Rotary enlists help of local businesses to restock McCook Pantry shelves

Tim Wiebe unloads a truck of supplies as Joyce Anderson mans the dolly.

Courtesy photo

McCOOK, Neb. -- The COVID-19 pandemic has created some challenges with grocery shopping for local residents, and the McCook Pantry has not been immune from those challenges. The McCook Rotary Club has stepped in to help, and not only were they able to re-stock the pantry shelves with some hard-to-get items, they were also able to purchase all of the items from local businesses.

McCook Rotary Club members donated over $2,000 to purchase food for the pantry, and the District/Rotary International matched that with a $2,000 grant. Members were resolved to put that money back into the local economy by purchasing from McCook’s local merchants.

With the help of Nick’s Distribution, Dollar General, and Gary’s Super Foods, they were able to stock the shelves of the pantry with food items that pantry workers said were in high demand. Rotary shoppers also included some items that pantry patrons appreciated, but were usually unavailable at the pantry, such as cake mixes, frosting, and muffin mixes.

Rotary members, from left, Liz Knedlick, Kellie Soden, Ann Barger, and Joyce Anderson, shop at Dollar General for the McCook Pantry.

Courtesy photos

When Rotary members first approached local merchants with their orders, they were warned that they might not get everything on their list in the first shipment. But with the exception of rice, the orders from Nick’s and Gary’s came in without a hitch. While Dollar General couldn’t place a specific order for Rotary, they did contact members when their weekly truck came in so members could shop off the shelves. So as not to create a hardship for other Dollar General customers, Rotary members purchased off the shelf from Dollar General over several weeks.

Ten Rotarians and two Interact members (the high school branch of Rotary) put in a total of 19 hours over five different days to help with shopping, loading, and unloading $4,000 worth of groceries.

McCook Pantry workers commented that they were so appreciative of not only the food, but also the McCook Rotary crew who was always available to unload the food that was delivered.

The McCook Pantry is located at 509 West First Street in McCook and is open 1 to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. After several weeks of meeting via Zoom, McCook Rotary will again be meeting in person at noon on Tuesdays at the student union on the McCook Community College campus beginning July 7.