CHATHAM – The Chatham Community Food Distribution received a $1,200 donation from the local Chatham Interfaith Clergy Council at the council’s May 10 meeting.
The gift was given in recognition of the second anniversary of the start of the distribution and the importance of the effort to the surrounding area. The amount approximates the weekly cost of purchasing fresh produce such as fresh fruit, vegetables, milk, eggs and other perishables for distribution to the 30-60 families who are in need of assistance in any given week.
The drive-thru distribution is held Wednesdays at the Chatham United Methodist Church (CUMC). Head pastor, the Rev. Jeff Markay, expressed his deep gratitude for the interfaith council’s contribution.
“I so deeply appreciate the ecumenical friendships and support that we enjoy in this community,” he said. “At one of our last meetings, the Rev. Tom Brown of the Presbyterian Church of Chatham Township proposed that the interfaith council use some of its funds to support the food distribution.
“The volunteers for the food distribution have consistently come from the churches of our community, and have become a real expression of the coalition of compassion,” he continued. “We have learned over the past two years that food insecurity is very real and is unlikely to go away soon. We’ve also learned that it has been life-giving to be able to serve others. It is a mutual gift, to give, and to receive.
“I’m deeply grateful to the interfaith community which has worked together for many years, and together seeks to serve those in need.”
Speaking on behalf of the interfaith council, the Rev. Christa Compton of Gloria Dei Lutheran Church in Chatham touched on the need for continuing support of the food distribution.
“We are so pleased to be making this gift, but, at the same time, we realize it covers just one week of fresh produce for the families visiting our distribution,” she said. “We hope our gift will be seen as an invitation to Chatham residents to join us, even consider matching our gift and in so doing help 50 plus families put fresh food on the table in any one week.”
Member houses of worship of the Chatham Interfaith Clergy Council include the Chatham Church of Christ; Chatham Summit Quaker Meeting; Chatham United Methodist Church; Corpus Christi Parish; Gloria Dei Lutheran Church; Ogden Memorial Presbyterian Church; Presbyterian Church of Chatham Township; St. Patrick Parish; St. Paul’s Episcopal; United Methodist Church at Green Village.
Checks can be made payable to: Chatham UMC, earmarked Covid Relief. Donations to purchase food can be given online through the website: www.chathamumc.org.
In addition to what the CCFD is able to purchase, local businesses such as Fleur de Sel and Panera Bread have been especially generous in donating dairy products and baked goods.
