November brought some poignant moments that I’d like to share with you, as I once again gratefully remember your generosity in my prayers.   This outreach ministry is successful because of the efforts of all those who support it.

• Eric Kugler, Anne Mellinger and I packed 100 bags of groceries in preparation for our Community Thanksgiving Dinner.  One day, while we were packing, a gaunt looking woman came to the door and asked if we had any food for her, she said she was “so hungry.” We gave her a bag of groceries and invited her to come back on Wednesday to have Thanksgiving dinner with us. 
• During our Thanksgiving celebration, two of our parish neighbors happily told us that they had landed retail jobs for the holiday season.  They were delighted to find clothes nice enough to wear to work in our Friendly Closet.  
• On the Sunday after Thanksgiving, a man with two small children walked into the church at the beginning of Children’s Chapel.  He asked if we had any food for him, he had just moved into the neighborhood and the paperwork for his food stamps hadn’t cleared yet.  Our children helped me pack a bag with what was left in the pantry, and we were also able to give another bag that someone had forgotten to take home from our Thanksgiving dinner.  He was even able to use the children’s clothing that had been put into the left-behind bag!

Thank you for supporting the Friendly Pantry through your prayers, donations, shopping, and help with packing and distributing groceries throughout the year.

-Anne Schwan