EAST CHICAGO – Although it may not always be apparent, there are many families across Northwest Indiana who struggle to feed their families on a consistent basis. While there may be some months where finances are fine, there can be other periods of time that are more challenging due to an unexpected bill or a reduction in income.
The Diocese of Gary Catholic Charities Food Pantry continues to be a great place for those families to turn to for assistance.
The brick-and-mortar pantry at 3901 Fir St. in East Chicago is open on the first four Fridays of every month, with hours from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m., and closed on the fifth Friday if there is one.
“With the exception of one day the first of the month and a day or two at the end of the month, we are also operating a mobile pantry, delivering to elderly, homeless and veterans,” said Tina Gunnum, food pantry manager. “We fill in our days with picking up food at various places and delivering to the 59 homebound individuals we currently serve."
In addition, the pantry delivers to homeless students in the local high school after operations on Fridays. It also picks up donated clothes and household items and, in some cases, will deliver furniture.
With the holidays approaching, Catholic Charities Food Pantry is preparing to distribute Thanksgiving Day food as well as the regular food items it normally provides. In December, it will once again attach toys to popcorn and distribute them at the Mayor’s Christmas extravaganza. Per tradition, it will also take boxes with toys for children to Head Start and deliver boxes with items the elderly can use to a low-income elderly complex as well as several seniors who are homebound.
Gunnum said the biggest challenge right now for the pantry is the building it operates in. Every month 15,000 lbs. or more of food are unloaded by hand and placed on carts and pushed and pulled through a single door.
“There is no way for us to unload the pallets and even if we could, the hand jack will not fit through our door,” she explained. “We handle the food over and over again because there is no room to put the food and make all the bags to go out the door.”
When asked what the diocesan community could do to help the Catholic Charities Food Pantry, Gunnum said, “Prayer would be my first request. We cannot do the Lord’s work successfully without Him.”
Her second request is for more volunteers. “The load is lighter with many hands,” she said.
Gunnum’s third and final request would be for donations She stated, “With the rise in food costs, we are seeing more people needing food and it is getting harder for us to obtain the food with our current grants.”
Gunnum stressed that the Catholic Charities Food Pantry has become much more than an average pantry. “We are the hands and feet of Christ serving those in need,” she said. “Anyone who has visited our pantry has said we are more like a hunger relief facility with all that we serve and do.”
Helping to fill in the voids within its mission are the partnerships Catholic Charities has developed. This year Catholic Charities partnered with Grace to Griddle, which cooked breakfast for all local residents while the pantry passed out food. It works with Northshore Health, offering services and items to people in need of medical attention, including dental and vision. It also partnered with Purdue Extension Service to write a grant for 13 raised garden beds to grow produce for the low-income elderly and veterans.
“Catholic Charities, Tina and her team are true champions to us at Purdue NEP, and so many in the area,” said Erin Sherrow-Hayse, community wellness coordinator. “As a community wellness coordinator, a large part of my work is in food security and health equity. The impact of a family having access to food plays a huge role in a family's health outcome. Having partners like Catholic Charities, make it possible for families in our area to have this most vital need met.”
Working with Humana, Catholic Charities filled donated Easter buckets with items for low-income children. Humana later donated small coolers that the pantry filled with a taco meal and gave to veterans who attended the annual Stand Down event in Valparaiso.
“Representatives from Humana accompany us everywhere we go, offering to answer insurance questions and set people up with free benefits from the state,” shared Gunnum.
Catholic Charities Food Pantry also joined with the Knights of Columbus in Griffith to supply 1,000 children with lunch boxes filled with food and Clifton Larson Allen LLP to distribute bookbags with school supplies to students.
In addition to those charitable acts, members of Catholic Charities attended a dinner to support women rescued from human/sex trafficking, teamed up with a local council woman to give away “Seeds of Hope” during a breast cancer survivor event, and celebrated a 92-year-old volunteer, John “Jack” Halton, as he received the National Catholic Charities USA volunteer of the year award.
“I think that was a thrill, having Jack named the national volunteer of the year, and was much deserved,” said fellow volunteer Ruth Polito, of Schererville. “It brought extra attention to the pantry, which was good.”
Polito, who has been assisting the pantry for six years, said she still feels joy when distributing food and seeing how appreciative and thankful those who receive it are at each distribution.
“That is the purpose of the work we do,” she said, “and we have a good time doing it, I must admit. All the volunteers and paid members work well together.”
To donate or learn more about the Diocese of Gary Catholic Charities Food Pantry program, visit catholic-charities.org/ourministry/food-pantry.
Caption: Food pantry volunteer Ruthie Polito helps gather grocery items for clients at the Catholic Charities location in East Chicago during operation hours on the morning of Nov. 8. The pantry has already begun adding special food items to distribution ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday. (Erin Ciszczon photo)