At Thanksgiving and Christmas, many in our community open their hearts and donate food to those who are not able to buy enough to eat. But hunger knows no season, and now that the holidays are behind us, the need for food donations continues.
A snapshot of that need could be glimpsed in a story in Monday’s edition of the Times-News by staff reporter Greg Larry. He wrote about Pantry Partners, a committee supported by the Frostburg Rotary Club that has launched a food drive called “Phone a Friend for Food” to help stock the shelves of the Frostburg Area Interfaith Food Pantry.
The pantry serves nearly 160 people a month while having nearly 1,900 people approved for food. In other words, only a fraction of those individuals and families in need of help with food is being helped.
Bill Rafferty, director of the food pantry, said the economic downturn is the reason so many people are looking for assistance. “We have people that are working but are having trouble making ends meet,” said Rafferty.
The Frostburg pantry’s shortage of food is not an isolated example. Food pantries in Cumberland and throughout the county are lamenting the lack of food and cash donations. If more help was forthcoming the pantries could assist more needy individuals.
The Frostburg drive will run from Jan. 14 to 31. Volunteers are asking for people to call at least 10 friends and ask them to donate food. The pantry is located at 44 W. Main St. in the Jones Center of the Frostburg United Methodist Church. A dropbox for food is located on the rear porch.
Those interested in volunteering or donating food can call Rafferty at 301-707-0330. Checks and other financial contributions can be made out to the Frostburg Food Pantry, P.O. Box 301, Frostburg, MD 21532.
Other area food banks also need assistance. Contact one of them and offer food or cash — you’ll be helping your neighbor ward off hunger and despair.
Editorials
Related Photos
-
Still hungry
Still hungry
Need for food doesn’t end after the holidays
- Editorials
-
-
Walk Smart
Many local residents will be visiting Ocean City this summer, so it is worth noting that the resort has launched a campaign that it hopes will keep pedestrians out of harm’s way.
-
Frostburg’s Bridge Program was important
After hearing rumors of possible changes being made, I just wanted to take a few minutes to put into words what the Frostburg Bridge Program meant to me as a child. Growing up in Frostburg, my parents were small business owners, my mother a teacher, and my father worked for the postal service.
-
Trailer case bound to increase scrutiny on town of Piedmont
This letter is in response to the recent story concerning the guilty plea entered in federal court by Piedmont’s town foreman (“Piedmont town foreman Shingler enters guilty plea,” May 21 Times-News, Page 1A).
-
Fixing community’s problems starts with your young people
I am writing this letter to the editor because I think our community really needs to work on plenty of issues. Some of them are:
-
High priority
Maryland school officials on Tuesday put an exclamation point on the need to take student-athlete concussions more seriously.
-
Cashing in
As anyone who lives in the area knows, economic gains have been hard to come by in recent years. The opening of the Rocky Gap Casino Resort is one of the biggest boosts the region has seen in some time.
-
Why have the media been silent all this time?
When I read the Cumberland Times-News Editorial this morning, Friday, May 17, entitled, “Outrageous,” I laughed like a kid at a birthday party!
-
What are chances this much money will be spent on road?
I was intrigued by cost data summarized in reporter Kathy Mellott’s recent article, “Completing southern link of U.S. Route 219 said to be best use of highway funds,” which appeared in the Cumberland Times-News on Tuesday May 14 (Page 1A).
-
School board should be doing better job with less money
The Allegany County Teachers Association (ACTA) board of directors recently submitted a letter to the editor asking the Allegany County commissioners to fully fund the Board of Education’s budget request for the upcoming fiscal year (“Commissioners should fund school board request,” April 29 Times-News).
-
Better ‘Click It’
If you notice more police on the highway this week, it’s for a couple of reasons.
- More Editorials Headlines
-
