Archive: Around Town

When the Lansing Food Pantry opens its doors on October 27th they will be new doors.  After a quarter of a century operating at the Lansing United Methodist Church (LUMC), the Community Recreation Center, Incorporated, better known as The RINK and The FIELD, has donated space in a former storage area below the upstairs health club.

"We were short of space at the church, very short of space," says Food Pantry Director Nancy Myers.  "All this was in a small space, a closet that we were sharing with the rest of the church.  Now this is all ours.  It's absolutely a dream.  It took us a good two hours to set up in the morning, and perhaps an hour to take down at night.  Now we walk out at night and lock the door."

Joy Cruikshank, who was married to the LUMC Pastor William Cruikshank, started the food pantry in 1988 at the Lansing Community Center.  It moved to LUMC in 1989.  Mary Searles was the next food pantry director until Myers took over the position 11 years ago.  The new space came about when Community Recreation Center board member Andy Sciarabba, whose wife and daughter volunteer for the Food Pantry, heard it had outgrown its space at LUMC and asked the board whether they would donate the space.  They agreed.

"When we formed the Community Rec Center the first word we picked out was 'community'," Sciarabba says.  "We wanted it to be more than just recreation."


The board chose a space right next to both an entrance door and a large loading door that leads to the parking lot, which will make deliveries from the Food Bank of the Southern Tier much easier to accept.  It also provides a private entrance, away from the public lobby used by athletic facilities users, for families who are in need.  The decision was made only one month ago, and, with a little help from their friends, the new location will be ready to open on October 27.  At the church deliveries came to the front door and had to be carted over a distance through the narthex and fellowship hall to the storage closet.

"I contacted D-Square (Doug Dake and Doug Boles) and said these guys need a wall," Sciarraba says.  "They are Lansing boys, and Bill Duthe did all the painting, another Lansing boy.  The parking lot gives access to people and the mobile truck.  They have the security they need, and they can enlarge their offerings at the same time.  We're happy as long as they're happy."

Larry Young, of Richardson Brothers Electricians, installed electrical fixtures and lighting.  Meg and Eric Keilbach, Sam Myers, John and Mary Orr moved racks and shelving from the church to the new location, and Andy Boerman and Scott Pronti moved the industrial-sized refrigerator and double-door commercial freezer.  Sciarabba donated a wheeled food rack, and is providing new shopping carts from Lansing Market.  He says that at some time in the near future he would also like to provide a vinyl or rubber floor to complete the room.

On the fourth Monday of each month families sign in, then take a shopping cart through the Food Pantry to collect the food they want.  They are given paper grocery bags to bring the food home in.

The Mobile Food Pantry will come to the new location on the second Monday of each month from 10am to 11am.  The monthly indoors Food Pantry is on the fourth Monday of each month from 1pm to 3pm.  She already has been preparing grocery bags for eight families who can't come to the Food Pantry during its regular hours because they are working at that time.  Friends or family must pick up the bags for them.

Myers says about 40 volunteers make the monthly Food Pantry happen.  Some come in the morning to unload the truck, and others come for various other tasks throughout the day.  She says all told there are about 60 volunteers who participate at least some of the months.

While the Food Pantry was located at the church, it was not officially a church program.  However, LUMC had two other programs that coincided with Food Pantry days.  The Clothes Horse is a winter clothing give-away program, while the Giving Tree is provides Christmas gifts for those who are not able to afford to buy them for their families.  Families sign up with their children's ages, clothing sizes, etc., and the requests are placed on a tree, similar to Christmas ornaments.  Church members then take requests and fulfill them.  The presents are then distributed on the food pantry day before Christmas.  These programs will remain at the church, though they may continue to mirror food pantry day times.

"We think the Clothes Horse is going to continue," she says.  "We're not positive with that because the two people that were in charge of it aren't able to do it any more.   We do have some coats and boots and hats and winter stuff that we'd like to be able to distribute.  I think we may have enough people who may be able to man a table.   It doesn't require huge amounts of manpower."

October 27th will be the first Food Pantry day in the new space.  Myers says she will post volunteers at the church to direct people who don't know it has moved.

Myers says the dedicated space means that it could be opened more often.  She says the food is not an issue, and all it would require would be volunteers to make it happen.

"This is awesome," Sauter says.  "My prayer for this would be that in time we would have time and space for having two distributions per month.  The need is so great. There are so many people who need food."

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