TOWER- It was opening day for the new Tower Food Shelf, Tuesday, and the public was invited to tour the new facility before the formal food shelf hours began. The food shelf, which had been in the basement of the Timberjay building for more than 25 years, now has its own home in the building that formerly housed St. James Presbyterian Church.
New food shelf director Kate Smith was excited to show off the new facility, which will allow the food pantry to stock more refrigerated and frozen food and meat options, along with the larger selection of canned and shelf-stable foods. They are hoping to be able to offer more fresh items, like bread and produce as well.
“A lot of our community members showed up for the open house,” said Smith, who said many former members of the church stopped by to see the repurposed building and were happy to see it filling such an important community need.
A little over halfway through the official food shelf hours, the pantry had served 30 families and given out 1,614 pounds of food.
“That’s 54 pounds per family,” said food shelf volunteer Frannie Wood. Frannie and her husband Hugh are the former food shelf directors who helped spearhead the effort for the new food shelf, and along with other food shelf volunteers, did most of the work necessary to convert the building to its new use.
The new food shelf has a more people-friendly layout, including a separate small office space for families to register before shopping.
“We can fit more people shopping at the same time,” Smith said.
Smith said they are planning on offering cooking classes monthly at the new facility and will feature tips and tricks on preparing healthy and delicious meals using the types of food usually found at the food pantry. These classes will be free and open to anyone in the community. Class information will be posted in the paper once they are scheduled. Smith said that Jackie Clay, a homesteader and writer from Angora (seedtreasures.com), will be teaching some of the classes.
The Tower Food Shelf is open the third Tuesday of each month from 2:30-5 p.m., and is located in the old St. James Church building, on the corner of Spruce and N Second St. (kitty corner from the school).
Kate Smith and her husband TJ operate Valhalla Ridge Farm in Angora, and TJ restores and gives away hundreds of bicycles through their Bike’s in Need, Bike’s Indeed program. Of the ten children’s bikes brought over on Tuesday, all clean and shiny, most found new homes with the food shelf’s clientele, and Kate said more bikes are always available for anyone in the community who needs one.
Funders for the new Tower Food Shelf project included Open Your Heart to the Hungry and Homeless, Arrowhead Economic Opportunity Agency, and the Department of Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation.