In early June, Matthew 25:35 Ministries, a local food pantry and community ministry that partners with Second Harvest Food Bank, posted photos to Facebook with nearly bare shelves.
“We would be blessed by your help,” the post read. “Second Harvest is very limited with the food they have to share.”
Less than a week later, the Destrehan organization made another post praising the community for its donations and contributions. The community had stepped up: Grand Ridge Country Club in Willowdale set up a donation site on the West Bank, Shell and Valero held food drives, and Sacred Heart Church brought food from their pantry to help fill shelves. The pantry also received support from OxyChem, the Rotary Club, Cajun Fishing Adventures and others.
“Many have stopped by with food and funds since we announced our shelves were almost empty,” the post read. “There is no way to list everyone, but thank you to all!”
Mary Anne Schindler, director of Matthew 25:35 Ministries, said people want to help when there is a need. The pantry serves around 300-350 households each month, with distribution events on Wednesdays at 1905 Ormond Boulevard in Destrehan.
“The community has responded as they always do – with a huge open heart,” Schindler said. “St. Charles Parish has a community that steps forward and helps to take care of their own. Individual families have donated, people have begun giving us the BOGO’s they get while shopping, monetary donations have increased for us to get sales from grocers we work with.”
Schindler said that summer is always a slower time for food donations and the source of food fluctuates with grants, donations and purchased food. But each week the pantry orders a truck of food from Second Harvest Food Bank, which relies on food from the U.S. Department of Agriculture for about 40 percent of its meals. In March, the USDA canceled funding for two federal programs that provided over $1 billion in aid to food banks and schools.
The cutbacks have resulted in shortages of food shipments to Second Harvest Food Bank and other organizations. John Sillars, chief strategy officer for the food bank, told Fox8 that the organization expected to lose 1.2 million meals between now and August.
The USDA also canceled $500 million in funding for food banks through the Emergency Food Assistance Program, a federal program that helps supplement the diet of low-income individuals.
Schindler said that Second Harvest is in an audit for the month of June, which has contributed to the shortages.
“We usually get 10,000 pounds of food just from Second Harvest each week,” she said. “This month we have had weeks with 0 pounds up to 3,900 pounds of food. At a conference we attended in April we did learn that the USDA trucks going to the food banks in the state were also less than they anticipated.”
She said the pantry is planning food drives because of the uncertainty around federal funding through the USDA.
Loreli Amy Rogers, the Matthew 25:35 Ministries Board Vice President and distribution coordinator, said the pantry will continue to serve the community as best as it can.
“We also want to thank those who have contributed,” Rogers said. “We couldn’t do it without their support.”
She said the pantry’s clients are St. Charles Parish residents with low incomes.
“The community members that need our services can be anyone,” Rogers said. “Some clients need temporary help and some need ongoing [help]. Anyone can easily find themselves in a position to need our services.”
Schindler said the ministry mainly needs prayers for their clients and their volunteers and prayers for the operation of the ministry. The pantry accepts any nonperishable food, and it encourages businesses cleaning out and restocking their supplies to think of donating to the pantry.
“We like to give at least two items that can be used for breakfast, for lunch, for dinner and for a treat,” she said. “We always want to hand our clients the most possible. We apply for grants and depend on industry and the community to help with supporting the pantry.”
The items the pantry always needs are canned tuna or chicken, soups, canned fruit, spaghetti, canned spaghetti sauce, jelly in plastic containers, grits and oatmeal, food bars, boxed meals, SpaghettiOs or something similar, cake mix, cookie mix, or brownie mix. The pantry is also seeking personal hygiene items like bar soap, hand soap, toothpaste and toothbrushes. St. Charles United Methodist Church’s Fellowship Hall Porch is a drop off point for the East Bank.
According to Feeding America, more than 47 million people in the U.S. face hunger, including 1 in 5 children. In 2023 alone, more than 50 million people turned to food assistance for extra help.
