Filling up: Scouting for Food stocks Ebenezer’s food pantry
Published 12:10 am Tuesday, February 4, 2025
BOSTIAN HEIGHTS — February brings with it frost, Groundhog forecasts and Valentine’s Day every year, but for those living with food insecurity, it brings a painful reminder of what its like to not know for sure where your next meal is coming from.
As part of a nationwide draw, Scouting for Food, members of Scout Troop 328 and Girl Scout Troop 4328 spent their Saturday morning canvassing nearby neighborhoods to collect non-perishable food items for Ms. Ruby’s Pantry at Ebenezer Lutheran Church and to try to offset hunger for community families.
Douglas Stirewalt is the scoutmaster for Troop 4328.
“We have a few neighborhoods that we have been to the last few years,” Stirewalt said. “Basically, we take bags that have labels on them. It has our information on it and a phone number so they can contact us.”
Stirewalt said that they go door-to-door to gauge interest in program participation in neighborhoods like Timberfield and Crooked Creek.
“Scouts go to the door and if someone comes to the door, we explain what we are doing,” Stirewalt said. “Today, with technology, you have the Rings (cameras). Sometimes, you will talk to someone through the Ring.”
That took a little getting used to for Stirewalt.
“Last year, I did that and I had my face right at it,” Stirwalt said, gesturing how close he got to the camera.
Among the faces of the troops collecting food on Saturday were Olivia Chandler, Kyleigh Stiltner and Allie Foreman.
Chandler indicated that it is inspiring to her to see how much people are willing to give to help their neighbors, adding that her years doing this has changed her outlook.
“I’m not really surprised,” she said. “I was in the beginning but now that I have been doing this for a couple of years, it is pretty normal to see people around here giving a lot.”
The ever-exuberant Stiltner explained how she is often the trooper who gets tasked with talking to residents when they are first distributing the empty bags to be filled up.
“I’m pretty social,” she said. “I come off as an approachable person. Usually, people are more willing to talk to me because I don’t seem like your everyday solicitor walking up to your door.”
For all her people skills, Stiltner mentioned that it takes a team.
“Its good to have a big group of people because we go to lots of big neighborhoods,” she said. “We split up and we go to all the houses. Then, it’s good to have a lot of people for pick up because lots of people donate. When we go get the boxes, you need lots of people to help carry them because they can be really heavy.”
Most teenagers might envision a different way of spending their Saturday morning but the girls acknowledged that not only is Scouting for Food a way to help out your community, but its fun at the same time.
“They are very fun and they make me smile and laugh,” Foreman said of her fellow scouts.
Ann Barber, a committee chair and member at Ebenezer as well as a scoutmaster for a Salisbury-based troop, remarked how great it is to see those relationships form in the service of their community.
Barber has been active in Scouting for Food for years, recognizing the program’s vital need, especially this time of year. Explaining the program’s origins, she said that in the 1980s, a scout wanted to help people in a Michigan community.
“He said he saw that he noticed a lot of people did not have a lot of groceries,” Barber said. “They were coming and asking for food. They picked this time of year because people in February normally have a higher electric bill from the colder months. When an electric bill comes you have to pay it, so what are you supposed to skimp on? You skimp on your food.
“Also people pile up bills around Christmas. They want their kids to have a great Christmas but then these bills are coming in. You also have construction workers and seasonal workers who are out of work. There are a lot of things that came together that said this is an opportune time for us to help.”
Ms. Ruby’s Pantry is not the only beneficiary of Scouting for Food but it is the closest one to the Bostian Heights community. Barber said they have a SHARE program at the pantry that serves several families in the area. They also pack bags for some students at Bostian Elementary School.
“It is a service to the community around here,” Barber said. “There is food insecurity and we gotta help them.”
It is not just the community benefiting from the program though. As Barber pointed out, the scouts learn a lot too.
“These scouts come in and weigh the food,” Barber said. “Leaders come in and show them how to read labels, and sort.”
Barber also mentioned how by working with the community, it enhances their social skills.
After the dust settled, she reported that they had collected more than 1,800 pounds of food.
With so much development happening in that part of the county, Barber lamented that they cannot get to every neighborhood, but said that so long as the scouts are willing to do the work, they’ll be there to aid those in need.