SPRINGFIELD-- It’s time to stuff a bus with food for people in the area who are food insecure.
This year’s 6th annual Stuff-A-Bus for Open Pantry Community Services is scheduled for May 24 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Stop & Shop, 1600 Boston Road, Springfield.
The Springfield Thunderbirds mascot, “Boomer,” will join the festivities at about 5 p.m.
Non-perishable items needed include canned fruits and vegetables, canned meats, pasta, rice, cereal, peanut butter, tuna, spaghetti sauce, baby food and meal helpers.
Cummins Inc. is hosting the event. “The Mission of Cummins is to make people’s lives better by powering a more prosperous world. As a global company, we encourage our employees to get involved within the communities where they work and live. We want communities to be better because Cummins is there,” said Kerry S Wilbois, operations excellence leader for the East region. “Cummins believes that our long-term survival is as dependent upon responsible citizenship in our communities and in society as it is on technology, financial and production performance.”
Cummins, with global headquarters in Columbus, Indiana, chose to support Open Pantry because it provides several programs that assist people who are hungry, homeless or disadvantaged to improve the quality of their lives with dignity and humanity. “Society and people in general must be able to meet the most basic of physiological needs before they can strive to achieve more advanced goals,” Wilbois said. “By helping Open Pantry, Cummins is able to help provide equality of opportunity to members of our community through some of the most challenging times in their lives.”
Open Pantry’s emergency food pantry has benefited from Stuff-A-bus for several years.
“The food donated helps ensure that we have enough food for families and individuals who are in need of supplemental food support. Food insecurity is a major concern in the City of Springfield and surrounding areas, therefore this food drive is a big help to us,” said Annie (Nia) Rennix, Open Pantry director of programs. “Having enough food to give out to families during the summer months can be challenging for food pantries. Stuff-A-Bus comes at a great time because it is right before school summer break, which is one of the busiest times for us.”
During the last fiscal year, Open Pantry distributed 935,994 pounds of food to people in Springfield and surrounding areas.
Over the last seven years, Stuff-A-Bus has brought in more than 30,000 pounds of food. This year organizers hope to exceed last year’s numbers and bring in some 5,000 pounds of food. Open Pantry’s emergency food pantry provides food to an average of 70 individuals and 150 families daily.
“We are so thrilled and grateful that a national company would take the time out of their busy schedule to coordinate a food drive of this magnitude,” Rennix said. “Rarely, do you see companies step up and bring awareness to a cause such as food insecurity as well as highlight the services and work being done at a local community non-profit agency. The food that is collected and donated is always appreciated by the clients we serve.”
For the last six years, Cummins has partnered with Peter Pan Bus Lines and Stop & Shop grocery stores to have the annual Stuff-A-Bus Food Drive for Springfield’s Open Pantry. The event is staffed entirely by Cummins employees and their families, collecting non-perishable food items into an old-fashioned double-decker bus. The food is then transported to Open Pantry for distribution to qualifying clients.
Open Pantry regularly receives support from schools, civic organization, churches, local businesses and corporations that coordinate food drives and have fundraisers for monetary donations.
“The team and I are fortunate enough to see the faces of families, individuals and kids we help every day, and there is no greater feeling than to know that you have changed someone’s life in a small way for the better,” Rennix said. “Sometimes as a society we can get lost in our own worlds and forget that there are individuals who do not know where their next meal will come from.”
For more information, call 413-737-5354.
IF YOU GO
Event: Stuff-A-Bus
When: May 24, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Where: Stop & Shop, 1600 Boston Road, Springfield
Benefits: Open Pantry Community Services Inc.
For more information: Call 413-737-5354
