The Produce Man thrives in West Chicago

At the Resurrection Food Pantry, folks call him the Produce Man. At home he's The Farmer.

Dennis Miller says he's actually just a Regular Guy doing what needs to be done.

The retired West Chicago resident not only grows produce to donate to food pantries in the Daily Herald's Giving Garden program, but when it's too chilly to garden, he finds other ways to get food to pantries.

He and his wife, Bernadine, host garage sales and spend the proceeds purchasing fresh produce from local grocers, generally buying radishes, oranges and apples.

"We buy pineapples if they are in season, that is something that people don't always buy themselves," Miller said.

They consider it a privilege, not an obligation.

"We are fortunate, we can do this," he said.

They grow several crops in their garden, including carrots, cucumbers and 15 types of tomatoes, making donations to the pantry about every two weeks.

"I grow a lot of heirloom tomatoes - some of them are multicolored," Miller said. "Some of them are known as Amish tomatoes, they are meaty, but don't split."

They're fond of container gardening, too, and grow peppers adjacent to their herb garden.

"We grow romaine lettuce in big buckets. We've already taken some in," Miller said. "It is cleaner if you grow it in buckets."

He remembers a small boy he encountered when bringing donations to Resurrection Food Pantry in Wayne about a year ago. The boy took some of the carrots the Millers brought in and said he would think of the donors every time he ate one.

"You see the eyes of the people waiting when you are unpacking vegetables, you see the smiles - it feels good to see how you help others," Miller said.

Supervisor Kathy McKinley said that while the couple usually comes in before the pantry is open, guests always are excited to see their produce on the tables as many of the items are beyond their means.

"They always bring things in colorful baskets and bags, it looks so beautiful laid out on the tables," McKinley said. "It is just so wonderful to have them working with us."

Produce typically goes out the same day it comes in, however, on slow days some items are saved for the next day's customers.

The effort is not without its challenges for the Millers. Yet they remain undaunted.

"It is getting harder to do these things," he said. "I wish I had a young kid to help me. I am retired, and I have my health problems, but we will keep doing this as long as we can."

Others in the Millers' neighborhood have recognized the value of their mission and started to help when possible.

"There is a businessman in the area who donates $10 or $20 occasionally to help," he said.

The couple was married a little more than seven years ago.

"I lost my first wife, and my now-wife lost her first husband. We felt that once we were together and retired we could do something for someone else," Miller said. "It's our thing."

A whole legion of clients at the food pantry is thankful.