Cute cat with funny caption to catch your attention....
I’m in a place I never thought I’d be ~ a dedicated user of a couple food pantries near me, instead of being the frequent donor I was in past eras of my life. I get most of my food from pantries these days ~ and it’s been a much better experience than I expected overall.
How did I end up here? Three years ago, I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia, then a couple months later an emergency room visit scan on a Monday resulted in me visiting the best gynecological oncologist in the state that Friday. I had a large ovarian cyst (9x5x3 inches) that the radiologist though might be malignant and my mother died of ovarian cancer, so the medical system actually managed to move quicky. Surgery a couple weeks later and fortunately the cyst wasn’t malignant ~ but I ended up with a serious infection that (even after a whole bunch of visits, a couple times a week for months to a wound clinic at a $40 copay per visit) I had to have a second surgery to remove the various infected bits in my abdomen. At some point, I need to have a third surgery (with a specialist in complicated abdominal wall repairs) but my current insurance and (lack of) income have that on hold.
Given the American medical system, all of this ate up much of my savings. Last spring, I was just starting to be able to save again instead of paying medical bills. But then the Trump administration hit, playing with the funding for IMLS [Institute for Museum and Library Services] ~ and I ended up laid off from my dream job that I’d worked very hard to be qualified for and get. My position was state-funded but a colleague who was federally-funded and had been at the library about a year longer was able to ‘bump’ me. Even though she wasn’t qualified to do my specialized job, she had the same generic job categorization and got the preference; the union had helped decide who would get laid off with HR, so they were no help, despite the years of dues I’d paid.
I’ll only mention in passing that life only got glitchier: car died from a known issue that the manufacturer wouldn’t honor the warranty on, moving out of the apartment I couldn’t afford on unemployment triggered chronic hip and back issues (that had been visible on all the scans for the surgeries but they weren’t what the people reading the scans were looking for, so only noticed in retrospect….), and lots of interviews but no job offers. Ugh!
Commerical time: I have a GoFundMe (another thing I never thought I’d have to do), to try to keep my head above water.
Right now, in addition to the whole car fiasco, I need cash to get my phone turned back on and to pay my storage unit fees so I don’t lose everything I own.
I keep applying for jobs ~ professional and filler. I get interviews for the professional jobs but not offers. Most of the filler jobs won’t even consider me ~ it’s really disheartening to go to a store that has signs everywhere that they are hiring on the spot ~ and to have the manager not even consider me….
Unemployment payments lasted six months, so I was able to somewhat manage until the fall. I looked into getting SNAP, but I would have gotten a whopping $17 per month with the income I had for 2025, so I didn’t bother to actually apply. I didn’t look into food pantries, as I assumed I wouldn’t qualify. But the end of unemployment benefits and a conversation with a friend that food pantries have different income requirements than SNAP had me try one out in mid-November.
I’ve since become a dedicated user. I’ve been very pleasantly surprised. The food isn’t all cheap carbs and the people who work at them (with one exception) have been amazingly kind and sympathetic.
So, now to turn from my story to an introduction to using a food pantry effectively ~ if you are on the fence about trying one or are like me as a shy introvert, I hope this quick guide gives you the confidence to try one out if you are elegible.
Disclaimer: this is all based on my use of several pantries in a couple areas of Maine (I had to move for financial reasons, so which pantries are nearby changed). Other states may have different requirements.
First, the income requirements: these vary based on state. Maine’s numbers are here (on the one form I’ve had to fill out to use the pantries), while here are samples from Washington and Pennsylvania. What documentation you need also varies by state. I’ve had to show my driver’s license at a couple of the pantries I’ve been to on my first visit but another couple didn’t even ask for that.
Many food pantries are part of larger organizations fighting food insecurity. Here’s an Indiana example of that. Here in Maine, Good Shepherd coordinates efforts. Both of these webstes have food pantry locators. If you don’t know where your local food pantries are, similar websites for your area likely exist ~ and there may be more food pantries tucked away near you than you know of. Some may be in churches, but you do not need to attend that church to get help.
I’ve come across four basic types of distribution models at local pantries:
- Pantry staff packs a box and you get what is in the box. At one pantry, the whole distribution was this way, while at another, they used this model for non-perishables while the pantry users could choose perishables (meat, dairy, vegetables). I’m not a fan of this model ~ I don’t need to get rice and peanut butter every week. This might be less of an issue of a larger household, but for me… well, I’ve actually dropped some rice and peanut butter into the food pantry collection box at the library, as I just don’t have the storage space for them.
- Pantry users are given a ‘menu’ of what’s available but the staff picks the items and brings them to the pantry users’ car. This system was adopted by a couple nearby pantries during the pandemic and they have found it works well for their small-ish space.
- Pantry users are guided through the pantry, choosing what they can use with the guide putting items in users’s bags.
- Free ‘shopping’ model: pantry users walk though pantry on their own, with signs about limits on particular items.
I’m fine with all these models except the first one ~ as a single person, the quantities are off and I end up wasting food. Plus, it doesn’t allow for health or cultural food restrictions. For example, a friend has stopped using that pantry because her children have allergies the pantry doesn’t consider in the boxes they hand out.
Whichever model the pantry uses, expect to wait. Bring a book, or your knitting, or whatever can occupy you for a while. Lines often form a half hour or more before the pantry opens. With some pantries, going closer to closing time means shorter lines, but the selection {especially for perishables} is also often less.
Take your own bags ~ the pantries I’ve used don’t have any to give out.
It’s good to figure out which pantries get leftover food from local groceries ~ there’s one pantry I go to even though the hours aren’t great for me but they get meats and breads from the local big grocery store. Frozen on the expiration date but quite usable ~ steak, chicken, even lamb a couple times.
Another of the local food pantries has an affiliated group that works with local farmers to gather produce that doesn’t meet grocery store standards to give out at the pantry ~ so lots of carrots and onions in “funny” shapes but perfectly good and tasty.
Once you start using a food pantry, get to know what they have routinely, so you can maximize your shopping dollars at grocery stores for what they don’t carry. Pantries will generally have pasta, rice, canned fruits/vegetables, soups, cereal, beans, peanut butter, and eggs. I’ve frequently gotten cooking oil, [frozen] meat, soy sauce, flour, butter, fruit juice, and onions, but not necessarily every week. So I get those items and use my exceedingly limited grocery dollars for bananas, spices, and so on.
What to do once you have the food?
There are a couple accounts at YouTube that have been really helpful in effectively using what I get at the food pantries ~ they are more aimed at low-cost meals from grocery stores, but the overlap with the items they use and what is given out at food pantries is enough that I’m going to share them,
First, Dollar Tree Dinners: her focus is on eating well with what can be bought at Dollar Tree {with occasional trips to Walmart}.
This meal in a bag recipe includes ingredients that you can often get at food pantries
Here’s a second meal in a bag idea.
At least here in Maine, chicken is often the frozen meat that is most available at food pantries, so here’s a recipe for using it. Salsa is sometimes available, while diced tomatoes ae almost always one of the canned vegetable offerings.
Secondly, Julia Pacheco has some good ideas for using foods you often get at pantries.
Stretching rice:
Most of these ingredients Julia bought in this video often end up at food pantries (as they are inexpensive to buy and donate), so some good ideas here:
Given the current economy, I’m guessing some of you reading this will end up using a food pantry in the future ~ or you are eligible now and don’t realize it. I hope this quick introduction helps make going to a food pantry for the first time as a user a positive experience for you.
