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Church food pantry continues to help the community
Kimberly Kuizon reports.
SARASOTA, Fla. - Eight years ago, an idea to transform extra space at St. Thomas More Catholic Church in Sarasota, turned into a project that continues to help the community today.
The backstory:
That space became the Twelve Baskets Food Pantry. Over the years, the need has grown.
Volunteers work to help all who come through their doors.
It all started with an empty space and an idea.
"It was trial and error in the beginning," volunteer Ellie Gibeau said.
That's what brought Twelve Baskets Food Pantry from a vision to a reality at St. Thomas More Catholic Church in Sarasota's Gulf Gate community.
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"The volunteers have carried us. Some volunteers have been here the entire time," Gibeau said.
That was in 2017.
"That was my first surprise. When I first started about it and looked around Sarasota, I said, ‘What would we need this for?’" volunteer Jim Meyd said.
Gibeau and Meyd have been volunteers with the food pantry since its inception.
They've seen the need continue to grow.
"We started out. We wouldn’t get maybe 50 people in a day was a lot. Now just in the 3 hours we are open, today we will probably get 130," Gibeau said.
Why you should care:
They open every Wednesday and when they do, clients are treated like customers.
They're given a shopping cart, options for food and help to bring their groceries out.
"God keeps providing for us. He provides food for us, the money for us and he has provided us with a great set of volunteers. If you watch them and see what they are doing, they have the same joy on their faces if they were getting paid to do the job in a grocery store. They’re very helpful, they’re very kind, they’re very caring, and I think that’s what makes a difference between that and an impersonal thing of just handing somebody a bag. It becomes a very personal experience for both sides for us and the client," Meyd said.
The faces of those in need are not just the homeless.
They also help seniors, veterans, working folks and more often than ever, families with children.
"The one thing I can tell you is not one client that I took to the car did not thank me along the way, and thank me for being there. Sometimes it gets very emotional when they start to talk about it and share their story with you. Or just the fact that you were there," Meyd said.
Each week, new faces arrive and help to fill their shelves continues to grow.
"Everybody has the need and I think the big message is, if you know of a food pantry or a food bank, donate if you can. Because it helps everyone, whether it’s here or somewhere else," Gibeau said.
What you can do:
Some donations come from All Faith's Food Bank and through parishioners.
If you'd like to help, items can be dropped off at the front office of St. Thomas More Catholic Church at 2506 Gulf Gate Drive in Sarasota.
You can also use the Instacart app to order food online, which will be delivered directly to our food pantry.
Twelve Baskets Food Pantry is open every Wednesday from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. at St. Thomas More Catholic Church.
For more information on how you can help, visit here.
The Source: Information was gathered by FOX 13's Kimberly Kuizon through St. Thomas More Catholic Church and volunteers from Twelve Baskets Food Pantry.