With food assistance benefits set to be restricted following a temporary shutdown of the federal government — during which the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program was paused — it can feel like there are more people than ever who need help feeding themselves and their families. Those who do often turn to local food pantries for food they couldn’t afford to purchase.
When it comes to asking for help, many may think of the Share Food Share Love food pantry in Brookfield, which serves 15 villages nearby. But residents of Riverside Township have another option even closer to home.
“Our pantry is within the Riverside town hall,” said Vera Wilt, the township supervisor. “All they have to do is [show] proof of residency, so it’s available. If you think you need it, come on in. There’s no financial measurement. As long as they live within the township boundaries, which are Harlem to Ninth Avenue and Cermak to 39th — we’re a tiny township — they are eligible.”
Those boundaries include most of the village of Riverside as well as much of North Riverside and the Hollywood area of Brookfield.
Wilt said the Riverside Township food pantry is open Monday through Thursday from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and on Friday 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. She asked that residents call the pantry about an hour before they plan to come by and try to arrive no less than a half hour before close.
“Our actual pantry storage is on another floor, so we want to make sure that the tote bags are on the first floor and easy to access for them,” she said.
Due to the pantry’s limited space in Township Hall, Wilt told the Landmark they pre-pack bags of non-perishable items for people to take home. Usually, township residents are limited to one visit each month, but Wilt said the pantry is changing the limit to every two weeks to ensure people are fed in this time of increased need.
“Every time they come in, we record it, so, if they call and say, ‘Am I eligible?’ we can check the date of their last visit,” she said.
So far this year, the pantry has served 45 new households compared to last year, Wilt said, with about a dozen of them making their first trip within the last several weeks.
The majority of the pantry’s food comes through donations and purchases made with township money, as the Greater Chicago Food Depository is not able to provide them with food due to its own capacity issues, Wilt said.
“We always budget a certain amount for the food pantry and often go over if needed,” she said. “People have been very generous with the word out about SNAP. Several of the schools have had food drives. We’ve had people randomly come in with a check. Various organizations have come in with checks.”
Among the groups lending a hand is Riverside Foods, the village’s sole grocery store, which has been matching its customers’ donations to boost the pantry’s access to food.
“It really has helped us. I’m not running out every few days to shop for the pantry,” Wilt said.
Peter Boutsikakis, one of the co-owners of the grocery on East Burlington Avenue, said the store’s matching program started at the behest of Anthony Garbis, his cousin and co-owner.
“We didn’t have time to assemble bags. We just started accepting donations and letting folks know exactly what would be useful and [placed] a bin in the front of our store,” he told the Landmark. “We’ve dropped off two bins’ worth of groceries at the township since we started this. I believe it’s been just shy of two weeks.”
When the bin fills up, Boutsikakis said, Riverside Foods staff determine how much food has been donated by customers and matches each item from its own inventory, doubling the size of the donation the food pantry receives.
“I was thrilled to see people respond to it immediately. I think the news has hit near and dear to a lot of people,” he said. “We’ve had folks come in just for that. Our customers are very gracious and generous, and they’ve donated quite a bit. I’ve even had people try to give us money, but we’re not accepting money for this, so we … use it as effectively as we can and put those [items] along with the donations.”
Boutsikakis said the idea stemmed from Riverside Foods’ annual pack-the-truck program, where customers in the two weeks before Christmas can pay $25 for a pre-bagged donation that the grocers give to the food pantry.
“It goes even further than just buying $25 worth of groceries. We do $25 worth of our cost that we shop for. We’re shopping deals on non-perishables,” he said. “Really, that $25 bag could be a $40 bag, a $35 bag’s worth of groceries, so we’re able to extend that just a little bit further.”
Wilt said all monetary and food item donations are appreciated, though food that is out of date should be thrown away rather than given away.
“If you wouldn’t want to eat it, don’t give it to someone else,” she said.
Beyond that, she gave her thanks to everyone who has helped the pantry sustain its operations and keep the township fed.
“Thank you to the community for the way they have stepped up, and they’re always generous, but they’ve been especially so at a time when they’re probably also struggling,” she said. “The community is wonderful about that.”
