By: Cynthia Taylor

Loaves and Fishes Pantry at Mount Olive has received $3,500 from the Food Lion Feeds Charitable Foundation to help nourish neighbors experiencing hunger. Including this latest award, the Food Lion Feeds Charitable Foundation has invested a total of $10,500 in the pantry since 2023, providing sustained support for its mission to serve neighbors experiencing food insecurity. The Nourishing our Neighbors grant supports community feeding partners by helping neighbors increase their access to nutritious food, nutritional education and resources to help them get back on their feet.

Loaves and Fishes Pantry partners with the Maryland Food Bank to provide a variety of nutritious foods to neighbors facing food insecurity. As a “neighbor choice” pantry, individuals can select the groceries that best meet their needs. This approach preserves dignity and helps reduce waste by allowing pantry neighbors to choose the items they will use. As we serve more neighbors, funding the pantry operation has been challenging. The grant will help us to meet growing needs and expand access to healthy food options. 

The Loaves and Fishes Pantry began in 2011 when a small group of women asked Mount Olive to start a food ministry. The church supported the effort with food donations and meal assistance. When the group’s leader could no longer continue, Mount Olive members carried the ministry forward. The pantry served its first community meal on April 20, 2013, and soon received donations from other churches and neighbors. Two partner churches later opened their own pantries. By November 2013, Mount Olive UMC was known as “the church that cares.” The ministry later became a Maryland Foodbank partner, expanded to operate four days a week, and remained open during COVID, with the former pastor distributing bags of groceries.

On March 18, 2023, Mount Olive and community members celebrated the grand opening of the “Neighbor Choice” Loaves and Fishes Pantry. Instead of receiving prepacked bags, neighbors choose their own groceries. The pantry now opens twice a week and offers food distribution and a community meal on the third Saturday each month. These meals provide fellowship and help neighbors connect with one another.

Today the words of Barbara K., our first leader, still ring true: “As much as for the food, the people who are the beneficiaries of this program, those who give and those who receive, are blessed with the ability to make a difference and to share in the blessings of God. We mean to see Jesus in every face and to reflect His love in our own.”

The Food Lion Feeds Charitable Foundation is committed to supporting families facing food insecurity across Food Lion’s 10-state footprint. Established in 2001, the Foundation provides financial support for programs and organizations dedicated to feeding local neighbors in the communities it serves. Since its inception, the Foundation has awarded more than $25 million in grant funding to help nourish communities with fresh food.

About The Food Lion Feeds Charitable Foundation

The Food Lion Feeds Charitable Foundation is the philanthropic arm of Food Lion, based in Salisbury, N.C. Established in 2001, the Food Lion Feeds Charitable Foundation provides financial support for programs and organizations dedicated to eliminating hunger. The charitable foundation has provided more than $25 million in grant funding, helping to nourish communities with fresh food for backpack programs, Kids Café’s and other hunger-relief programs as well as funding for long-term programs to help shorten the lines at food banks. The charitable foundation partners with Feeding America, the nation’s largest hunger-relief agency, in addition to local food agencies serving the 10 Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic states in which Food Lion operates. For more information, visit foodlion.com/pages/food-lion-feeds. 

About Food Lion

Food Lion is an omnichannel grocery retailer committed to nourishing its neighbors. More than 82,000 associates across 1,100+ stores deliver an easy, fresh and affordable shopping experience throughout 10 Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic states. With a focus on hunger relief, Food Lion is a pioneer in food rescue. Since 2014, the company’s hunger relief platform Food Lion Feeds has donated more than 1.5 billion meals to those who are food insecure. The retailer has committed to donate 3 billion meals by 2032. Founded and based in Salisbury, N.C., since 1957, Food Lion is a company of Ahold Delhaize USA, the U.S. division of Zaandam-based Ahold Delhaize. For more information, visit foodlion.com.