Telephone: 740-974-1356
740-380-6132 (Wednesday and Friday only)
1333 East Front Street, Logan, Ohio 43138
 

"Often times people think that because we are a food pantry we get these items for free but nothing could be further from the truth. We must purchase these products from the Hocking, Athens, Perry Community Action Regional Food Center for .18 cents per pound. However, lately supplies have been limited at the foodbank - so we have had to seek other sources in order to have enough food to give away at our monthly food distributions," Devol explained.

In addition, he noted that when it is necessary to purchase additional food products from other suppliers and wholesalers - they have to pay more for the products than they do when buying them from the local foodbank.

One resident, who chose not to be identified, said that she was making her way through the food line for the second consecutive month. She said that she really appreciates the service offered by the Smith Chapel Food Pantry.

"I'm retired and live on a small income. Having this food distribution on the fourth week of the month - helps us to make it through until the first of the month when we get our social security checks. The high cost of gasoline and heating bills during the winter months has really cut into our food budget - so this really helps out," she said.

Franklin Welch and his wife, Thelma, are also recipients of the food supplements each month. "This is so important for people like us who live on a limited income. I don't know what we would do without it. We really appreciate the food pantry's generosity and all of their hard work" he said.

Mr. Welch was also questioned by Tim Jones, reporter for the Chicago Tribune. He asked Mr. Welch if he thought the approaching election was important.

Mr. Welch replied, "Absolutely. It looks like Ohio will be very important state in the upcoming election. I believe that Ohio voters will determine the Democratic nominee for president. Years ago, I used to be afraid to tell people that I am a Democrat - now I proudly tell them that I am a Democrat and will support the candidate who gets the nomination.

"We need a president who will not forget about the people in southeast Ohio. We need jobs and healthcare. Some people go to Columbus to work for five to seven dollars per hour - with gasoline being over $3 per gallon - they can't afford to drive there for that amount of wages.

Mr. Welch, who is retired as a township employee, is also a veteran.

"I'm fortunate because I can get treatment and medication through the veterans but there are people without any medical coverage at all. We need a president who will take care of that," he said.

The Chicago Tribune reporter was asked what brings him outside of his normal beat within the borders of Illinois; he said that he visited Logan four years ago to report on the local food pantries efforts. He admitted that the need to help feed the hungry in Hocking County has grown since that time.

"We are also trying to get a feel for how Ohio citizens may cast their votes in the primary Tuesday. I haven't seen this much excitement and anticipation about a presidential election since 1968," the reporter noted.

Smith Chapel Food Ministry is one of the 15 agencies supported in part by United Way of Hocking County.

"We are fortunate that we have never had to solicit for funds," Devol said. "With United Way funding, generous donations from local individuals, churches, businesses and organizations - we manage to continue with the monthly food distributions."

"In December of 2007, we were blessed to meet Jeff Davidson, a resident of Dublin, who established the Angel Donors Fund at the Columbus Foundation that is designed to assist people who are struggling to meet their basic needs. We have already benefited from the Angel Donors Fund because it helped us to purchase additional food products for our food distributions for the past few months. We appreciate Mr. Davidson's efforts, as well as the funding from United Way and other local donors. We also appreciate the more than 50 volunteers who help out with the food distributions each month," Devol concluded.

Smith Chapel Food Pantry:

I had the honor of working at the Smith Chapel Food Pantry and taking a quick tour of the Hocking-Athens-Perry Community Action Food Bank on Monday. It was an eye-opening experience to see the line of cars stretching for miles, all of them filled with people who needed food in order to feed their families. It was also a worthwhile experience to see how the food bank operates and to hear about the number of families who are getting Meals-on-Wheels service, as well hear about how many people could be served but aren't due to a lack of available money.

Some people think that the government has no business helping food pantries and food banks serve the needs of people. They think that churches should do more. Well, after watching how the Smith Chapel Food Pantry operates and seeing how many people they serve, this church and this community is doing all they can. Government has a duty to protect its citizens. I believe that the efforts of the federal and state governments to help these institutions out are worthy goals and we should try to do more.

Posted By: Dan Dodd, Ohio State Representative, March, 26, 2008