BENNINGTON — For those experiencing food insecurity in Bennington County region holiday season, a multitude of resources are available, explained Sarah Blizzard, associate director of the Greater Bennington Community Services (GBCS) in Bennington.
However, for those looking for free hot meals on Thanksgiving day this year, the pickings are rather slim.
While numerous organizations have offered this in the past, many are now turning to hot meals available on a different timeline – not on Thanksgiving Day itself.
For Thanksgiving, the Bennington Elks Lodge (Lodge Number 567) is offering free meal deliveries. Additionally, the Bennington Community Market coordinated with HIS Pantry, to coordinate meals for those in need. Volunteers will be cooking meals on Thursday and Friday at the Bennington Community Market to make sure that the meals that were ordered last week will be delivered on time to HIS Pantry, who will be distributing to those in need on Sunday. The same is true for the planned St. James Church Thanksgiving dinner in Arlington, which is planned for Sunday November 23 at 3 p.m.
Perhaps the most powerful tool to assist those in need in finding food during this holiday season is through a directory provided at https://benningtonfood.info, said Blizzard, who works to make connections for those in need across the region.
In a collaborative effort with multiple Bennington County agencies, the staff of the collaborating agencies developed the directory to help people find free prepared foods, meals-to-go, food pantry items, and fresh food distribution resources across the region under the premise that “everyone deserves access to healthy foods.”
Hot prepared foods and food pantry items can be picked up at various locations throughout the county, said Blizzard – and it can be picked up on any day of the week.
Information is below, by distribution location from south to north. However, many resources are available to residents of Bennington County, without proof of town residency.
In Pownal, those looking for resources can visit the Pownal Food Pantry, located at 284 Church Street in Pownal, or the Pownal Faith Church, located at 82 Main Street. The Pownal Food Pantry is open on the second and fourth Saturdays of the month from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m., and the contact number is 802-823-7763.
Multiple Bennington locations are available to assist those in need. These include the Sunrise Family Resource Center, which services Sunrise families only, the Walloomsac Apartments located at 206 School Street in Bennington, and Brookside Apartments located at 323 South Street in Bennington – both of which service seniors only.
Senior-only resources can be accessed from the Walloomsac Apartments on the third Wednesdays of the month from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. and from the Brookside Apartments on the first Wednesdays of the month from 9:30-10:30 a.m. They are also available from the BROC Food Shelf, located at 332 Orchard Road, from 2-3 p.m. on Fridays.
Several religious and faith-based resources in the Bennington area also offer food resources to those in need.
These include the Bennington Community Cafe at 200 Pleasant Street, which operates a pay-what-you choose pop up restaurant and a pay-what-you choose clothing boutique with the restaurant portion open from 1:30 p.m. to 3 p.m.; HIS Pantry at Sacred Heart, located at 238 Main Street, which offers resources on Wednesdays from 1-3:30 p.m. and Friday from 10-11:30 a.m.; the Green Mountain Christian Center, located at 440 River Street, which offers assistance on the first and third Fridays of the month from 4-6 p.m., and the the Second Congregational Church, located at 115 Hillside Street, which offers “take-out dinners” on Sundays from 4:30-5:30 p.m.
Additionally, the Harvest House, located at 101 River Street in Bennington, offers assistance from 8-10 a.m. and from 11:15 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Friday and from 8-9:45 a.m. on Sundays.
In Bennington, the Applegate Apartments offers assistance to those in need of food resources on the third Thursday of the month from 10 a.m. to 12 noon.
The other two major food pantries servicing Bennington County, and located in the Town of Bennington, are BROC Food Shelf, located at 332 Orchard Road, and GBCS Kitchen Cupboard, located at 121 Depot Street.
The BROC Food Shelf is open from 10 a.m. to 12 noon Monday through Thursday, and 10 a.m. to 12 noon on Friday, and more information can be obtained by calling (802)445-1311.
GBCS Kitchen Cupboard is open on Tuesdays from 3:30 to 6:30 p.m., Thursdays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. More information can be obtained by calling (802) 447-3700.
North Bennington resources include the North Bennington Baptist Church, located at 15 Church Street, which services those in need on Thursdays from 1-2 p.m. and the Saint John the Baptist Food Shelf, located at 5 Houghton Street. More information about resources available from the North Bennington Baptist Church can be found by calling (802)442-2711. More information about the resources available from the Saint John the Baptist Food Shelf can be found by calling (802)447-7504.
On the second and fourth Fridays of the month, in Shaftsbury, food pantry items can be picked up at Carpenter’s Shop Food Shelf, which is located at the United Methodist Church, 127 Church Street. Those looking for more information can call (802) 442-4599.
In Arlington, those in need can pick up food items from Hannah’s Pantry at the Battenkill Valley Health Center in Arlington at 9 Church Street between the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. It is also open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday. More information can be found by calling (802) 375-6566. Additionally, they can pick up items at the BVHC Veggie VanGo at 265 East Arlington Road on Mondays from 2:45-4 p.m.
Also in Arlington, those in need can visit the Arlington Food Shelf on the first Tuesday (from 1:30-4 p.m.) and the third Tuesday (from 3:30-5 p.m.) of the month. The Arlington Food Shelf is located at 265 East Arlington Road in Arlington. More information can be found by calling (802) 375-6328 or (802) 375-6411.
For those in the Northshire, food assistance is available at the Community Food Cupboard in Manchester, which is located at 40 Jeff Williams Way. The establishment offers assistance by “self-service” on Mondays and Tuesdays, and on Saturdays and Sundays. Assistance is listed as 24/7 on those days, but is also available on Wednesdays from 2 to 4 p.m. and Thursdays from 10 a.m. to noon and again from 2 to 4 p.m. Help is also available by appointment on Fridays from 9 to 11 a.m. Information on the Community Food Cupboard in Manchester can be found by calling (802) 362-0057.
At Meadows Apartments, located at Equinox Terrace Road in Manchester, food options and other non-perishable resources can be obtained on the 2nd Wednesdays of the month – for seniors only – between the hours of 9 and 10 a.m. Information on this program can be obtained by reaching out via phone at (802) 362-4463.
Also in Manchester, those in need can reach out to the CFC Produce Drop at 6025 Main Street on Mondays from 10-11 a.m. More information can be found by calling (800) 585-2265.
Another great resource for Bennington County residents in need of food resources is Meals on Wheels. Meals on Wheels is located at 124 Pleasant Street in Bennington, and more information can be found by calling (802)442-8012. Meals on Wheels lists food pickup as between the hours of 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. Monday through Friday.
While this is a fairly comprehensive list to start with, availability may be impacted by staffing shortages, holiday scheduling, and weather, organizers caution.
Other resources involve visiting vermont211.org, a resource dedicated to finding food resources throughout the state, or checking in with the Vermont Food Bank at vtfoodbank.org. The USDA Site Finder, traditionally used as a locator for the Summer Meals Program has been adding locally-available resources for the holidays. Resources are listed by state and are available at fns.usda.gov/summer/sitefinder.
