By Taylor Boyd
The Patrick Springs Pentecostal Holiness Church Food Ministry is offering food to those in need three days a week.
Teresa Martin, a member of the ministry, said the organization originally started in 2009 as a bread ministry which offered bread to those in need.
“It was strictly bread there for a pretty good while. After the bread, they started venturing out a little bit with nonperishable goods, just small amounts. In 2011, the church built this building,” which currently houses the food bank, she said.
She said the ministry also has no paycheck stipulations for people coming in for food.
“All we ask is for you to sign your name and the number of people in your house.”
Martin said the ministry gives according to what it has on hand.
Produce and fruit primarily is from Walmart and Lowes Foods, but the ministry also offers breads, canned foods, dry goods, food staples, meats, desserts, and drinks.
“We usually try to give at least one meat to a family, sometimes two. According to our abundance sometimes we have given three,” she said, adding that people leave with full boxes.
“We go every two weeks to God’s Pit Crew and pick up two pallets of food. One will be a pallet of produce and sometimes bread, and one pallet will be miscellaneous things – household goods, cereals, oatmeal, candies,” she said.
Martin said the ministry tries hard to make sure that its clients have something that they want and something that they need.
“We don’t try to push stuff off on them that they don’t want, and give them a choice going down the line, ‘do you want this, do you want that,’” she said.
The ministry usually serves anywhere from 800 to 950 people a month, but served more before the COVID-19 pandemic, Martin said.
“We have a lot of elderly people tell us that they’re scared to come out,” she added.
The organization has remained open during the pandemic besides being shut down for two weeks over Christmas.
“It shut the doors so normal people couldn’t come in, but we still had food coming in and going out” to the community, she said.
Martin said the organization does not deliver food boxes out to the community.
While the ministry serves Patrick County, Martin said the group also is willing to serve those outside the county.
The food ministry is open Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. For more information call (276) 694-6357.
