On Saturday, March 10, 20 parishioners young and old from Christ Episcopal Church staffed a food drive at the Woodbury Kowalski’s and Wal-Mart collecting food for the Christian Cupboard Emergency Food Shelf. 

As part of the Lenten season and the Episcopal Church of Minnesota’s Project 2012, Christ Church has kicked of a number of initiatives to combat hunger, homelessness and the need for clothing.

In just five hours, more that a ton of food (2,499 pounds to be exact) was donated by Saturday shoppers. 

“As this was a first time event for us at these stores, we were not sure what to expect,” said drive coordinator C.D. White. “We are thrilled to benefit from the generosity of Saturday’s shoppers and wish to especially thank Kowalski’s and Wal-Mart for letting us set up our tables at the store entrances.”   

A broad range of items were collected, including breakfast necessities, pasta, proteins such as tuna fish, canned meat and peanut butter as well as canned fruits and vegetables.  In addition to food, the drive also collected personal care items and critical needs for those with infants including formula, baby food and diapers. 

To top it all off, the drive also collected over $200 in cash donations.

After collecting dozens of carts full of food and personal care items, it was all loaded up and trucked to the food shelf to be sorted and stored.

“The Christian Cupboard is critically dependent on the support of our local community,” said Greig Metzger, Christian Cupboard board member and Christ Church parishioner. “On behalf of the Christian Cupboard, I want to thank all those involved. The generosity of the community, apparent in their donations of food, allow us to stretch our cash resources further as we assist families in the area. And with March being Minnesota FoodShare month, the cash the Christian Cupboard receives will be proportionally matched by Minnesota FoodShare."

Christ Episcopal

Christ Episcopal Church of Woodbury is one of the foundational churches of Minnesota, having been founded in St. Paul in the 1850's.  It has grown to become an open and welcoming community with a diverse and engaged congregation.  Christ Church is located across from Target, on the top of the hill, one block south of Valley Creek.

Christian Cupboard

The Christian Cupboard Emergency Food Shelf is open to people in need in Woodbury, Oakdale, Landfall, and South Maplewood. Their goal is to bring hope to the table by providing food, personal care items, and other critical resources to people in crisis. The Christian Cupboard is located in the lower level of Woodbury Lutheran Church, and is open to people of all religious backgrounds.