As need increases, so does search for new Community Cupboard home

Written By Morgan Fraser

The Community Cupboard has outgrown its space. In the last four years, the number of monthly households served has increased from 250 to 650, creating challenges in both storing extra stock and making the shopping space accessible for shoppers.

Food Programs Manager Rachel Bishop recalls a mother who recently came into the Community Cupboard food pantry to get food. She was in a hurry—she had a very narrow window to shop before picking up her kids when school let out.

“It’s the only time she has to shop,” said Rachel. 

Often, people are waiting in line to check in. Once they check in, they’re waiting as other shoppers finish up choosing items on shelves, and then waiting in line to check out. Whereas a visit may only take 5 minutes if no one else is shopping, it can take 25-30 minutes if it’s busy. If it’s busy on a day she visits, this mother may have to choose between letting her kids wait for her outside the school or walking back out of the Cupboard without the food she needs for her family.

The Community Cupboard has been providing food for people in need since 1988. For 30 years, both the food pantry and thrift store shared the same space. In 2018, the thrift store moved down the street to accommodate growing demand and to create a more dignified shopping experience for the people MEND serves.

In recent years, however, needs have continued to grow rapidly. Increased staffing and generous volunteer help have helped manage the flow of shoppers, but there’s a limit to the number of people who can physically fit within the space.

Storage and Service Challenges

"Our entire food pantry used to fit in the space where the walk-in cooler is now," says Bob Mark, MEND's Human Services Director and former Community Cupboard manager. "We've made many changes over the years to keep up with demand, but we've reached the limits of what we can do with the space we have."

Rachel started working at Upper Valley MEND in 2022. At that time, the Cupboard was serving 250 households a month. Now it serves 650 households a month out of the same amount of space.

In addition to increased wait times, this poses a challenge keeping the shelves stocked. The Cupboards storage is usually full of food thanks to our partners, local grocery stores, and donations of food and money from our community. But when there are so many shoppers in the Cupboard, maneuvering food through the store to restock the shelves becomes impossible.

“We do a lot of things to try to meet our shoppers’ needs with dignity,” says Rachel. “But when it’s crowded and we can’t keep the shelves stocked, it’s harder to meet that mission.”

MEND may have an opportunity to buy the lot where the Cupboard is currently located, if the City of Leavenworth is able to move a portion of its public works facility to another location. This would allow the Cupboard to expand to meet the community’s need, with the added benefit that MEND could house all its programs in one ADA-accessible building.

However, there are a lot of variables that have to fall into place for that to happen. It could be up to five years.

“If our numbers keep going up,” says Rachel, “we cannot wait five years.”

In the meantime, MEND is keeping an eye out for other properties that might fit the community’s need, and exploring new, creative ways to rearrange or expand the space we currently have.

A Wish List for a New Community Cupboard

Cupboard staff and volunteers think often about what a new ideal space would have that the current space lacks, including the following:

·       More room in the shopping area in general—both for an increased amount of shoppers and their carts, but also for shoppers, staff, and volunteers to have more space to maneuver.

·       Enough space for multiple check-out stands.

·       A welcome area where people could sit down and wait their turn indoors, potentially charge their phones, enjoy some soup and catch up with each other.

·       A smooth and level floor with no step-downs between rooms, which would aid in accessibility and worker and volunteer safety.

·       An entirely separate storage area for food that would make it easier to unload food shipments and grocery rescue items.

·       Greater capacity for cold storage, both refrigerated and frozen.

At the Community Cupboard, MEND seeks to provide people with dignity and a welcoming experience, but the current space makes that increasingly difficult. A larger, more thoughtfully designed space would allow us to better serve the community in the way they truly deserve. The need is growing quickly, and we hope to find solutions sooner rather than later. As part of that search for solutions, we are asking the community for their input. If you know someone who has land for sale or have other ideas, please reach out.

Interested in staying involved?

Morgan Fraser
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MEND's multiple programs provide comprehensive support for those who need it