Charley Weeth started raising money for the Hamilton Helping Hands Free Little Pantry for a very simple reason.
“There are hungry children everywhere,” he said. “If we feed children, that’s a good thing.”
Weeth, the vice president of La Crosse Neighborhoods Inc., started a Facebook fundraiser for the Little Free Pantry Sunday, giving himself two weeks to hit a goal of $500 to put toward keeping the pantry outside Hamilton Early Learning Center stocked and building more to put outside other area schools.
By Monday he had blown past his goal and by Tuesday he had raised $560.
With a motto of, “Take what you need. Leave what you can,” Little Free Pantries operate similar to the Little Free Libraries around town. People are encouraged to help themselves to food as they need it and leave other items when they can, similar to the “Take a book, leave a book,” philosophy of the small libraries.
The Hamilton elementary pantry was put in place late this summer as part of a joint effort between the Powell-Poage-Hamilton Neighborhood Association and the Hamilton Early Learning Center Parent Teacher Organization, according to organizer Angela Manke, who is a member of both groups.
“It’s meant to be organic and what we mean by that is not like ‘organic food,’ but it means that it is self-filling. People will see it and want to promote it or stop by and say, ‘Hey I should go fill that the next time I’m at the school,’” Manke said.
Weeth is one of those people, regularly keeping an eye on the pantry and adding items.
“When I’ve been here, the people who are picking up food are always very appreciative,” he said. “I put some ramen noodles in here one time and one little boy was so excited to have ramen noodles, and he took one package for himself and one for his brother.”
PPH and the PTO can’t take credit for the original idea. Manke and her fellow PTO parent Kathy Haverland were inspired after hearing about the original in Lafayette, Ark. The plans first began during the summer of 2016, but they really kicked it into high gear in July 2017, pitching the idea to La Crosse SOUP.
“We lost, but we made a pact that night that we were going to make this happen no matter what,” Manke said.
The funding for the pantry’s construction came from the PTO, and between help from Hamilton elementary parents and volunteers from the neighborhood association, Manke’s husband, Dan, was able to get the cupboard together. The school district helped install it on the corner of Seventh and Johnson streets.
“We had our kids and kids from school helping to build it. It was a joint effort,” Manke said.
Hamilton principal Steven Michaels was happy to have the pantry outside, saying it serves a niche missed by the school’s pantry which provides help in a crisis.
“We try to be a one-stop-shop for a lot of things and this makes that 24/7,” Manke said.
“It’s been hugely popular. We can’t keep it stocked. Stuff flies off the shelves,” Manke said. “The first day we put over $100 worth of food in it, packed it. By the next evening when I walked home after work, and it was gone. It was just about empty.”
While Manke says that’s a good problem to have, they do need a hand to keep it filled.
Even with help from Weeth and Our Savior’s Lutheran Church — which has gathered 750 items for the pantry — the shelves could use some more items.
With winter approaching, the group is encouraging donors to avoid anything that might freeze. While the cupboard is sealed, the cold could still damage some canned goods.
“Really, minus any canned goods that have liquid in it, if you stick to dried goods and pasta and rice, I think we’ll be safe from the elements,” Manke said.
She also suggested socks, diapers, soap and even toilet paper or other paper goods.
“Little necessities like that we don’t think about,” she said.
Hamilton’s Little Free Pantry was the first for the Coulee Region, but it’s already inspired imitation. An Onalaska Girl Scout, Emily Galstad, opened up one at Christian Chapel Daycare Center, 1415 Well St., Onalaska.
Weeth hopes his fundraiser will help others follow suit, saying, “There are hungry people in every neighborhood.”
People can either drop their items off right at the pantry, 1111 Seventh St. S., or donate money through La Crosse Neighborhoods Inc.’s Facebook. Those interested can also mail donations to LCNI at P.O. Box 1661, La Crosse, WI 54602.
“It’s been hugely popular. We can’t keep it stocked. Stuff flies off the shelves.” Angela Manke
