Local help centers are in need

Sat, Oct 17, 2009    to del.icio.us

SPRING LAKE — A 44-year-old Nunica woman waited shyly in the office for People Center volunteer Jeanine Taghon-Oleszczuk to finish a telephone conversation on Wednesday.

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It's hard for her to ask for help, but the woman, who has been laid off from a factory job for a little over a year, said the unemployment check doesn't cover all the bills.

"I tried to get along, but just a little help from here is a big help," the woman, who asked not to be identified, said. This was her third trip to the People Center's food pantry since being laid off, she said. With Taghon-Oleszczuk's help, the woman selected some groceries, toiletries and makeup.

"This will be nice for when the grandkids come over," she said as she picked out some canned pasta.

The woman was just one of several people who came through the doors of the center that day.

"I haven't sat down all day, we've been so busy," Taghon-Oleszczuk said.

After the client left with an extra bonus of bags of apples and potatoes from last weekend's produce giveaway on Harbor Island, Taghon-Oleszczuk directed a young woman, pregnant with her third child, to the clothing area in the basement of the center while she started taking information from two other women who came through the door, sent there by Love INC.

Requests for food and clothing help from the People Center are on the rise, and so is the need for donations.

"We have had an incredible year here," People Center director Karen Reenders said. "We have served 2,260 people through the end of August compared to 1,450 at that same time last year. We are having a very difficult time keeping food in our pantry."

Reenders said she thought the numbers would have started to go down by now, but they keep going up.

She said on Friday a volunteer reported helping four new families in just the first hour the center was open.

"That's unusual," Reenders said.

People Center Board member Chuck Michele stopped in with a cheery "hello" Wednesday while Taghon-Oleszczuk worked with the clients.

"I buy all the bread here," he said. Michele comes in on a regular basis to make sure the bread supply is fresh. There is a note on the refrigerator that says to call him if it looks like they are going to run out. He also helps keep meat in the pantry freezer.

"It would be nice if other donors out there would pick a specific item and help keep it stocked," he said.

Michele said he takes advantage of sales and buys a lot of the bread from a wholesale store in Muskegon. He was happy that day because he had discovered the section where they kept the generic brands at even half the discount price.

"That will help a lot," he said, since prices have gone up a lot since he started buying bread for the center many years ago.

The People Center was created by Christ Community Church 13 years ago.

Taghon-Oleszczuk said she has been volunteering at the center the entire time and that her husband and son had actually built the food pantry on the older home where the center is housed at 307 E. Exchange St. in Spring Lake.

Although there seemed to be a fair amount of food on the pantry shelves, Taghon-Oleszczuk said they were going through it fast.

When someone comes in the door asking for help, the center provides them with food for several meals, toiletries and clothes, if they request them. The center also tries to keep bedding, including blankets, and some toys on hand. They are always in need of diapers and dog food would be good too, Taghon-Oleszczuk said.

Food and clothing donations may be dropped off at the center Monday, Wednesday or Friday between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. Financial donations may be made on the Web site at www.thepeoplecenter.org, or may be mailed to The People Center at P.O. Box 311, Spring Lake, MI 49456. Checks should be made payable to The People Center.

Volunteers are also needed because many of them go south for the winter, Taghon-Oleszczuk said.