DARE COUNTY, N.C. — The Beach Food Pantry in Kitty Hawk is serving a record number of people in need so far this year, and with the holiday season coming up, it needs your help to continue to serve more households.
Volunteers were hard at work preparing Thanksgiving meal bags for families on Tuesday as they got ready to serve more families compared to last year.
"Last year between Thanksgiving and Christmas we served 415 households, but this year just up to Thanksgiving we expect to see 300 households," Elisabeth Silverthorne with the Beach Food Pantry said.
Silverthorne said those numbers have jumped up as more government benefits went away and expenses returned for individuals like student loans.
She said at the start of this year, her pantry was told to expect to see more need than during the height of the pandemic.
"By the end of September, we already had and that's pretty scary considering in 2020, our bridges were closed for two months, and we've had business the whole year this year," Silverthorne, said.
The pantry is a benefit for large families who live in Dare County year-round.
"We are six at home, so it is very helpful," Maria Martinez, who was at the pantry, said.
Martinez said she loves the pantry because she's able to pick up fresh produce for her family.
She not only relies on the pantry during the holidays but is someone who needs it every month.
"We don't celebrate, but the opportunity to have extra food is super super helpful," Martinez said.
As demand for the pantry continues to grow over the last few weeks of the year, it is still in need of holiday food items like green beans and corn.
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"Right now, collards are proving very difficult to find, and I need to find something like 45 bunches of them for tomorrow's orders," Silverthorne said.
They're also asking people to donate brown paper bags.
"This is the first year that we've needed to buy paper bags to be able to send them home with our clients," said Silverthorne. "A bail of paper bags is about $70, and we would much rather spend the money on food than on paper bags."
Donations can be dropped off at the pantry, Monday through Friday until 5 p.m.
