By: Lydia Crawley
The Parsons Advocate
The Blackwater Ministerial Pantry opens its doors and provided its first distribution from its new building the first week of December. Pantry Manager Veronica Staron and Tom Kucer, Chairman of the Blackwater Ministerial Association sat down with the Parsons Advocate to discuss the Pantry, its history and its future.
The Pantry first began after the 1985 Flood in the Presbyterian Church in Thomas. However, as it grew, it became to large for the space at the Presbyterian Church and then it moved to a larger space at the Lutheran Church. Eventually, as they grew, they moved into a dentist’s office in Davis, until the building was put up for sale.
Now, they have built their own building on land leased from the Catholic Diocese to serve their community.
“Many of these people are very, very old,” Staron, a 21 year doyenne of the Pantry said. “At least 61, 64 every month, but that’s not counting whether or not they still have a partner. Some of them are widows, some of them are still in pairs.
Most of those served by the Pantry Staron said are the aged in the Community. Of the over 80 households a month served by the Pantry, between 60 and 64 are elderly and Staron said that most rely solely on Social Security to get by.
“Social Security doesn’t do it, in case you haven’t figured it out,” Staron said.
Elderly residents over 60 are additionally entitled to receive a box of food each month from the USDA. The USDA Commodity Supplemental Food Program distributes food to low-income seniors of at least 60 years of age. The CSFP provides a selection of fruit, juice, vegetables, milk, cheese, grains and protein, including plant-based protein, each month, according to the program’s website. The income limit for the year 2025 is $1,957 a month, according to Staron, with allowances for additional household members.
It is not just those who are served by the Pantry who are elderly, Staron said. Most of the volunteers are elderly retirees, as well. Staron and Kucer said that the volunteers come from all walks of life with some being aged 70 and up.
Staron said that most of the food distributed is locally sources, as much as possible. St. James Catholic Church in Charles Town provides fresh produce every month. In December, the Church supplied farm fresh eggs to the Pantry. Staron said that the Church sources locally grown, farm fresh foods to donate to food banks and she receives a call once a month from the Church about the latest delivery.
In the month of December, the Food Pantry served 84 households. Of those, 59 were seniors. In total, 4,629 pounds of food was distributed by and average of 25 volunteers, Staron said. The facility also made 28 home deliveries in December.
“Some people no longer have a driver’s license,” Staron said. “Some people can no longer afford a car and the insurance. Some people can no longer see well enough to drive.”
A long-term goal for the facility is to automate the records, Kucer said. Currently, records are kept in hard copy and mostly by hand. The facility would one day like to invest in electronic record keeping, but currently, it is one of the longer-term goals.
The Blackwater Ministerial Association Food Pantry partners with the following area houses of worship: St. John’s Lutheran Evangelical Church; Davis United Methodist Church; Thomas Flanagan Hill United Methodist Church; Buena Chapel United Methodist Church; St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church; Community Bible Church; Bethel Brethren of Dry Fork; Thomas Presbyterian Church; Harman Presbyterian Church; Harpertown Sunday School and Canaan Baptist Church.
The Pantry provides services to the residents of Thomas, Davis, Pierce, Benbush, Canaan Valley and Harman.
For more information on the Blackwater Ministerial Association Food Pantry, go to blackwaterministerial.org or call (304) 259-5635. The Blackwater Ministerial Association Food Pantry is located at 374 Quail Ridge Road in Thomas.
