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Illinois Valley Food Pantry celebrates 44 years of service, one year at new location · Illinois Valley - Shaw Local

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  Illinois Valley Food Pantry celebrates forty-four years of service, one year at
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  new location. Written by Matthias Werner This article is being read
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  by an automated voice brought to you by Everlett. Those who have
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  spent so much time helping others put food on the table got
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  to take a seat at the table themselves Thursday evening in Peru.
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  The Illinois Valley Food Pantry celebrated a pair of anniversaries with an
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  open house for donors and members of the community. This is an
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  appreciation to all our supporters who have helped us throughout the years.
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  And with this new building, Illinois Valley Food Pantry Executive Director, Mary
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  Joe Crady said. The food pantry moved from its former La Salle
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  location on Wright Street to its new Peru location on September 30,
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  last year, more than doubling the available space and increasing the possibilities
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  for better serving the community. You could get just a few people
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  in at the old place. It was cramped, Creddy said. We really
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  needed a bigger building, and we're thankful we got it. Credit and
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  other staff members at the food pantry led visitors on a tour
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  of
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  the new facility, touting the progress made on Progress Boulevard in the
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  last year. The food pantry added a walk-in cooler and a walk-in
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  freezer as part of a larger effort to increase storage capacity and
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  more efficiently be able to prepare packages for local families. These beautiful
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  walk-ins were one of the main reasons we needed a bigger place.
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  We needed to have more cooler and freezer storage for our growing
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  clientele, Credit said. There were times in La Salle that we had
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  issues when we lost our off-site walk-in cooler and freezer access. With
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  the new amenities, Credit said the holiday packages for Easter, Thanksgiving, and
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  Christmas will be easier to manage, and the pantry can help other
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  organizations that have the access problems that plagued the food pantry.
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  At its former location. In addition to celebrating one year at the
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  New Digs, Thursday evening's event also was a commemoration of the staying
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  power of the food pantry altogether, marking 44 years since opening in
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  October 1982. Sue Myers, an original board member, lauded Credit for her
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  efforts to further the mission of the pantry I've been around here
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  for a while, Myers said. We are very blessed to have outstanding
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  and wonderful people like her in this community. Credit has been with
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  the pantry since 2019, and while much has been accomplished during her
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  tenure and the 44 years the Illinois Valley Food Pantry has served
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  the community, she is focusing on her plans for the future. The
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  pantry recently received a federal grant worth 550,000 to help reimburse the
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  pantry for equipment. With helps, from the grant and community donors, Credi
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  said the pantry hopes to add a floor scale, a new computer
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  and ID system, and a drive-thru in the coming years. This is
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  our dream For
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  the future, Creddy said. I just don't know how far into the
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  future that will be. Creddy emphasized that the grant does not impact
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  the need for food donations, nor does it help the pantry cover
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  the costs of paying for staff, power, or the building's mortgage. Every
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  little bit helps and it does pay off, Credicy said. We're blessed
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  to have a community like we do. I always say I can't
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  do this alone. It takes a village, and I have a great
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  village. For more information on the Illinois Valley Food Pantry, visit its
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  website and Facebook page or call 815-224-3658.