“We don’t receive any structured, regular donations so anything we can get helps,” said Pastor Doug Harding of the Colo Food Pantry. “I can’t recall ever receiving a meat donation like this before, so we feel very fortunate.”
Located within the United Methodist Church, the Colo Food Pantry, which has been open for nearly 10 years, serves families twice a week.
“We’re open Tuesday evenings from 5:30 to 6:30 and then again Friday mornings from 9:30 to 10:30,” explained Pastor Doug. “Our pantry coordinators do an excellent job of working with families and getting them items that their household will enjoy.”
In addition to the staples of soup, cereal and peanut butter, the Colo Food Pantry also provides clients with bread and baked goods, birthday cake packages and now thanks to Iowa Select Farms and the Deb and Jeff Hansen Foundation, pork loin.
“We always keep our eyes out for deals,” said Sandy Hill, pantry coordinator. “Fareway and HyVee have been great to work with and are flexible on how many coupons we’re able to redeem. They also donate bakery items which is really nice.”
Like many food pantries, the one in Colo relies on local donations to keep their shelves stocked.
“Donations come from United Way, the Methodist and Catholic Churches in town and we’ve even had some local classes take up donations,” continued Doug. “Everyone steps up to help out.”
