The Hunger Action Team would like to take this opportunity to highlight one of the many food pantries that are serving people in need here in West Virginia. This month we are highlighting the ministry of the Spring Valley Presbyterian Food Pantry in Huntington:
Over 15 years ago Spring Valley Presbyterian Church in Huntington began keeping a box or two of groceries on hand for emergencies to feed our hungry neighbors. Word spread and soon so many people sought assistance that the church began stocking an entire room full of food and formally opened the SVPC Food Pantry every Wednesday from 10:00am - 3:00pm.
Over the years we have built alliances with social agencies such as DHHR, INR, The AIDS Taskforce, Prestera Center, the VA, and other churches who refer clients to us who have a genuine need. We have also built relationships with local schools, civic organizations, several ecumenical churches, a chiropractor, and the Huntington Area Food Bank who donate money, food, or hold food drives on our behalf. Soon we added a second room to store food and we purchased a freezer and refrigerator.
What began very modestly has grown and in 2009 we fed 1270 people, and each person receives one week’s worth of food. In addition, we also supply Thanksgiving and Christmas baskets which feed about 100 people combined. Our congregation is relatively small, but we have a bevy of volunteers committed to working in the Pantry. Even with the outside support, there is no way we could keep up with the rising number of clients and the cost of food, so three years ago we began applying for grants from the Presbyterian Hunger Program which have been a true Godsend.
The mission statement for Spring Valley Presbyterian is that we are a church that feeds the hungry. We take our mission very seriously, and literally, and we are so grateful to the Presbytery of West Virginia who are helping to keep this much-needed service alive.