Gresham food pantry to go with the Flo

Gresham area residents in need of food will soon be able to find support a little closer to home.

Work has begun to create the food pantry Flo’ing With Kindness, which will open Aug. 1. Community members have already started donating food, and the need is there, based on a food distribution effort that The FRESH Project has done in the community with Feeding America for more than two months, according to Barb Mendoza, organizer.

“When we started, we had 120 bags that we gave to the families,” Mendoza said. “It eventually dropped to 90, but we’re staying strong at 70.”

Mendoza said that she consulted with Gresham resident Mary Crawford during that time to see if a food pantry in Gresham was feasible.

“This is something that my husband and I have wanted to do,” Mendoza said, noting that even though she’s the executive director for The FRESH Project, Flo’ing With Kindness is a project separate from that Shawano-based program. “The need is definitely there.”

The Shawano Area Food Pantry and Resource Center also suggested a food pantry in Gresham would help those families needing food but not having the ability to travel. Mendoza noted that some Gresham families turn to Tilleda for food assistance, but some cannot afford the gas to travel there and back every month.

So far, Flo’ing With Kindness has received community space on Main Street from business owner Doug Hoffman, along with donated utilities from the village of Gresham. The village is also purchasing several refrigerators for the pantry to use, according to Hoffman, and one village board member, Dave Winter, is donating a deep freezer to store meats and other perishable items. The local Abby Bank branch has also provided monetary funds to help Flo’ing With Kindness start up.

“With the support from the village, my husband and I decided, ‘Let’s just do this,’” Mendoza said. “People knew that the need was there, but I don’t think they realized how to put it together. I’ve had experience putting 501(c)(3) nonprofits together, and the paperwork and all that is tedious, but now we have that started.”

The project is a personal one for Mendoza, who was born and raised in Gresham. When she’s not working on The FRESH Project, she’s a substitute teacher at Gresham Community School, so she has seen how much of a need there is for a food pantry.

The name of the pantry is in honor of Mendoza’s mother, who she said always encouraged giving to the community.

“It’s very humbling,” she said. “My husband and I, we like to give back to the community, and we both like to serve. It’s just a good thing to do.”

A food drive is planned for July 18 at 10 a.m. The pantry has already received a number of donations but organizers are eager to get more. Mendoza said that Dollar General is also setting up a cart for folks to donate food, and Gresham Townmart is also setting up an area for donations.

There will also be two opportunities for area families to sign up for services. The first is from 3-5 p.m. July 14, with the second event taking place from 6-7:30 p.m. Aug. 4.

Families will have the option of picking up food either on the first or third Thursdays of the month, according to Mendoza.

Once the food pantry has been in operation for six months, it will be eligible to receive discounted food from Feeding America, Mendoza said.

“They’ll come, and they’ll inspect the food pantry to make sure that we are in regulation,” she said.

AT A GLANCE

WHAT: Food drive to benefit Flo’ing With Kindness

WHEN: 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. July 18

WHERE: Flo’ing With Kindness, 1220 Main St., Gresham

lpulaski@newmedia-wi.com