Little Pantry comes with big hopes for Centre County community

It’s better to give than to receive, true — but every once in a while it’s nice to have options.

The refurbished armoire sitting behind Houserville United Methodist Church kindly takes that proviso into consideration, functioning as an entirely anonymous and always accessible homage to full-sized food banks.

That specific brand of ambition originated with the folks at Rebuild-U, where students involved with Hillel Penn State endeavor to develop personal connections through active engagement in the community.

“We just want to channel all this energy for making the world a better place and not waiting any longer and just doing it right here where we are,” Carly Haffner, one of the students on the Little Pantry committee, said.

Renee Ford, the pastor at HUMC, sparked the idea that eventually became known as the Little Pantry.

“What was interesting is that we had a church member bring up the idea of a little pantry at one of our council meetings and then, within a month or so, we were contacted by the folks at Rebuild-U to see if we might have interest in partnering with them. It seemed like the right thing to do,” Ford said.

She believes that access to a 24/7 pantry can help those who either don’t qualify to use a food bank or are restricted by a lack of mobility or unconventional schedule.

“Clients face a lot of barriers to an already uncomfortable process. I know the guidelines are necessary to make use and access fair and for a lot of other reasons, but it can often feel to folks in need like a loss of dignity and a lot of hoops just to get something to eat,” Ford said.

Rebuild-U is committed to keeping the shelves stocked with assistance from the Lion’s Pantry. Ideally, people will take what they need and give when they can.

“Eventually down the line, we hope that it’s going to be completely self-sustaining,” Haffner said.

Last Saturday, almost 30 people from throughout the community gathered at the church to paint the armoire and officially transform it into something they can call the Little Pantry — or their own.

This story was originally published April 20, 2017 at 8:21 AM with the headline "Little Pantry comes with big hopes for Centre County community."