HOW TO REGISTER
WHAT: Fairfield Food Pantry 1st annual Spring 5K Run/Walk
WHEN: 9 a.m. March 26
WHERE: Waterworks Park, 5133 Groh Lane in Fairfield
COST: $30 pre-registration online through March 22. T-shirt guaranteed if registered by March 12. $35 day of race or at packet pick-up.
TO REGISTER: Visit www.registrationspot.com or stop by the Fairfield Food Pantry at 1085 Magie Ave.
Fairfield Food Pantry organizers plan to make a concerted effort to raise the organization’s profile within the community in hopes to making a dent in the overwhelming demand it faces every month.
Opened in 1997, the Fairfield Food Pantry now serves roughly 600 to 700 people per month in Fairfield and Fairfield Twp., and in parts of Hamilton’s Lindenwald neighborhood and Ross Twp. That’s about five times the number from when the pantry first started, and nearly twice the number from just five years ago.
The need for the pantry had ebbed and flowed since it began. But the Great Recession hit in late 2008, the demand hasn’t stopped. In fact, the annual demand has increased year over year since 2007.
RELATED: Demand for food donations at local pantries increases
People who use the pantry range from single-parent families to senior citizens, and there are even those who whose only housing options are living in hotels.
Visibility is a way to help increase both monetary donations as well as food and personal care item donations, said Judy Dirksen, who co-founded the pantry with her husband, Howard.
Though the pantry has posted a number of yellow barrels seen around the community, including at Kroger, it will look to increase the number around the community, she said. They will also increase its visibility at community events, including setting up a booth — complete with a yellow barrel — at the city’s farmer’s market.
“It will be a very organized effort to get the word out,” Dirksen said. “There are people out there hurting and needing help, there are people wanting to help.”
Part of new efforts to increase awareness and support of the pantry is the inaugural Fighting Hunger in Fairfield 5K run/walk set for March 26 at Waterworks Park. Proceeds benefit the Fairfield Food Pantry.
“The need is greatly there, and we’re always looking for ways to keep funds coming in, food coming in,” Dirksen said. “We’re constantly working on ways to do that.”
Wayne Krieghoff, chairman of the 5K, said he hopes 300 to 500 people will participate in the inaugural event. The goal is to raise about $15,000.
“We want to make it a fun time,” Krieghoff said.
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