Fostering families through food insecurity

GREEN BAY – Since it started in 1983, Resurrection Food Pantry has become a vital resource for the Brown County community, helping to feed thousands of families in the area.

Originally a distribution point for government commodity cheese, the pantry has grown into an operation that provided food to 3,183 families each month in 2024.

“We work to help our clients to feel respected and trusted in the community. We try to build them up to improve their self-esteem,” said pantry manager, Larry Peterson. “Therefore we intentionally work toward having a friendly and accepting environment.”

Even though the pantry’s mission is based on providing food, their ultimate goal is to help families reach a point where they don’t need assistance anymore.

“For some families, we have been able to eliminate their need for a food pantry. Those we consider successes when we look at the work we do with the pantry. If we’re growing in usage, that’s a failure. We want people to find out how to help themselves,” said Peterson.

To support this goal, the pantry partners with local agencies and churches to provide community members with additional resources, Peterson shared, adding that they often refer families to the 211 hotline.

“[The hotline] can provide information on housing, food availability and all sorts of stuff. We encourage people who are struggling with anything to contact 211 for that additional help,” said Peterson. “Our pantry can provide food. We’ve tried to do other things and found that really interferes with our main mission, which is to distribute food to those in need.”

The pantry is open from 9-11 a.m. on the first to third Thursdays of the month, and from 5:30-7:30 p.m. on the fourth and fifth Thursdays.

Keeping it running wouldn’t be possible if not for the help of numerous volunteers, donors and food drives.

“There are a few community-wide food collections that are extremely important to us, including Stamp Out Hunger coming up in May,” said Peterson. “That’s a nationwide food collection that benefits pantries all over the country. Our specific pantry will receive 8,000 pounds from that.”

Each distribution day requires between 13 to 17 volunteers, and additional volunteers are needed for tasks like packing bags, unloading trucks and completing home deliveries.

As a final message, Peterson emphasized the importance of food pantries in the local community, and explained that food pantries don’t compete with each other— they are partners in serving those in need.

“Our pantries in the area are not competitors. We want to serve the community as efficiently as possible. It’s important for our community to understand that a donation to any pantry helps the same people,” he said.
More information about Resurrection Food Pantry can be found at: rlutherangb.com/food-pantry.