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03/10/2023 09:07 AMWith pandemic-era food assistance programs coming to an end and prices at grocery stores impacted by inflation, the East Haven Food Pantry is continuing to provide help for East Haven families and individuals in need of food.
“The food pantry has stayed very busy during and since COVID,” said Christine Sanford, president of the pantry. “East Haven residents can come twice in a calendar month. We are very grateful to Christ and the Epiphany Church for housing the food pantry, and we give them a monthly stipend for their generosity.”
The pantry, based at Christ and the Epiphany Church, works with other churches, East Haven Public Schools, the East Haven Police Department, and the local Lion’s Club to collect food donations. It is now also part of Connecticut Foodshare, a state-wide nonprofit that networks with pantries like East Haven’s and supermarkets like Stop and Shop and Bishops. Lined up on tables outside the right side of the church are bags and other packages containing donated pre-made meals from those stores, including sandwiches, fried chicken, salads, and snacks.
“These donations are very important to keep us going,” said Sanford.
Sanford said that although donation rates to the pantry are around pre-pandemic levels, “with prices of everything going up, more families are coming to the pantry,” at a rate higher than before the arrival of COVID-19. She added that while the number of people coming to the pantry has “gone down from the time of the pandemic, when between 80 to 90 families would come to the pantry, overall, there are still more visitors to the church than before the onslaught of the coronavirus.
According to Sanford, between 200 to 300-plus families have come to pick up food at the pantry in the past few months.
“Our numbers are definitely higher than it was before the pandemic. Maybe more people found that we were here; more people were struggling and trying to make it,” said Sanford. “Now it’s gradually moving up again…with prices going up and assistance going down, our numbers are gradual.”
Sanford connected increased help to other financial strains, such as increased utility costs for gas and electricity, as contributing factors to the increased number of visits.
“All those other things have kept it, too. If your electricity goes up and your gas goes up... so, we like to look at it that we are filling the gap so that what they get here, they don’t have to buy [food], then use it towards something else,” she said.
Sanford said while the pandemic caused the pantry to reduce its operating hours from three to two days a week, one less date “really hasn’t affected us.”
While food is organized in the church’s basement and handed to visitors, a van from the East Haven Board of Education picks up some of these bags and containers to bring to homebound residents in need of food assistance.
“We will come to you if you absolutely need it if you really can’t get out of the house,” said volunteer Jessica Leone. “It’s nice because it’s like a wellness check… it’s nice to know that you can go in and check on people. We’re the only faces they see. It’s nice to know just that [our volunteers] are making some kind of connection, seeing if they’re OK, and then they are getting their food, so it’s a win-win.”
One of the other ways the pantry ensures it can connect with more people in town is through the online development of its own independent space. At a meeting on March 1, the pantry’s board discussed bolstering both their website and profile on social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram. These efforts are currently being spearheaded by Leone, who wants their renewed digital presence to be accessible and inclusive for everyone to know how to give and accept food from the pantry.
“I’m in the process of creating that for them that will have everything in one area,” Leone said. “We’re working on getting some version in Spanish, so people know what to come and bring, and what they need on them to get food. It’s very user-friendly; I have it so anybody who needs it knows what’s going on. It’s great to have something because [social media] is where most young people are now.”
The pantry is taking an additional digital step by establishing its own PayPal account “so people can donate in multiple, different ways,” according to Leone. She said they also aim to “build out some kind of newsletter for our donors, so people know what’s going on in the community, particularly for the senior population.
In regards to volunteer opportunities, Leone said the pantry is looking for both Spanish-speaking volunteers and young people in East Haven, the latter of whom also can fulfill community service hours along the way.
"[Social media] was one place that we were lacking, and we knew it. But we were too busy serving the public,” said Sanford. “So, it’s nice when you get new volunteers with different visions on what needs to get done and offer their services. Because we are all [a] totally volunteer organization, so any donations we get goes through running the pantry and buying whatever it is we may need.”