BANGOR — The United Way kicked off its sixth annual Pantry Project on Jan. 20 at Hollywood Casino. The campaign goal is to collect more than 15,000 pounds of food between February and the end of April, which will provide more than 5,000 meals.
For the fifth year in a row, Hollywood Casino kicked off the initiative by recruiting local artist Allison Strange to assemble a holiday-themed winter scene made entirely out of canned goods. This year, Strange made a winter fox out of cans of soup and packages of coffee. The roughly 1,000 cans of soup used in the project will be donated donated by Hollywood Casino to kick off the 2015 Pantry Project.
The United Way indicated that more than 20 percent of Maine households do not have reliable and consistent access to food, and that as many as one in four children experience hunger in some areas of the United Way of Eastern Maine’s five-county service area. The Pantry Project’s goal is to make food available to those who need it.
“The Pantry Project has been able to grow year after year,” said United Way of Eastern Maine President John Kuropchak, in the press release. “The timing of this project is essential. The Thanksgiving and Christmas season always bring larger donations and a greater need. But this period of time from January through spring are the coldest months of the year. It’s when resources are the tightest for the people who might need help the most. ”
Businesses that get involved in the Pantry Project will receive shelving to use to collect food. Food donations will be collected each month and distributed through Good Shepherd Food Bank to local food pantries at no cost. The United Way said in its press release that 100 percent of the food and funds raised through the Pantry Project stay in Eastern Maine.
Non-perishable foods like canned goods, pasta, powdered milk and granola bars; as well as diapers, baby wipes and personal hygiene items are the most needed goods for 2015. Cash donations are accepted at participating business locations.
Businesses interested in participating in the 2015 Pantry Project should contact Kathryn Ravenscraft at the United Way of Eastern Maine by calling 941-2800, ext. 254 or e-mailing kathrynr@unitedwayem.org.
An initial list of businesses and months of participation follows are United Way of Eastern Maine, February, March, and April; Zone Radio, February, March and April; Hollywood Casino, February; Peoples United Bank, February; GoodWill, Brewer, February; Bangor YMCA, March; Central Middle School, Corinth, March; Eastern Area Agency on Aging, March; Eastern Maine Healthcare Systems, March; CES, March; Rudman and Winchell, March; Eaton Peabody, March; Camden National Bank, April; and Dead River, April.