by
Helen M. Davis Rumors have been swirling around tiny Monroe with the intensity of a small tornado. Word has it the South Benton Food Pantry is going to begin feeding the homeless and many are worried about the impact the arrival of the unhoused en masse may have on their town. It is a fear that is unfounded as employee Janeece Cook explains what has really taken place. Due to the dilapidated state of the old building, last November, the food pantry purchased the United Methodist Church. However, it was not done to invite homeless people to come and stay in Monroe. Rather, it was done with the intent to offer community meals for seniors, provide classes via an extension service and to be able to rent the kitchen out to the community. Currently, the food panty has been hard at work remodeling the kitchen and they plan to begin the senior dinners in June. The church building has been renamed Heritage Hall and while people do still attend church services in it, there is the potential for concerts to be held. Cook stresses that the food pantry does not house the homeless, though the pantry did have to pay $500 for the towing of the car of a homeless woman who had taken up residence in the food pantry parking lot. The woman was assisted by being moved the property of a local landowner after getting it okayed, and the pantry took steps to secure the additional help she needed as well. Cook, who says the food pantry follows the Monroe School District’s definition of homelessness, which includes couch surfing and the nearby travel trailer park, says they are seeing many more families in need of assistance with 50 families a week being given food. Food boxes are also distributed to the homebound once a month. The South Benton Food Pantry also opens the doors to their facility for others to use such as Sheba, which helps seniors understand medicare, Samaritan Health Services, which does a survey to get a picture of food insecurity in the area, and Cardva, the Center Against Rape and Domestic Violence, which has an advocate at the pantry to meet with clients in a safe location. Upstairs, Alcoholics Anonymous meets twice a week on Wednesdays and Saturdays. The pantry also purchased the parsonage on the church property, but it needs a lot of work. Once this is complete, the goal is to have it available to rent below market value come June. Fundraising is currently in progress to aid in achieving this purpose and the food pantry will be sponsoring Art in the Park, to be held at Monroe Elementary this year. It’s a busy place, this food pantry, and Cook wants the rumors put to rest once and for all where the homeless are concerned. This is a place that helps, and does so willingly, but no shelter is planned, and people do not have to be concerned about the flavor of their town changing as this most certainly is not the case. Rather, the South Benton Food Pantry wants to enhance the experience of living in Monroe and to help those who need it make it through the month without going hungry. If others can use their facility to help make life better for those who are less fortunate, then so much the better. It could be any one of us who is in need, and we should be grateful for the presence of a food pantry that is there to help in a myriad of ways. Comments are closed.
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