By Stephanie Prokop, Staff Writer
BORDENTOWN CITY — As the holidays draw closer and families prepare to feast on a full turkey with all the trimmings, many volunteers throughout the region struggle to keep food in their pantries.
With the economy in distress, the pantry supplies are lower than ever and the need is immediate, said Rose Marie Harris, a food pantry coordinator with St. Mary’s Church.
With the national unemployment rate up to nearly 6.5 percent this week, the highest it has been since the early 1990s, the need for basics such as food and toiletries are now more pressing than ever, she added.
Partnering with local Boy Scout troops, the parish is always on the lookout for food donations as it continues to stock the pantry and get ready for its annual year-end drive with the Boy Scouts.
Residents of many area towns have been asked to leave donations of canned goods, bottled goods (glass or plastic), powdered goods and baby formula out on their porch or front door this Saturday morning at 8 a.m. in bags that were distributed last week by Boy Scout troops.
The most important phrase to remember while donating, said Ms. Harris on Wednesday, is “shelf life.”
“Anything that is nonperishable,” she said, “which includes canned vegetables, soups, meats, pasta sauces, pasta, cereals, and canned fruit are all great examples,” she added.
The food pantry that is run out of St. Mary’s Church serves five communities: Bordentown City, Bordentown Township, Chesterfield, Fieldsboro, and Mansfield.
Mak Kieffer, proprietor of Silk and Tweed on Farnsworth Avenue, said Tuesday she learned of the dire state that the food pantry is in at an interfaith conference recently, where the Trenton Area Soup Kitchen and St. Mary’s were represented.
“Food kitchens are feeding 30 percent of working poor families. These are families who just can’t get enough food to their tables,” she said.
St. Mary’s receives regular bread donations from Bordentown Bagel, and hands out packaged food to families who live along the Route 130 and Route 206 corridor.
Anyone who is interested in donating food to St. Mary’s can contact Ms. Harris at 609-298-0261.

