Over the past few decades, the Catholic Harvest Food Pantry has been serving residents of York County, but the staff always felt something was missing. "We were wondering how we can bring our services to the people who live farther away or who don't have the transportation to get here," said Tahani Samphilipo, program coordinator for the pantry, located in downtown York. The solution came in the form of a mobile pantry, which started serving the Hellam/Wrightsville area in February. Food will be distributed on the fourth Thursday of each month from 3 to 4 p.m. in the parking lot of the Hellam Township building, 44 Walnut Springs Road.

The pantry staff and volunteers use a refrigerated van, which can hold up to 90 banana boxes, to transport perishables from the pantry to the drive-through mobile pantry distribution area. Another van carrying nonperishable items and household goods will also deliver items to the distribution site, and fresh produce will be available for people to pick up on-site.

The Catholic Harvest Food Pantry has been in operation since the 1980s, when the local Catholic churches decided to combine their food pantries. It is income-based, and families are eligible to pick up food once a month. "This is a choice pantry," Samphilipo said, explaining that clients are emailed a shopping list to fill out and return with the items they'd like to receive. "They can list their likes or dislikes or note if there are allergies," she stated. "We get to know our families. If someone can't eat certain foods for religious or health reasons, we'll accommodate that. If we have a family that's gluten-free, we'll pull aside gluten-free items for them."

Pantry items include everything from meat and eggs to frozen items and canned goods. Additionally, a variety of household items such as laundry detergent and cleaning products are available, along with pet food and treats. A grant from Community Aid provided an opportunity to stock feminine hygiene products, Midol and incontinence items, and the pantry also provides diapers. "We care for all stages of life, from birth to the elderly," said Shari Gordon, pantry director. "We're thankful we're able to do that." The pantry also provides a birthday bag, complete with a boxed cake mix and candles, for each family that has a child with a birthday that month.

The York pantry serves more than 750 families a month, and Samphilipo noted that the number will go up with the mobile pantry, which served 20 families its first week. "The next day after the mobile pantry, I had three voicemails from people who had heard about it from their friends and neighbors," she said.

As a result of the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank's A Seat at the Table study, Hellam/Wrightsville was identified as an area with high food insecurity and low access to transportation. The food pantry plans to expand its mobile pantry offering to the southeastern corner of York County beginning in May.

The next mobile pantry distribution in Hellam will be held on Thursday, March 23. Families must preregister to pick up food. For more information or to sign up, call 717-846-8571 and select option 3 or email tahanisamphilipo@catholicharvest.org.