Local Food Pantry Serves Community

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As a child growing up in Colorado, Stacy Holmquist often went hungry. Today she is a local agent for Prudential PenFed Realty, but she never forgot where she came from. That is why every week she and her husband, Nicholas, volunteer at the Haymarket Regional Food Pantry, otherwise known as H.O.P.E.

H.O.P.E. stands for Helping Other People Eat. It is a nonprofit organization that was started in 2005 by members of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Haymarket. Soon after, members of St. Stephen the Martyr Roman Catholic Church joined the board of directors. Now, many people of different faith organizations as well as secular individuals help support the charitable organization that helps more than 400 people per week.

Holmquist volunteers once a week by stocking shelves, organizing food and preparing bins for when people come to pick up food they need for themselves and their families.

“I find it real close to my heart, because I was one of those kids,” said Holmquist. She explained that growing up her school lunch was often the only meal she received all day.

“Typically there was no breakfast,” and she considered herself lucky when she had a bologna sandwich for dinner.

However, no one knew her family was financially struggling, because like most people, she sought to hide it from her peers, teachers and neighbors.

“You would never know. I had clothes that were handed down, but they looked clean,” Holmquist said.

Holmquist’s story is not unique. One fifth of all children in the United States go hungry, and 12 percent of Virginia families are food insecure. Of those Virginia families, 48 percent of them live in suburbs. And even though Prince William is the ninth wealthiest county in the nation that does not mean people are immune from poverty.

Eileen Smith is the Director of Marketing for H.O.P.E. Smith said the nonprofit organization reaches out to families all over the Bull Run region in Haymarket, Gainesville, Bristow, Manassas and Warrenton.

“It just keeps growing and growing and growing,” Smith said. “Everyone says the economy is getting better, but we don’t see that at the food pantry.”

Smith sees people from all walks of life: families with many children, single people and the elderly. H.O.P.E. helps people get the amount of food that they need, using a formula based on the number of people in the family so food is shared equitably. Still it is only enough food for maybe three full meals a week.

However, the people at H.O.P.E. pride themselves on making food accessible for people in need. They do not have to demonstrate finances or fill out lengthy forms.

Smith said they are always looking for more volunteers at H.O.P.E. Volunteers fill a variety of roles. They stock shelves, work at the desk and hand out food to the people in need.

H.O.P.E. makes it easy to volunteer. They accept people whether they can make a long-term or only a short-term commitment. Likewise, they work with young people volunteering for school or community projects, such as Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, confirmation or National Honor Society.

And they are also always in need of more food and donations. They have a drop off at local super markets: Giant in Dominion Valley and on Linton Hall Road, Wegmans on Route 29 and Food Lion in Haymarket. They also work with local businesses such as Next Level Fitness in Haymarket and Vertical Rock, an indoor climbing facility in Manassas.

Of course, people can also contact H.O.P.E. directly to find the best time to drop off a donation of food or money.

Local grocery stores also donated food to H.O.P.E., especially meat or refrigerated items, since most people will donate non-perishables.

H.O.P.E. is asking people to give what they can--not just through the holidays but all year long, since demand is growing.

Some of the items most needed at H.O.P.E. are toilet paper, juice boxes and mashed potatoes. Otherwise people can donate non-perishables by contacting H.O.P.E.

Smith said that H.O.P.E. has already prepared donation boxes for their families to take to celebrate Thanksgiving. They include turkeys and side dishes. They are now accepting donations, so they can provide a similar Christmas or holiday dinner that people can prepare in their own homes.

To help get everything H.O.P.E. needs, volunteers assist with community outreach as well. Holquist has organized donations campaigns from Building Bridges and Grass Roots networking groups to which she belongs. Through those networking connections, she has also been invited to speak at other networking groups, such as Bull Run Networking in Gainesville, which is also collecting items for H.O.P.E.

But people do not need to be part of a larger organization to donate or volunteer. Readers can visit the Haymarket Regional Food Pantry website and with a donation of time, items or money provide hope to their neighbors who are struggling.

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