Wheeling Food Pantry asks for donations

The Wheeling Food Pantry is in need of donations, as it is seeing an increased number of families coming in for help, officials said.

The pantry, 101 N. Wolf Road, opened Sept. 15 and helped nearly 200 families through the end of the year, said Shari Huizar, director of human services for the village.

Now, however, the pantry is seeing more people in need .

“The holidays are over and it’s back to reality,” Huizar said, adding the increased demand may be due to word getting out about the new pantry, or the fact that many people who had seasonal holiday jobs are again unemployed.

Huizar said they are looking for pantry items like peanut butter, jelly, spaghetti, noodles, oatmeal, beans and rice. She added that many of the families have young children and would appreciate kid-friendly foods such as macaroni and cheese and cereal.

Donations can be dropped off at Village Hall, the Wheeling Police Department, Senior Center or Fire Station 24 on Milwaukee Avenue.

Donations can also be brought directly to the Wheeling Food Pantry, 1-5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

“There was a lot of generosity during the holidays and that really helped, but there aren’t as many places doing food drives now,” Huizar said.

The pantry is a collaboration between the Village of Wheeling, OMNI services, Rotary Club and other organizations.

Visitors to the pantry also meet with social workers from the village’s human services department, to assess other needs they might have.