Ending hunger with heart in Huntersville

“What if we could, instead of helping an individual family, help many families?”

That was the question Kenya Joseph asked her mother after watching an episode of “Extreme Couponing,” where one family used their couponing techniques to provide groceries for a neighboring family.

“From there, we decided to see if we could have a food pantry in our church, stocked through donations and extreme couponing,” Joseph said. “The couponing lasted only two weeks, but the food pantry was well on its way.”

Now serving residents from Statesville to Rock Hill, the Hearts and Hands Food Pantry has become a necessity for individuals and families facing both short- and long-term hardship.

“We’ve had people who were distraught after losing their job, and we gave them hope in knowing they could have this need met -- no questions asked but to fill out their grocery list,” said Joseph, the pantry’s director.

The food pantry offers its clients a private shopping experience in which they can visit the pantry and pick out the items from their list. It also has a full clothing closet and a referral program to connect them with organizations that can assist with their other needs.

However, since the coronavirus pandemic hit, Joseph said the organization has had to make tremendous changes to its normal operations.

“The day our governor closed all restaurants, we sat down and put into place a plan to offer curbside pickup for our clients -- preparing their groceries and bringing them out to their car for contact-less service,” Joseph said.

After experiencing an overwhelming demand during the first week of curbside pickup, the pantry converted to appointment-only pickups, where clients schedule their pickup time on the Hearts and Hands website and choose the grocery items they want to receive.

“The curbside pickup, combined with the appointment system, has been working great for us, and it couldn't have been more timely because the stay-at-home order soon followed and we saw a 500% increase in clients thereafter,” Joseph said.

While the pantry is experiencing an increase in need, it is also seeing a decrease in its bulk donations due to the strain on grocery supply chains.

“We appreciate all financial and food donations we receive,” said Joseph. “If there are any restaurants that are open and have any food or perishables they have leftover, we would gladly accept it.”

She added: “We love and thrive on community support. This is how we are able to serve those that come with such a wide variety of items.”

When asked what her hope is for the community during this time, Joseph replied: “We’ve come together to give hope to those that are frightened and unsure of the future. I hope that this spirit of kindness continues well beyond this crisis.”

The pantry is looking into adding a delivery service option for its clients and providing life skills classes and counseling for the community.

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If you have an inspiring story to share, email Sinead Taylor, WSOC-TV community affairs specialist, at Sinead.Taylor@wsoc-tv.com.

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