Luken Daily Bread partners with a number of organizations, including Schenectady Shares, Concerned for the Hungry, the Carlilian Foundation and Schenectady Food Providers, to stock the pantry shelves in the main pantry at St. Luke’s each week.
After realizing that an additional pantry location was needed to provide better access to clients, the partners worked with St. Luke’s to create the satellite pantry at Holy Name of Jesus Church.
“We’ve realized that there’s no food left in Mont Pleasant. There are no stores or grocery stores, not even a corner store,” said Jacqueline Clute, manager of the Daily Bread location in Mont Pleasant. “We’ve seen so many times that the people who come to our pantry can take the bus to other pantries, but it’s very difficult to carry 11 or 12 bags in there.”
After recognizing the problem of transportation and accessibility to the main pantry, Daily Bread Food Pantry received several grants and donations to open the Mont Pleasant branch. Schenectady Shares provided an initial investment of $10,000, followed by a $20,000 donation from Concerned for the Hungry.
Additional grants from the Rotary Club of Schenectady Foundation and the Carlilian Foundation to Concerned for the Hungry enabled the new pantry to be equipped with vital appliances such as a refrigerator and walk-in freezer.
“If you want to run a food bank, you have to be cooperative and willing to work together to make it happen,” Clute said.
The Mont Pleasant location is open every Monday from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. and the St. Luke’s location is open Tuesday through Thursday and the second Saturday of every month from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Having opened its doors for the first time on July 29, the Mont Pleasant pantry now has 70 volunteers and is a success.
“The first Monday we opened the kitchen, we served 28 households, 98 people, a total of 980 meals,” Clute said. “Many of the families we served were completely new to the Hatch food bank.”
Given the number of visitors to the Mont Pleasant pantry, Clute said the results exceeded all expectations.
“We seem to be getting a lot of new people,” she said. “At first we hoped it would relieve some of the pressure on the main distribution point, but what it’s really done is identify more people who need help that we didn’t know about before.”
The Daily Bread Food Pantry locations both operate on an ordering system that allows customers to order specific foods they want over the phone. This is done to keep the pantry inclusive and to allow all people with certain dietary restrictions to have access to certain foods they need.
“Other food banks often give people food packets that contain things they can’t eat,” Clute said. “The beauty of letting people choose their own food is that we can meet everyone’s needs.”
This strategy also avoids food waste.
“There is really no food waste in our pantries,” Clute said. “Any leftovers are donated to other pantries in Schenectady County where they are needed, and when people can choose what they want to take home, there is no waste.”
The Luken Daily Bread Food Pantry also wants to encourage its clients to seek help when they need it, helping to reduce the stigma often associated with going to a food bank.
“We are fortunate to be able to speak to our guests on site every day. We talk to them on the phone and have conversations,” Clute said. “We get to know them, which shows them our respect and gives them a greater sense of dignity and self-worth.”
The Mont Pleasant Pantry already has ideas on how to improve in the future and provide more resources to the public.
“We’ve already had discussions with the county … We’d like to set up a DSS (Department of Social Services) satellite office in our building where people can get additional help and sign up for things like SNAP benefits and other resources,” Clute said.
With its newest location, Daily Bread aims to help all people in need, no matter their life story.
“Everyone falls on hard times, no matter who you are,” Clute said. “We’re here to provide a bridge for people between the hard times and the not-so-hard times.”
To get involved with the Luken Daily Bread Food Pantry or for more information, visit www.stlukesschenectady.org.
