Bluffton Self Help reopens free indoor pantry. Here’s when you can get your groceries
After more than a year of being closed due to the coronavirus, Bluffton Self Help’s free indoor food pantry will welcome shoppers back on May 26.
Last March, the nonprofit shifted operations outside to a drive-thru pantry where clients could pick up produce, dairy, eggs, meat, baked goods and canned food as they had inside. According to a press release from the nonprofit, 40% of the people who went through the drive-thru pantry had never asked for help before.
The COVID-19 pandemic has devastated low-income people, as many found themselves unemployed or sick. In December, Bluffton Self Help reported that requests for help had increased by 35% since the pandemic began.
Danielle Dekruif, Bluffton Self Help’s marketing and communications manager, said the need has “evened out,” though not decreased, as the pandemic has improved over the last several months.
“[Many people] are still paying catch up from the last year,” she said. “We still continue to serve.”
Starting May 26, clients will be able to go inside for groceries on Wednesdays from 10 a.m. to noon and 4 to 6 p.m., and on Fridays 10 a.m. to noon. Drive-thru pick up will continue on Mondays from 4 to 6 p.m.
Each year Bluffton Self Help supplies more than 500,000 pounds of groceries, toiletries, cleaning products and meals to 1,100 Bluffton households for free, the press release said. There are no income requirements.
“With the new market layout, we want neighbors to feel comfortable coming into our pantry,” said program manager Julia Violi in the press release. “The goal is to make the shopping experience similar to how it feels when shopping at the grocery store.”
For more information, visit https://www.blufftonselfhelp.org/.
