items. The Black Creek Food Pantry is located in the old Black Creek Municipal Building on Park Street in Rock Glen.
LOIS A. GRIMM/Staff Photographer Donna Feerrar, center, speaks with Ed Vergari, left, and his wife, Renee, right, about the food distribution process at the pantry. The Black Creek Food Pantry is set to open Jan. 11.
Dennis Feerrar got goose bumps seeing his dream of opening a food pantry to serve the people of Black Creek Township become a reality.
Three years ago, Feerrar, a township supervisor, applied for a gaming grant to build a new municipal building and started to think about uses for the old municipal building on Park Street.
A food pantry to help people in the community was the answer so it was written into the grant application, he said.
The township successfully secured two gaming grants, built the new municipal building and moved in this fall, clearing the way for the food pantry to operate on the second floor of the old building.
“We did what we said we would do,” Feerrar said.
On Tuesday, the Black Creek Food Pantry hosted a volunteer day to organize the nonperishable food it received so far from the Weinberg Food Bank in Jenkins Township in preparation for its first food distribution on Jan. 11.
A room full of volunteers unpacked boxes, loaded up tables, checked dates on canned goods, chatted with their neighbors and nibbled on Christmas cookies through the afternoon.
“All these volunteers ... There are more people here than at a public meeting. I’m excited,” said Feerrar, who was clearing away empty boxes and taking them out to his truck. “I hope we help people.”
Gary Houseknecht, vice chairman of the pantry board, also was impressed with the number of volunteers from area churches who came out to help.
“I think we can meet the needs of most of the people in Black Creek Township,” he said.
The pantry got other help from the community.
The tables that surround the room came from Houseknecht’s church, Christ Lutheran Church in Conyngham, and the racks in the middle of the room came from the Covered Wagon, said Feerrar, whose wife, Donna, serves on the pantry board.
Township workers resurrected a chair lift in the stairwell and turned it into a dumbwaiter to load groceries for those who can’t climb the stairs, he said.
Volunteer Connie Nelski offered to help with any projects the pantry had when she came into the township building about a replacement window — and they made the call, she said.
“I’m just helping out. We have friends and neighbors that could use help. It’s really nice,” she said.
Board Chairman Carl Rittenhouse praised the work the volunteers were doing with the pantry.
“This is really of the people, for the people and by the people,” he said.
Feerrar reached out to Rittenhouse, who has been volunteering at the food pantry in Nescopeck for about five years, for advice when preparing for the conversion from municipal building to food pantry. They visited the Nescopeck facility, which serves about 350 people every two weeks, several times and gleaned ideas for the township food pantry.
Township solicitor Donald Karpowich donated his time and services to draw up the application for nonprofit status and prepare bylaws and a lease agreement with the township.
Board members then contacted the Weinberg Food Bank to learn how the pantry could partner with them and applied for membership. A representative from Weinberg inspected the building and one board member completed food handling and civil rights training, said Sandy Rittenhouse, who serves on the board with her husband.
All the food the pantry has received from the food bank so far has been free, Sandy Rittenhouse said. Other food items do carry a fee, she said, and they won’t be able to get those until the pantry starts receiving donations.
Carl Rittenhouse hopes that future orders have more staple foods, such as macaroni and cheese and peanut butter. They’ve received lots of canned goods, noodles, instant potatoes, rice, juices and drinks. He hopes they’ll be able to provide fresh bread and vegetables, too. The pantry has a refrigerator to keep some fresh foods, such as eggs, and a freezer was donated for frozen foods.
The pantry intends to reach out to the pastors of the four churches in the township: Sacred Heart Church in Weston, United Church of Christ in Rock Glen, Black Creek Methodist Church in Sugarloaf and Trinity Lutheran Church in Mountain Grove. Maybe they will be able to place collection barrels or boxes in the churches for donations, Carl Rittenhouse said.
Food donations can now be dropped off at the new municipal building during business hours. Monetary donations should be made payable to the Black Creek Food Pantry, Inc. and mailed to Carl Rittenhouse, 90 Red Rock Road, Sugarloaf, PA 18249.
Earlier this month, the township agreed to lease the second floor of the former municipal building to the food pantry for $1 a year. The five-year contract is renewable for five additional five-year terms, or for 30 years, Karpowich said.
After the December supervisors meeting, Feerrar took out a $5 bill and said with a large grin, “Here’s the first five years.”
So far, 17 families representing 50 people signed up to receive food, Feerrar said. Pre-registration forms are available at the new municipal building and the four churches for those in need.
Pre-registration will shorten the time at the distribution and move the process along faster, Sandy Rittenhouse said. At the first distribution, people will be assigned a specific time to pick up their food for future distributions to prevent long lines forming, she said.
There is no income guidelines to be eligible to receive food, Sandy Rittenhouse said. The only requirement, besides having a need, is to prove they are residents of Black Creek Township, she said.
“This is Dennis’ dream come true and I’m glad we’re a part of it,” Carl Rittenhouse said.
