Food Pantry Struggles to Meet Growing Need in Elkhart

by Ed Ernstes (ernstes@wsbt.com)

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Food pantry at Church Community Services in Elkhart

Church Community Services in Elkhart is struggling to meet the needs of a growing number of families who use their food pantry. (WSBT photo)

By Beth Boehne

Story Created: Nov 26, 2007 at 5:00 PM EST

Story Updated: Dec 10, 2007 at 11:15 PM EST

(WSBT) Food pantries are feeling the pinch right now as they try to help people in need for the holidays.

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People at Church Community Services in Elkhart are having to turn away families.

Shelly Rose of Elkhart makes the trip to the food pantry at Church Community Services when she can. She's one of a growing number of local families who uses the food provided there to make ends meet.

“My husband and my son are both disabled, so that makes me the sole caregiver in the family,” Rose explained. “So I am not able to work to bring in any money, and we are existing strictly on disability income.”

The number of families applying for food has gone up considerably as the holidays get closer. Some days it is up to 150.

"Typically we serve any where from 90 to 110 or 120, that's kind of a maximum for us,” said Dean Preheim-Bartel of Church Community Services. “After those high numbers, we actually dropped the number down to a maximum of 100 families a day. And then we started hitting that number by 1:30 or 2 o'clock in the afternoon already. So it’s been really intense.”

As of Monday, the agency decided to lift any restrictions that it had on the number of families that can be served, and only hopes that community donations can keep the operation going.

“We are going to take the limit off, and we are just going to serve whoever comes until our regular hours close, which is 3:45 in the afternoon,” said Preheim-Bartel. “So we have taken the limits off, even though we don't necessarily have the food to back it up."

Church Community Services will continue to give away the food that it has until supplies run out.

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