Care and giving in Ashton

ASHTON — Not everyone is lucky enough to have a pantry full of food. Rising food costs and other financial challenges have forced many rural families to tighten their budgets, and belts, and that’s made it a challenge to keep food on the table.

That’s where a dedicated group of volunteers comes in to help fight food insecurity. They’re the people behind the Ashton Care Pantry, and they’ve made it their mission to keep hunger from having a seat at the table. Through their service, they’ve come to know many people in Ashton, Franklin Grove and Lee Center, as well as their needs and the stories behind the struggles.

Sherri Stauffer coordinates the volunteer group of about 10 people who help patrons get the food, toiletries and cleaning products they need when the pantry opens its doors on the first and third Thursdays of the month.

While the pantry provides food for those in need, it also provides something to its volunteers: food for the soul — a sense of pride and a feeling of accomplishment, knowing that they’re helping their fellow community members, and seeing the smiles on their faces as they peruse the pantry.

“Anyone can come, sign in — there’s always two volunteers here — and they can fill two grocery bags of what they want,” Stauffer said. Unlike pantries that have packages of groceries already bagged, visiting the Ashton pantry is more like a trip to the store. “It’s basically like they can just come in and shop,” she said. “People are actually very considerate, they take what they want or think they can use, and are very good about it.”

Tom Balch was director of the pantry for 29 years, and once worked with pantry founders Alvera Forney and Mary Hill. He continues to be a volunteer and he’s noticed that having the patrons pick their own products works out better for them.

“There’s two pantry concepts,” Balch said. “One is where they take a bag or box and they fill it based on what they have, and they hand that to you in the parking lot or the doorway. We’re more of an open concept, where you’re shopping off the shelf on a free basis, and we’re letting them choose. We like that open concept. Why put something in a box that they maybe don’t like or won’t utilize?”

The pantry is located behind the Ashton Village Hall, and has kept families fed for nearly 50 years. Its service area was originally the Ashton School District boundaries, until the district merged with the Franklin Center School District (which consisted of Franklin Grove and Lee Center) in 2004.

In addition to donations from the public, local businesses, organizations and school groups hold drives and fundraisers throughout the year that help keep the pantry full. Much of its meat and eggs are donated from local farmers. The pantry also provides recipes that patrons can use with the food they take.

“A lot of times someone is cleaning out [a parent’s] house and has unexpired food to bring to us, and churches will have baskets that people will put food in,” Stauffer said.

Donated food must be unexpired, unopened and shelf stable. Personal care items, toiletries and cleaning supplies are also accepted, as well as monetary donations.

Steve Toole is the pantry’s inventory manager. He keeps track of what comes in and what goes out, checks for expired products, and hears what patrons would like to see more of in stock. If a product is running low, and there isn’t more coming in anytime soon, it’s up to him to use the cash on hand to buy it.

“We try to anticipate what the needs will be,” Toole said. “We try to get items that are healthy. It doesn’t mean we won’t have a few treats once in a while. We generally want to have something that’s nutritious and healthy for them.”

Volunteers make every effort to get to know the needs of each patron, and in doing so, keeps track of certain items that are in particular need. The “wish list” includes food such as boxed macaroni and cheese, cans of chili, canned vegetables, peanut butter and jelly, and tea; non-food items include boxes of bandages, paper plates and toothpaste.

In order to qualify for help, pantry patrons must reside within the Ashton-Franklin Center School District (a tax statement can be used for provide proof). That’s it. In Illinois, it’s illegal for pantries to ask patrons for their income or to set income requirements.

According to the Illinois State Board of Education’s 2024 Report Card data, released in late October, 50.2 percent of students in the Ashton-Franklin Center School District are classified as low-income by the state, which encompasses those who are eligible to receive free or reduced-price lunches, live in substitute care, or whose families receive public aid. The figure is about seven percent higher than the average percentage between 2015-23, data shows.

More people have utilized the pantry this year than last, Stauffer said. “We have new people coming in almost every week who haven’t come before,” she said.

The pantry has been at the Village Hall for nearly half of its history, and the volunteers have little overhead to worry about, thanks to the village, and that helps ensure that the money donated goes for food and not expenses.

“Our goal is for 100 percent of it to go toward food staples for those in need,” Balch said. “The Village has been very generous in donating a place for us to have it, and avoiding rent, utilities and things of that nature.”

Behind each person who uses the pantry is a story, some, unfortunately, are all too common — coping with a job loss, trying to make ends meet, single parents in need of a helping hand — while others are facing hardships most of us would find unimaginable, like the Ukrainian families who fled their war-torn homeland and took up temporary residence in the Ashton and Franklin Grove area. Some of them sought assistance from the pantry, and volunteers were happy the help.

“We had Ukrainian refugees coming over, and most of them have moved now and we don’t see them much anymore,” Stauffer said. “We couldn’t really have a conversation, but it was great to have them come. We tried to help them understand what things were. They would see things on the shelf and hold them and talk to each other about it, and I would encourage them to take it and try it.”

More volunteers are always needed. For retirees like Toole, volunteering is a way to not only keep active, but it’s rewarding too, he said.

“Since I’m retired, I have time to go shopping,” Toole said. “I don’t mind it as long as I have a list. I kind of have a system, and I enjoy it. I like trying to get things that people want, and I enjoy giving back [to the community] a little bit, too. People really appreciate it, and they show it and say it.”

Understanding patrons’ stories and helping them feel better with a couple of sacks of food and other necessities are what Stauffer and her fellow volunteers enjoy about being a part of the pantry and serving their community.

“I enjoy the people,” Stauffer said. “I love being here. I look forward to people coming in, and look forward to seeing them outside of the food pantry. Sometimes someone will cry on my shoulder, and just need someone to talk to. It’s definitely serving a need and definitely something that people enjoy coming to. A lot of people express a lot of gratitude, too.”

The Ashton Care Pantry, 810 Main St. behind the Village Hall office in downtown Ashton, is open from 9 to 11 a.m. and 5 to 6 p.m. on the first and third Thursday of each month. Call the Village Hall at 815-453-2241 for more information.

Ashton Care Pantry “wish list”

Food items: Barbeque sauce, boxed macaroni and cheese, boxed mashed potatoes, boxed rice or pasta sides, boxes of jello, breakfast syrup, canned beans, canned chili, canned fruit, canned meat (chicken, tuna, Spam), canned pasta, canned vegetables, cereal, coffee, condensed soups, crackers, dry beans, dry mixes for baked goods (cornbread, cakes, biscuits, muffins), dry pasta, dry rice (quick rice, boil in bag, and bagged),honey, jelly, ketchup, mayonnaise, mustard, oatmeal (bulk and packets-any flavor), packets of dry soups, pasta sauce (any flavor), peanut butter, pepper, salad dressings (any flavor), salt, tea

Non-food items: Boxes of band aids, boxes of tissue, Clorox cleaning wipes, feminine care products, individual rolls of paper towels, individual rolls of toilet papers, small bars of soap, small stacks of paper plates, toothbrushes, toothpaste