Athens Area Food Pantry moves into new building - The State Journal-Register

Athens Area Food Pantry moves into new building - The State Journal-Register

Tamara Browning Staff Writer @tambrowningSJR

ATHENS — Athens Area Food Pantry volunteer Marie Basso wished she had had access to such a community asset like the pantry when she was needy decades ago.

Helping Wednesday to move the food pantry from its 1,500-square-foot rental space on Main Street to a newly constructed, over 4,000-square-foot building off Illinois 29 in Athens, Basso reflected on how the food pantry mirrors a giving, caring community.

“I think one reason this (food pantry) is so important to me, 50 years ago, I woke up with four children by myself. I had never worked a day in my life,” said Basso, who previously lived in Athens but now lives in Sherman.

“I would have been elated to have someplace to come for help for my children. … I worked so hard for this (food pantry) because I know what it would have meant.”

Basso was among several volunteers who worked Wednesday and Thursday to move the pantry and its hundreds of thousands of pounds of food to its new metal building, which was made possible through a bequest from the estate of Margaret and J. Kennedy Kincaid Jr.

Joe Cycotte Homes of Decatur constructed the building, which had its groundbreaking ceremony in July.

Located off Illinois 29 near MTM Arms, the new food pantry’s amenities include a parking lot with handicapped parking, reception area, storage area, conference room, walk-in refrigerator/freezer, mop sink, restroom and overhead doors for truck deliveries.

“It’s a wonderful building, and it will provide space for these people to be able to come here, and it will be so much more convenient for them in parking and picking up,” said Linda Pedigo, food pantry president. “And, of course, we will have a whole lot more storage, so that means that we can have a bigger variety of canned goods and everything.”

‘Fantastic support’

In existence for more than 20 years, the food pantry was the dream of the Rev. Norman Mendell, then-pastor of the Athens United Methodist Church.

Serving the Athens School District, the food pantry serves approximately 65 to 75 families from 9 a.m. to about 10:30 a.m. the third Saturday of the month. It’s also open from 6 to 7 p.m. the following Monday.

The food pantry will be ready for the next distribution day, which will be Jan. 20.

“I have a granddaughter who is blessed to be able to come here for her two children, and she usually has to work on Saturdays, so she comes on Mondays,” Basso said.

Food is assembled for clients, who receive enough food to last from three to five days.

“When we assemble them, we do make sure they have meat, they have fruit, they have vegetables, they have some kind of a pasta or rice carb,” said Holly Henning-Buhr, a board member.

“They will end up with some kind of snacky stuff, maybe, cereal, sometimes juice, if we have it, and then depending upon what we’re able to pick up at the (Central Illinois) Foodbank in Springfield, sometimes we have fresh fruit and veggies.”

The food pantry is supplied with help from the Central Illinois Foodbank, donations, food drives and government commodities,

Basso, who helped Wednesday separate USDA commodities from the general food at the new food pantry building, said that the federal government gives the food pantry commodities at no charge.

“That comes under a different giveaway program with different qualifications, so we have to keep it separate,” said Basso, who has volunteered for the food pantry at least 20 years. “Before, we just had one little room for it. Now, we don’t have a room, we have a corner, but we still need to keep it separated.”

Pedigo said that the food pantry has had a “fantastic two days here.”

“We’ve had such fantastic support in the volunteers to come out and help us. It is unbelievable,” Pedigo said. “I was a little leary in the beginning … I said, ‘Oh, my goodness. I just can’t imagine doing this,’ but it has been great. The good Lord has been with us.”

Contact Tamara Browning: tamara.browning@sj-r.com, 788-1534, http://twitter.com/tambrowningSJR.