Help fill the blessing box

Photo courtesy of Manchester United Methodist Church.

Manchester United Methodist Church’s blessing box, a small wooden box filled with shelf safe food located at the southeast corner of the church, is nearing its one-year anniversary. And so far it has been a success!

Anyone can take things out whenever they need to, 24-hours a day, and anyone can fill it back up with donations. Pastor Dillion Burns explained, “It gets used pretty regularly but thanks to the generosity of the community, very often it will be filled quickly just from people who notice when its empty and make a point to bring something by.”

Would like to help fill the blessing box? Bring non-expired shelf-safe food and place it in the blessing box. Pet food is also welcome. The church keeps a bin inside for restocking the box themselves when it gets low. You can also donate food directly to the church to fill the bin.

The blessing box is not intended in any way to be a replacement to the food pantry or agencies we have in the community but a safety net to fill the gaps, like meeting an immediate need for food outside of the food pantry’s hours. The church regularly monitors the items in the box to ensure foods are safe to eat through hot and cold weather.

The Manchester United Methodist Church is located at 501 Ann Arbor Street and the blessing box is located at the back of the church and is accessible from the parking lot.

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by Sara Swanson

Sara Swanson is an editor, writer and founder of the Manchester Mirror.