Open Arms Food Pantry in need of donations

By Charlotte Underwood

JACKSBORO, TN (WLAF) – Open Arms Food Pantry is in great need of both food and monetary donations. Due to a huge increase in unemployment from COVOD-19 (Coronavirus), hundreds more people are needing food from the pantry.  School closings have kids at home more too, which has also increased the need for more food.

The pantry usually serves more than 1,000 hungry Campbell Countians each month, but that number has increased by over 300 per month since March.  Last month, the non-profit served over 1,400  people. Volunteers said they were seeing “larger families” coming in and that the numbers continued to grow. Many elderly go to the pantry for food and depend upon that to have enough money to purchase medications. These numbers are up as well.

According to Open Arms volunteers, the pantry’s surplus of supplies is getting low and donations are down. The pantry usually has 10 freezers stocked with meat. That number has gone down to a little more than two. Food supplies of all kinds are down, including non-perishables, meat, eggs, vegetables, fruits and perishables as well. Pantry volunteers said they would love to have donations from local farmers and appreciate the farmers that do donate. Food recipients are “thrilled” with fresh produce.

The pantry is requesting help to restock its shelves to keep feeding those in need. Food donations must be unopened and within date. Monetary donations are needed as well to pay utilities and other bills for the non-profit. Monetary donations can be made to help with food purchases too.  As a non-profit, Open Arms gets a tax discount and also has the ability to buy in bulk. This makes the most of every dollar donated. The pantry is operated by a complete staff of volunteers with no payroll. All donations are tax deductible.

During the Coronavrus Outbreak, all volunteers are practicing social distancing and are sanitizing the area about every 30 minutes. The pantry is allowing only two people inside the lobby at a time, before sending them to the back door to pickup their boxes of food. Boxes are not being reused.  According to staff, they are taking “all precautions” during this time.

Donations can be sent to P.O. Box 433, Caryville, TN, 37714. Donations can also be dropped off at the pantry location at 1112 McGhee Lane, Jacksboro, 37757, near the National Guard Armory. For more information, call 423-566-6723 or check them out on Facebook.

Hours of operation of the Open Arms Food Pantry are Mondays and Tuesdays 9 am to noon and 1 pm to 3 pm (WLAF NEWS PUBLISHED – 04/14/2020-6AM)