Dear Friend of the Pantry,
As I write this letter, the Pantry is alive with the sound of volunteers moving with purpose, shelves being stocked, and grocery carts filling up to serve neighbors in need. It’s heartwarming to see our community come together, but the rising number of families needing support is deeply concerning. Since 2019, the Pantry has expanded rapidly to meet the growing demand for food assistance, and 2024 has been no different.
Living in the Gunnison Valley is as challenging as it is beautiful. Consider someone like Frank, a local worker earning $15 an hour—a little above the average hourly wage in our county. On a typical 40-hour week, Frank brings in just over $2,000 a month. With rent averaging $1,000 for a single room, half his paycheck is gone before anything else is accounted for.
That leaves just $1,000 to cover food, utilities, transportation, and all the other essentials. For someone like Frank, even a small disruption—a missed week of work from an injury, an unexpected car repair, or a spike in heating costs—can create a crisis.
Suddenly, Frank faces impossible choices: paying rent or buying groceries, keeping the lights on or filling a prescription.
On behalf of the Pantry, I’m asking you to make a gift of $100 to ensure neighbors like Frank have access to the safety net they need to weather hard times.
Through October of this year, the Pantry has served over 2,000 individuals, with nearly 10,000 visits for vital food assistance. While we’ve distributed more than 200,000 pounds of food in 2024, food donations are projected to fall 20,000 pounds short of what was donated in 2023. This means we’ll need to spend $133,000 this year to keep our shelves stocked.
Historically, food donations have been the backbone of our ability to serve; but now, as our programming has grown and diversified, your financial contributions are more important than ever. With your support, we can ensure that every neighbor facing hardship has a place to turn.
Please, take action today to help create a lifeline for neighbors across the valley. Your gift—whether it’s $100, $250, or whatever amount feels right to you—will fill grocery carts and bring relief to those who need it most.
Together, we can make sure no one in our community goes hungry.
Give Online
Other Ways to Give
- Mail a check to PO BOX 7077, Gunnison, CO 81230
- Drop off in person at 114 S 14th St, Gunnison.
Come tour the Daniel Escalante Center for yourself!
P.S. The Pantry has been a lifeline for over 2,000 individuals this year alone. But with donations dropping, we need your help to keep our shelves stocked. Your gift is needed by December 31 to help provide vital assistance to our neighbors!
Thank you for reading.
We are all in this together,
Jodi Payne
Executive Director
Gunnison Country Food Pantry
Need Food? Click Me!
970-641-4156
114 S 14th St, Gunnison CO 81230
PO Box 7077, Gunnison CO 81230
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