St. Vincent de Paul volunteers pack bags of groceries on January 26 at St. Joseph Church.
By Alice Waugh
Lincoln’s only food pantry recently got a boost for the Lincoln families it serves—a $20,000 grant from the Ogden Codman Trust.
The St. Vincent de Paul, St. Joseph’s Conference (SVdP) operates a food pantry at St. Joseph Church and also offers emergency financial help to clients who live or work in Lincoln or Weston. It’s run by the St. Julia Parish in Weston, of which St. Joseph’s is a part. The grant money is earmarked for Lincoln residents, and most of it will be used for helping clients with sudden financial needs such as rent or utility payments, heating oil, car repairs, medications and other expenses.
“Many of our clients work hard to support themselves and their families. They manage to do that until some unexpected event such as illness, job loss, car trouble, extra-cold weather requiring more heating oil, or other unforeseen expense makes it impossible for them to cover all their bills,” said Christine Brandt, vice president of SVdP. “By supporting them temporarily, we make it possible for them to stay in their apartments and to recover their independence.”
SVdP currently serves 44 clients (tied for its most ever) in 24 households. Even though the Great Recession is over, “it’s not getting better—there definitely is a strong need at the moment,” said Ursula Nowak, SVdP president.
In addition to the strong support within their own parish, the organization receives cash and grocery donations from many sources, including parishioners of St. Anne’s and the First Parish Church in Lincoln; Donelan’s, which donates day-old bread; Hope and Comfort, a Newton nonprofit that contributes personal hygiene products; and Land’s Sake farm in Weston, a source of fresh produce during the growing season. More than half the food it distributes comes from the Greater Boston Food Bank, which provides pantries with food at little or no cost.
When clients visit the food pantry (which is open once a month), each household gets one bag of groceries per family member as well as paper towels, toilet paper and other household and toiletry items. Clients also receive food for a Thanksgiving meal and grocery store gift cards at Christmas and Easter so they can buy the ingredients for a meal of their choice. St. Vincent de Paul also tries to connect clients with other resources—for example, a local summer camp each year offers one summer “campership” for a child from client families.
Anyone who would like to contribute may send a check to SVdP, P.O. Box 324, Lincoln MA 01773. If you would like to drop off non-perishable food items, please enter St. Joseph Church at the side entrance by the ramp and leave them in the basket near the door. Please make sure to check the “best by” dates, as the organization is not allowed to distribute outdated food. For further information, contact Nowak at unowak@stjulia.org or 781-259-4297. If you or someone you know is in need of help, please call St. Julia Parish at 781-899-2611.
The Ogden Codman Trust, the First Parish Church and individual donations also fund the Lincoln Emergency Assistance Fund (LEAF) and the Small Necessities Project, which are administered by the Council on Aging along with the state’s Fuel Assistance Program. LEAF provides assistance of up to $700 per year or $1,000 per lifetime in those situations where that amount will allow someone to stay in the community. The Small Necessities Project can provide immediate help if a resident has no food in the house, needs emergency medication, needs a night or two of lodging due to a fire or flood, or has a similar crisis. For more information or to ask for assistance from either program, call Pam Mizrahi at the COA at 781-259-8811.