First Baptist Church Food Pantry in Winchester seeing a surge of people in need

WINCHESTER, Ky. (WTVQ) – The First Baptist Church in downtown Winchester has been serving people in Clark County through their food pantry for three years now. It typically sees more than seventy families a week and that need for food is growing.

The food pantry is open every Saturday from 10 am to 1 pm but because of the increase of families in need, and now more than ever that service is needed.

Pastor Marvin King says the church’s food pantry typically feeds around seventy families a week. Since the pandemic, they have been averaging around 84 families. He says one weekend, they fed 107 families.

Pastor Marvin King says the first baptist church food pantry also provides emergency food box assistance for those who can’t make it on Saturday.

King says given that there’s a lot of social distancing and although the state is working on a gradual re-opening plan, there have been many people who have been furloughed, who have lost their jobs and are still waiting for unemployment benefits.

“It’s very important as food prices rise, there was just a report about the rising food cost, people are having to make decisions in how they appropriate their personal finances and unfortunately it has affected the ability to buy food,” Pastor King says.

In addition to the food pantry, First Baptist Church is involved in the backpack program that provides students meals on the weekends but because of students no longer having access to food at school, King says he has seen an increase of children throughout this pandemic.

“It’s been vital to make sure that our food pantry is open, that it is fully stocked with food and that we can provide the needs of the persons here in this community so that people can eat and survive,” Pastor King says.

The food pantry is accepting non-perishable items, also meat, eggs, bread, and milk. King says they don’t just take non-perishable items but necessities as well. He says they are also accepting monetary donations.

To donate you can call the church at (859) 744-6624 or mail contributions to First Baptist Church Food Pantry at 37 North Highland Street, Winchester, Kentucky 40391.