North Andover Food Pantry Breaks Record: 608 Served Before Thanksgiving

The Peoples Food Pantry in North Andover set a new record for food distribution this year.

According to an Eagle-Tribune report, 608 people received groceries on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving, the highest number of people served since the pantry opened in 1992. Approximately one hundred more clients visited this year than in the same period last year, underscoring a growing local need for food as the holiday season approaches.

The pantry regularly provides food for 400 people — guests — every two weeks at the North Parish Regional Unitarian Universalist Church in North Andover. Additionally, the pantry serves more than 50 North Andover families on Monday evenings, including 65-plus adults and more than 100 children.

According to the Eagle-Tribune, guests are served more than canned and boxed items. Instead, an estimated 30% of the food distributed is fresh produce, and sometimes meat and seafood, said Jennifer Cordes, the pantry president.

To help with last week's Thanksgiving food distribution, volunteers worked for more than three hours to distribute food to people who waited in line in the darkness of early morning. 

Contributions to the pantry come from several businesses, North Andover schools, churches, family food drives, and neighborhood collections. Direct monetary donations allow the pantry to buy discounted bulk food.

Volunteers who support the pantry say they take pride in knowing they've helped uplift the spirits of those they serve. 

“You see suddenly their face and their happiness, and I am so happy, you know, seeing them in that moment,” said the pantry's only part-time employee Lana Sweic. “We know that they're leaving here, and we made their day.”