Neighbors Feeding Neighbors

As the holidays approach, food pantries along the Sheyenne River are gearing up for their busiest season. The river winds through Griggs, Barnes and Cass counties, and pantries from Cooperstown and Finley to Valley City and the Fargo metro see a wave of volunteers and donations crossing county lines this time of year.

Behind the shelves and the boxes are neighbors like Gene Loge and Linda McKenna, who have spent years making sure no one in their community goes without a good meal.

The “Godfather” of Bread of Life

Bread of Life Food Pantry serves all of Griggs County. The shelves are stocked by individual donations, community food drives, and the monthly truck from Fargo. According to pantry president Farrah Saxberg, boxes of non-perishable food are ready for pickup each third Wednesday of every month, or whenever someone needs one.

At Christmas, the pantry puts a year’s worth of cash donations to work. Saxberg says volunteers special-order fresh holiday foods like ham, milk, eggs, bread, vegetables, fruit and pies, so families can gather for the traditional holiday flavors.

Gene Loge has helped make that happen for about 15 years. “He’s like our Godfather of the Food Pantry,” Saxberg jokes. “He’s always there. He was once straight out of the hospital and still made it to the food pantry.”

A retired farmer, Gene got involved almost by accident. Over coffee in town one morning, the guys at the table mentioned a food pantry truck coming in that needed unloading. “Well, golly, I’ll help you guys with that,” he told them. “So, I did.” Those men served on the pantry board at the time. Gene eventually took their place, and he still serves on the board today.

Very little keeps him away. A long hospital stay last summer slowed him down, and his hips make packing boxes harder these days. So, he has shifted to coordinating: tracking the pantry’s inventory on paper and helping organize the Christmas baskets.

“It’s necessary work. Somebody has to do it,” Gene says. “I’m certainly concerned with the poor and having enough food. I would do anything to help with that. These are our friends and neighbors, and they need food in our community.”

He is still amazed by the support. “It’s incredible. We have, at times, thousands of dollars to buy fresh holiday food through cash donations,” he says. “It’s really a year-round food drive. It’s just amazing.”

Keeping the Shelves Full in Barnes County

Linda McKenna, 75, has volunteered at the Barnes County Food Pantry for about the same amount of time as Gene, roughly 15 years. She also delivers Meals on Wheels through the local Senior Center.

“It’s quite amazing what people will donate,” she says. “It’s a wonderful community. I don’t know what other communities do, but ours has always kept our shelves full.”

Like Gene, she says someone has to get all that food on the shelves, so she helps to receive donations and arrange products in the storage room like a grocery store: pastas, soups, mashed potatoes, spaghetti and sauce, pancake and waffle mix, canned meats and peanut butter. “Those are usually items that are easily made, and they go a longer way too,” she says. “Spaghetti, soups, pastas fill bellies for not a lot of money. They make for a nice meal that we all enjoy eating.”

Once a month, volunteers in Barnes County also pack boxes for individuals and families, filled with non-perishable foods, toiletries, and frozen foods.

The holidays bring extras. Some donations arrive as gift packages, like a cake container full of cake mix and icing. Others are Thanksgiving staples: cranberries, olives, yams, canned potatoes, gravy and stuffing. Linda says at holiday time, the pantry also hands out coupons for fresh foods, like milk, eggs, fruit, and fresh vegetables from a local grocer.

“At least you know they’re able to have a good meal, especially during the holidays,” Linda says. “You don’t want anybody to go hungry during the holidays especially.”

For Linda, the best part is the people. She has lived in the community her whole life, so she already knows many of the folks who come in, and she gets to know the rest on a first-name basis. “To see the generosity in our community is just amazing,” she adds. “I just marvel at how generous people are in our community.”

Want to help this season? Reach out to your local food pantry about donations or volunteer shifts. Food drives keep the shelves stocked, and cash gifts help pantries buy the fresh foods that make a holiday meal special.