FOND DU LAC - Lighthouse Christian Church has operated a food pantry ministry in the city for more than 30 years, but they go about it in quiet ways.
Since its inception in the mid-1990s, the small-but-sure pantry has provided free groceries to thousands of people in Fond du Lac who’ve needed a helping hand at some point in their lives.
Personal and economic circumstances for anyone can change in an instant, said Ronnell Gibson, the pantry's director. Clients who come their way are often disabled or elderly, with little or no income, or are from families who have fallen on hard times.
“It may be that a husband and father got injured at work or it could be a divorce situation where one provider has left the family,” Gibson said. “We get to know their needs so we can customize what we provide for them.”
The food pantry is one of the congregation’s commitments to community outreach, and is meant to improve quality of life in Fond du Lac.
“In the beginning, there weren’t as many resources available for people in the community who were struggling,” Gibson said. “We wanted to be able to offer help to people in a very practical way.”
Today, the church pantry is on track to surpass last year’s serving numbers: 1,800 clients from 586 families. Many make their way to Lighthouse Church through word of mouth, or are referred there by other local agencies, like Salvation Army and Fond du Lac County’s Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program.
Lighthouse Christian Church Food Pantry is a first-time recipient of Stock the Shelves, USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin's annual campaign that encourages readers to donate money to help fight hunger. The campaign runs throughout October, which is hunger awareness month.
Stock the Shelves has raised nearly $5 million for food pantries across northeast and central Wisconsin since 2010. Support came from readers and community partners.
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This year's goal aims to raise enough money to provide 1 million meals to people in need. Funds raised in communities will stay in those communities, managed by the nonprofit food bank Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin.
The physical pantry at Lighthouse is housed in a storage room equipped with shelving and several freezers. A kitchen nearby is also used to store items. Gibson and four helpers serve clients — by appointment only — from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays at the church location, 401 S. National Ave.
Clients can sign up to receive food every 60 days by providing photo identification and proof of address. Gibson said their giving is not based on income, because they want to ensure the ability to "help where ever they can."
Food is provided by a congregation of around 300 members and a partnership with Feeding America, the nation’s largest domestic hunger-relief organization. Its network of 200 food banks across the country include food distribution centers located in Milwaukee and Appleton.
Lighthouse Christian Food Pantry also receives food from local businesses. Each week a table set up in the church foyer is filled with bread and baked goods free for the taking — donated by Panera Bread in Fond du Lac. Kwik Trip convenience stores provide the pantry with items including meat, fruit cups and packaged sandwiches, which are added to the food boxes.
Each client receives a customized box of food with staples that include cereal, tuna, peanut butter, pasta and rice, along with essentials for a couple meals and a bag of frozen meat, Gibson said.
“I will make up a box, based on need, like the number of people in the household, and geared to their dynamics, if anyone has food allergies, for example," she said.
Gibson said it’s a privilege to get to know the people who come through their doors and hear their stories. She offers them compassion and a human connection.
“It can be shameful and embarrassing for people to have to ask for food,” she said. “I greet them with a smile and they tell me about their lives. It’s great to watch a kid’s face light up from getting something as simple as a box of granola bars.”
The church also offers counseling to clients who request guidance, available by appointment, and can help connect people to other resources within the community.
Lighthouse Church is a nondenominational congregation affiliated with the Fellowship of Christian Assemblies — a Pentecostal Christian association. Locally, its mission is “to radiate the warm and light of God’s love in our everyday lives.”
“The food pantry is one way we can shine our light on the community, and that’s why we have kept it going for so many years,” Gibson said.
God seem to know what they need, she adds, and recalls the day they received 24 cupcakes as a donation.
“At the same time I just happened to be making up a box for a family whose child was having a birthday. We go into preparing each one with the hope we can put together something a person will be blessed by,” she said.
Appointments for food can be made by calling the church office at 920-921-3477.
Contact Sharon Roznik at 920-907-7936 or sroznik@gannett.com. Follow her on Facebook at facebook.com/reporterroz/
Donate to Stock the Shelves
You can donate to USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin's Stock the Shelves program by going to feedingamericawi.org
You can also send checks payable to Feeding American Eastern Wisconsin, ATTN: Stock the Shelves, 2911 W. Evergreen Drive, Appleton, WI 54913. Indicate how your name should be listed, if you want to remain anonymous or if you would like it donated in memory of someone.
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