WEYMOUTH, ROCKLAND, MA ISSUED SEPTEMBER 17, 2024… The Weymouth Food Pantry, with a mission to end hunger in Weymouth, Massachusetts,
is currently observing the fifth year of its Food Pantry Garden.
Hosted by Old South Union Church on Columbian Street, The Food Pantry Garden was established five years ago as a means to help address food insecurity in Weymouth neighborhoods.
“The concept of a Food Pantry Garden began with a conversation about how to increase access to fresh, healthy food,” said Pamela Denholm, executive director of the Weymouth Food Pantry. “All we needed was some open land, a few willing volunteers, and funding!”
“It was an idea everyone could get behind but it took a special sponsor to recognize what an amazing investment in the community this project represented,” said Denholm.
In short time, South Shore Bank stepped up as the long-term sponsor of the project, pledging $60,000 over the course of ten years – a promise that ensured the garden had time to become established and continue to add value to the community for years to come.
Now in its fifth year, The Food Pantry Garden yields an abundance of fresh vegetables and herbs and harvests around 1,500 pounds of produce each year.
“In addition to helping to address food insecurity, the garden is a welcoming space for visitors and families who drop by to enjoy its beauty,” said Denholm. “It’s so gratifying to drive by and see people walking among the vegetable beds admiring the beautiful fresh produce or sitting at the red picnic benches.”
About the Weymouth Food Pantry
The Weymouth Food Pantry is an independent 501(c)(3) charity providing free groceries to over 4,000 people in Weymouth at any given time. The Weymouth Food Pantry serves between 100 and 250 families per service day, 600 and 800 families each month, and distributes about 830,000 pounds of food per year. The Weymouth Food Pantry offers food assistance and education through a variety of food access, food equity, and health focused programs, including pop-up pantries, grocery delivery to homebound elders and people with disabilities, a dollar-match at the farmers’ market, weekend food bags for students in school, an open access community garden, and “made with love” meals freshly prepared and frozen for easy reheating by neighbors for whom meal prep is a barrier to food security.
The Weymouth Food Pantry was founded in 1987 by a small group of concerned citizens. Its executive office is located at 40E Reservoir Park Drive, Rockland, MA 02370. For more information, please visit www.weymouthfoodpantry.org, email info@weymouthfoodpantry.org, or call 781-331-7682.
