Dear Editor:
Last month, the Little Chapel Food Pantry hosted a Chuck Wagon appreciation dinner for our donors. In keeping with a Western theme, cowboy attire abounded! Paul Meredith, an elder from the Little Chapel of the Hills, blessed the meal and expressed his gratitude for all the Food Pantry does to feed those in our community who otherwise might go hungry. Dressed as Trail Boss, Ken Hesselberg spoke of the accomplishments (distributing over 500,000 lbs of food this year) and the future needs of the Pantry. Directors, Ken and Judi Hesselberg, presented a plaque to outstanding volunteers for 2018. Also in attendance, Teller County Sheriff Jason Mikesell, spoke from personal experience about the importance of the work of the Food Pantry and the reasons for the growing numbers of the food-insecure in our community. Then “Elvis” (Dennis Thornberry) rocked the Chapel with old favorites and Christmas songs!
The Food Pantry wishes to recognize the organizations listed (in no particular order) below. Please patronize and support these organizations who have provided food and funding over the past few years, enabling the Food Pantry to serve our community.
Wal-Mart, Safeway, City Market, Loaf and Jug, Care & Share, Venture Foods of Divide, City of Woodland Park, Charis Bible College, Newmont Mine, Ute Country News, Ute Pass Saddle Club, Double M Concrete, Williams Brothers Furniture, Black Mountain Pump Services, Pikes Peak Lions Club, Osborne Trust, Keller-Williams, PK Enterprises, Coldwell Banker, Michaels Mountain Properties, Cripple Creek Masonic Lodge #96, WP Rotary Club, Above the Clouds Cruisers, Woodland Butcher Block, Summit Elementary School, Colorado Springs Christian School, Divide Post Office, Anderson Pack N Ship, Pikes Peak Credit Union, Mountain View United Methodist Church, Woodland Park Community Church, Community Fellowship of Christians, Rocky Mountain Chapel, Little Chapel of the Hills, and Impact Christian Church.
This looks like a huge list of donors, plus the Food Pantry also receives many donations from individuals, for which we are most grateful; however, donations have fallen significantly in the past year, even while the need in our community is growing. We operate week-to-week, on a shoestring budget (the Pantry did not have the funds in our budget to host the appreciation dinner so a single donor funded it). Every dollar really does count. Help us provide a basic item, such as a dozen eggs in every distribution. When we can afford it, we purchase eggs for a dollar a dozen, which (with more than 300 sets of boxes distributed twice a month), would cost more than $7,000 a year. Your contribution makes a difference!
More about the Little Chapel Food Pantry in Divide
In the spirit of Jesus Christ who commands us to love (and care for) one another, the Little Chapel Food Pantry has distributed food to those in need in Teller County and environs for more than 18 years. For the last 15 years Ken and Judi Hesselberg have served as Directors of the Pantry, distributing more than 500,000 lbs of food per year—with the help of an army of volunteers! Scout groups, school groups, Charis Bible students, churches, the elderly, the disabled, folks from every walk of life, make up this army, contributing a combined total of more than 6,000 volunteer hours so far this year.
The Food Pantry also provides spiritual nourishment through what some have called the “Prayer Pantry!” A prayer team member greets each car (if possible), offering a warm welcome and the opportunity to make a prayer request. Health issues, housing, and a good job are some of the most frequent prayer requests.
The Food Pantry partners with the Pet Food Pantry to feed our furry friends and with Focus on the Forest, a nonprofit organization that brings their trash compactor to every distribution and allows each family to drop off two bags of household trash, at no charge!
