Two weeks into the COVID-19 shutdown in spring 2020, a church on Lititz Pike gave away 4,000 pounds of free food in 45 minutes, four times what it usually handed out.
Long Memorial United Methodist Church, at 2660 Lititz Pike between Lancaster and Lititz, had run a weekly “Free Grocery Friday” for years. On the last Friday of March 2020, more than 80 cars pulled in. Drivers began lining up at 5:30 p.m., and supplies ran out before the hour-long giveaway ended.
Neighbors helping neighbors
“It’s free food, it’s God’s food, it’s not ours,” said Ian Solodky, the ministry coordinator.
“This is neighbors helping neighbors,” he said. “We’re not sending the food to New York, we’re not sending it to Zimbabwe, this is our neighbors who are hungry.”
Pastor Nelson Berrios stood along busy Lititz Pike in Philadelphia Eagles gear and blue disposable gloves, waving motorists into the lot beside a hand-painted sign offering free groceries.
No forms, no red tape
The process was simple: no forms, no income checks.
“Here at Long Memorial United Methodist Church, we don’t care if you come in a BMW or a bicycle, this is God’s food and it’s for you,” Solodky said.
Drivers wound through orange cones to a contact-free pickup point, where volunteers loaded 50-plus pounds of food into open trunks. Along with a box of what Solodky called “mystery food” made up of staples, families received fresh vegetables, eggs, milk, cheese, baked goods and snacks. Solodky encouraged people to pass along anything they didn’t need. “We want them to put it on their neighbor’s doorstep and help their neighbors out,” he said.
Where the food came from
Food was donated by local grocers Giant and Oregon Dairy and purchased at reduced cost from the Blessings of Hope ministry in Leola. In an April 10 update, the church explained that Blessings of Hope was supplying pre-packed boxes without requiring immediate payment during the crisis, but that the church would ultimately need to pay for the food.
Demand growing
The ministry had existed long before the pandemic. What changed was the setting: distribution moved from the church basement to the parking lot. Pastor Berrios saw a benefit. “It gets us outside of the church,” he said.
Two weeks earlier, the church had food left over and delivered it to residents of a nearby development. The following week it ran out. Most recipients that night said they had lost their jobs, and federal and state relief had not yet reached most households.
With demand expected to double, the church added a free to-go spaghetti dinner on April 3 and announced a second weekly distribution. “Starting on April 7th, every Tuesday and Friday at 6 p.m.,” Solodky said.
Emotional work
Asked how the work felt, Solodky grew emotional. “I do this because Jesus Christ is my Lord and Savior, and he’s asking me to do this to help my community,” he said. “It brings me to tears when I know there’s people that are hungry normally, but now people who normally are able to buy food for themselves and they don’t have that next paycheck.”
“What we’re giving the people is not only food, but we’re giving them hope,” Pastor Berrios said.
How to help
The church accepted financial gifts through its website for the food ministry, and asked grocery stores and restaurants with food to donate, or volunteers, to call 717-569-2931. Solodky also asked to borrow party coolers to keep produce cold, promising to return them after the pandemic.
Sunday services moved online to Facebook and YouTube. For anyone who needed food, Solodky’s message was simple: “Come, Friday, 6, be there.”
This story was originally reported by Lynn Rebuck for LititzDailyNews.com in April 2020 and has been updated for our archive.