Food Closet needs help to provide meals for holidays

Richard J. Rosica
Published: September 19, 2008

It’s that time of the year again when we take a look at where we are and where we are going at the Food Closet. It’s that time when we say “yikes” or “wow” or “gee whiz” or some other appropriate adjective.

What we see is that through August we have provided food for more than 73,000 meals and worse yet, we have spent $21,000 more than has been donated. Yikes!

What does this mean for the remainder of 2008? Well, we have $7,000 left over from last Thanksgiving for our program this year, but we are an estimated $12,000 short.

We can take money from our general fund to complete Thanksgiving, but at the current levels of spending and donations we would have precious little left to go into next year.

With gas and oil prices remaining high — and with the winter heating season coming — I can only see our conditions getting worse.

At this writing, we are seeing a dramatic increase in the number of families coming in (more than 100 per week) and they are larger than our historic average of three persons per family. All of this means greater expenses for the Food Closet, placing not only Thanksgiving in jeopardy, but also our day-to-day operation. We need help with food and monetary donations and I am appealing to this wonderful community to once again come through for us.

Donations of food can be made at the library, the Food Lion at Meadowbrook Shopping Center, and several collection sites placed by United Way, or they can be brought directly to the Food Closet between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.

The Food Closet is located in the building adjacent to the town parking lot on Commerce Street. Checks should be made out to: Culpeper Food Closet, P.O. Box 343, Culpeper, VA 22701

Thank you in advance for your help.

Richard J. Rosica
Director, Culpeper Food Closet