Archival article — originally published in The Times of Skinker DeBaliviere, Summer 2020. By June Vaughn.
Archival date note: only the issue month or season is established. The first-of-month date used for chronological indexing is not a verified publication day.
First Friday food donations for our local food pantries at least doubled during the months of April and May in response to appeals to increase support for food pantries during the pandemic. Kudos to you, Skinker-DeBaliviere Neighbors, which is the identity attached to these donations. On the weekend of the First Friday in each month, food donations may be left on the front porch of 6163 Westminster Place from Friday morning until Sunday evening. These will be delivered to food pantries at New Cote Brilliante Church of God and Grace United Methodist Church, alternating monthly. The e-mail list for the 6000 and 6100 block of Westminster receives a reminder earlier in the week. People from other streets and blocks who are aware of this practice are welcome and encouraged to donate.
Beginning with First Friday in June, donations may also be left on the front porch of 6174 McPherson for the convenience of residents in that area. These donations will be delivered each month to Grace Methodist Church. If neither location is convenient for you, please consider volunteering to offer your services to collect food donations in your area to deliver to the nearest food pantry. If you have questions about the process, please call Grady and June Vaughn at 314-863-5477.
Please avoid glass containers when donating to prevent dangerous accidents. Always in heavy demand are canned products, including meats, soups with protein, vegetables, and fruit, as well as canned and powdered milk. Macaroni and cheese packs along with smooth peanut butter and jelly are popular, and also baking mixes and dry foods such as rice, pasta, and beans. Since the homeless are among those served, individual serving containers of all foods are useful. Needed personal care products include toilet paper, toothpaste and brushes, body wipes, soap, and shampoo. Diapers for babies and large or extra-large for adults are needed.
A spokeswoman for New Cote Brilliante noted that, while presently the number of clients creeps upward monthly, there is a permanent, ongoing need for these services in our community. Hunger is always with us. While previously clients were able to choose from various categories of supplies, now they are given prepacked bags for health safety reasons.
New Cote Brilliante opens its pantry to clients on Tuesdays from 12:00-1:00 PM. The pantry at Grace Methodist is open Tuesdays from 9:45-11:45 AM. All are welcomed at both sites.
In addition, the St. Louis Public Schools have partnered with the City of St. Louis and area charter schools to distribute free meals to students M-F, 8am to noon. Hamilton School is our neighborhood school. For more information, call 345-6900.
Read the original newspaper issue: Archive reader · Direct PDF fallback. Originally published in The Times of Skinker DeBaliviere, Summer 2020, pages 1, 5.
