SILER CITY — Diane Smith calls West Chatham Food Pantry a “well-oiled machine.”
And on an average day, when the pantry handles the orders of around 20 families, it’s not hard to see that machine at work.
The pantry, established in 2007, is open three days a week for two hours at a time at 2535 Old U.S. Hwy. 421 North in Siler City. When clients enter through the doors of the pantry, they may be greeted by longtime volunteer Gladys Glover at the front desk, who records orders of food items, given free of charge. It might be John Hall who next grabs the order slip and brings it to the back of the pantry, where Don Gardner or Eneida Jaimes begins filling bags with items ranging from chicken from Mountaire to jars of peanut butter and jelly to canned fruit.
Madeline Moffit, 88, has been visiting the pantry since 2008. She also picks up packaged food for her son. The pantry has been a big help to her, she said.
“I enjoy it because a lot of times, you get things that you wouldn’t normally buy,” she said.
Smith, the executive director of the food pantry, started in the position about four years ago. Prior to that, she volunteered with the WCFP, joining in 2007 — the same year the pantry opened.
Since January of this year, the food pantry has distributed 10,862 pounds of food and served 5,537 individuals. But Smith said in the last few months, the pantry has seen an uptick in its clients, almost doubling its numbers since last year.
Volunteering with the pantry has been a rewarding and humbling experience, Smith said, adding that she doesn’t think people realize how food insufficient some in Chatham County are.
According to data collected by the Food Bank of Central & Eastern North Carolina, of Chatham County’s total population of 71,338, 13% are food insecure — meaning they don’t know with certainty from where their next meal will come.
“It is a real eye-opener,” Smith said.
As client numbers have increased, so has the need for volunteers to meet that demand; Smith said she’s put out calls for volunteers, and that the pantry has a need for people with “muscle” to carry large loads.
The pantry has also faced difficulties when it comes to funding. The county previously paid the pantry’s rent, but was unable to continue doing so. Now, the pantry, which also gets grant funding and monetary donations from individuals, is paying rent.
The organization is entirely staffed by volunteers — around 30 people, many of whom have been with the pantry for years. Local churches, the Inter-faith Food Shuttle of Raleigh, companies like Mountaire and even individuals in the community donate food to the pantry.
In order to receive donations from the pantry, a person’s expenses must be at least 25% of their income. Clients are allowed to come every two weeks.
Smith said the pantry started out just servicing residents of Chatham County but many people would come over who actually lived in Randolph County, so exceptions were made for those clients. Additionally, if clients are unable to drive to the pantry to pick up food themselves, the pantry will occasionally drop off food.
“We love helping people,” Smith said. “That’s what we’re here for. We don’t want to see anybody go hungry and we won’t turn anyone away.”
Don Gardner, 65, has been volunteering with the food pantry for three years. He and his wife, retirees who have lived in Chatham County for two decades, started volunteering out of a desire to give back to the community.
Gardner said at the start of the pandemic, demand initially picked up at the food pantry but then leveled out — to the point where the pantry increased how much they were giving away because they had started to build up an inventory. Gardner attributes the slowdown to other organizations fulfilling the same need that West Chatham Food Pantry had been filling otherwise.
During the pandemic, the pantry also shifted protocols to limit outside exposure and to prioritize the safety of volunteers, so clients were no longer allowed to “shop” for products in the aisles of the pantry. At one point during the pandemic, the pantry ran a drive-through service out of the side of the building.
Gardner said he misses having direct contact with clients, recalling how he’d save dog treats to give to those who had pets. When he packages orders for clients, Gardner points out how he takes into account a client’s age or family size. He’ll look for meats that require less cooking for older clients or make sure clients with large families get the occasional Boston butt, a cut of meat from the pork shoulder, when it comes in.
“And at the end of the day you can walk around or walk out of here thinking, ‘OK, I’ve enjoyed the last hour and a half, two hours of my time, plus I’ve done good for these folks that are coming at this point,’” he said.
One of his favorite things about volunteering with the food pantry is the sense of camaraderie that he has with other volunteers and clients.
“It’s just amazing the amount of effort and work that goes into this, and the small, close-knit group that makes it operate,” Gardner said.
Jerry Guthrie, 67, is a retired trucker who has gotten food packages from the pantry. Last Friday was the first time in over a year that he visited the pantry. Guthrie is experiencing homelessness, circumstances he didn’t imagine he would ever be in.
Guthrie said his favorite thing about the pantry is the staff. For people who want to provide assistance to individuals with similar circumstances to himself, he said it’s important to just offer help when it’s asked for, something that he tries to do for others when he can.
“We ask for help, just give us help,” Guthrie said, tearing up. “You’ll never know (what comes). I’ve never dreamed of this. And I’ve always helped people.”
Eneida Jaimes, 33, immigrated to Siler City from Guadalajara, Mexico, with her family a few months ago. Jaimes visited the pantry once as a client. The next time she came, she started volunteering.
“I saw in the front desk, it says, ‘You can be a volunteer,’” she said. “And I said, ‘That’s how I can pay (back) what they’re doing for me.’”
Jaimes, who packages food at the pantry, has also helped to translate for Spanish-speaking clients. In addition to Jaimes, Smith said the pantry has a couple of high school volunteers who translate for clients who speak Spanish.
She said people may feel hesitancy about seeking assistance, especially those who have employment. But the pantry has been helpful for Jaimes and her family.
“I have a job, my husband has a job,” she said. “But anyways, it’s hard to support our kids and everything and pay rent and, well, if people want to, they (should feel) able to come.”
Similarly, Glover, a volunteer, said there is a stigma around food assistance that sometimes prevents people who would benefit from the pantry’s services from seeking them out.
“If you need it, ask for help,” Glover said. “Don’t suffer or sit in silence, if you need it. We all need something at some point.”
For Smith, one of the best parts of working at the pantry has been getting to know her community.
“I have met so many people, not just clients but volunteers, people that I didn’t know that live right here,” she said. “… We work to do what’s best for our clients.”
The food pantry is open on Mondays from 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. and Wednesdays and Fridays from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m.
Reporter Maydha Devarajan can be reached at mdevarajan@chathamnr.com and on Twitter @maydhadevarajan.