CARIBOU, Maine — While a number of organizations amp up efforts to help their neighbors around the holidays, Catholic Charities is not one of them.
Around this time of the year, people call Dixie Shaw, director of hunger and relief services at Catholic Charities, to find out what special programs the organization will be doing for the holidays.
“I say, ‘We’re not doing anything different than we normally do for the holidays because we worry about people eating every single meal, 12 months of the year,’” Shaw said.
As President of Catholic Charities, Bishop Robert P. Deeley of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland is well aware of all the good work being done for Aroostook County at the Caribou Food Bank site, which he visited on Nov. 24. He too emphasized during his visit that helping feed the needy is a year-round endeavor.
“I think that the need for food is such an important part of the lives of the poor and we have to have sustainable charities like this which help people to lift themselves up and have sufficient resources,” he said. “This food bank does a wonderful job.”
This was Deeley’s first time visiting the Caribou food bank and Threads of Hope thrift store since becoming bishop last February, but it was about his fifth trip up to The County since that time.
“I’m so excited for the bishop to come and visit us because it’s the first time he’s had a chance to really get in and see the inner workings of our program here in Aroostook County,” Shaw said. “We’re just so thrilled to have him here.”
To confront the challenge of food insecurity facing many in the community, Catholic Charities Maine operates two food banks in the County: one in Caribou and one in southern Aroostook. The food banks supply 25 food pantries located throughout Aroostook and serve nearly 25,000 people annually.
Shaw explained that the organization is able to do this by holding local food collections, and by receiving food and monetary donations on a regular basis from service groups, schools, organizations, businesses and individuals. Catholic Charities also partners with other organizations to take advantage of benevolent opportunities, including Good Shepherd Food Bank, the Aroostook County Action Program, and the Aroostook Area Agency on Aging. Vital necessities are gathered, organized and then shared with food pantries. The donated goods include cereal, soup, pasta, canned items, frozen meats, dairy products and, thanks to the Farm for ME project, locally-grown, fresh and nutritious vegetables.
“This time of the year a lot of attention is brought to food insecurity and people who need food,” Shaw said. “There are some other organizations that do some special dinners and special things, but we stay focused on efforts to feed people every day, 12 months of the year, three meals a day, seven days a week.”
For information about volunteering or assisting the Catholic Charities Maine food pantries, visit ccmaine.org.