Skyrocketing Cost Of Living Sharpens Hunger Pains - Support Summertime ‘Helping Neighbors’

Here’s something you already know: from a gallon of milk to a gallon of gas, everything is getting more expensive. If you’re vacationing on the Lower Cape, that might mean shortening your stay a bit, or choosing the fish and chips over the lobster roll. But if you’re among the large number of fixed-income families struggling to make ends meet in this seasonal economy, inflation is a serious matter.

 Perusing the shops of our main streets or strolling the hydrangea-lined streets of picturesque neighborhoods, it’s hard to imagine that more than 20,900 Barnstable County residents, including children, are struggling to access healthy, affordable food. For those facing the hidden problem of hunger, the rising costs of housing, transportation and healthcare often mean skipping meals or turning to cheaper, less healthy foods.

 That’s where groups like the Family Pantry of Cape Cod come in. The largest food pantry on the Cape, the Harwich-based Family Pantry serves thousands of families with bags of free groceries including fresh produce, dairy goods and high-quality proteins. It’s all made possible by donations from people like you.

As we do each summer, we’re inviting readers of The Cape Cod Chronicle — particularly seasonal residents and visitors — to join us in contributing to the Family Pantry through our Helping Neighbors campaign. While our holiday campaign has been a tradition since 2004, the summertime version of Helping Neighbors turns 10 this year. In the past nine years, our summer friends have given nearly $830,000 to help the local people who make their summers on the Lower Cape special: the people who work in our restaurants and shops, who deliver our food, teach our children, landscape our yards, work in our nursing homes and respond to emergencies.

 “We’ve set a goal of raising $110,000 before Labor Day, and we’re confident that, together, we’ll top that amount,” Cape Cod Chronicle Editor Tim Wood said. Matching grants are in place to ensure that donations will be matched, dollar-for-dollar, thanks to generous donors who are remaining anonymous.

 The Family Pantry provides food — and free clothing, too — from its warehouse in North Harwich, which clients can visit every 10 days. Applying for assistance is easy and confidential, and volunteers can help clients connect with other agencies that can help with expenses like housing and home heating. Not all Pantry clients visit North Harwich; some get their groceries delivered through their towns’ council on aging or other community groups. Students at Cape Cod Community College get help through a small satellite pantry right on campus.

 Much of the food the Pantry provides comes from the Greater Boston Food Bank, and some comes free from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Thousands of pounds of fresh produce are grown in the Pantry’s own garden behind the warehouse, as well. But money is needed to purchase other grocery staples, and that’s where donations come in. Much of the Family Pantry’s food revenue comes from the sale of donated high-end clothing, housewares and furniture through the Second Glance Thrift Shop in West Harwich. But cash donations are always needed. 

 The summertime version of Helping Neighbors was launched in 2017 at the suggestion of a small group of summer residents who often missed the holiday fundraiser because they were at their off-Cape homes. 

 Each week between now and Sept. 7, we’ll be featuring a story about the Family Pantry, the people it helps, the creative ways it carries out its mission and the amazing volunteers who make it all happen. We’ll also be publishing a list of each week’s donors with a running tally of contributions.

 “Our region will be loaded with visitors celebrating our nation’s 250th birthday this weekend, and it should be a Fourth to remember,” Wood said. “We know that whenever we turn to them for help, our seasonal visitors answer the call. We’re hoping this will be our most successful Summertime Helping Neighbors campaign yet.”

To contribute to The Chronicle's Summertime Helping Neighbors campaign, click here. You can also mail a tax-deductible contribution to The Family Pantry, 133 Queen Anne Rd., Harwich, MA 02645, or call 508-432-6519 to donate by credit card.