All of the volunteers at the Morrison Charitable Food Pantry want to send out a big, heartfelt thank you for your support in 2025.
When we sent out an appeal for help in October to help cover the extra expenses due to the increase in the number of new clients we were seeing (partially due to SNAP being disrupted and the government shutdown) and the increase in the cost of purchasing food to distribute, you responded. We are so proud to live in a community that is so generous and willing to help their neighbors.
I would like to especially acknowledge some of our younger community members who had food drives and personal care items for our pantry.
Seeing our young people take an active role, at a young age, is encouraging and uplifting knowing they care about the residents in their community.
The Southside Elementary Kindness Club collected 321 pounds of food for us, and the High School Student Council had a “fill the bus” drive with a total of 1,500 pounds of food and personal care items.
The Cub Scout Pack donates personal care items to us each month. Odell Library collected 260 pounds from the community for us.
So many different organizations and citizens stopped in with food, personal care items, or cash and checks, for which we are eternally grateful.
Our Turkey Trot Fun Run and Walk was canceled due to weather, but we received $1,800 in donations with more coming in due to ongoing T-shirt sales. We still have a good selection of the Turkey Trot T-shirts for sale at $20 each, or two for $30. All the money received from the T-shirt sales goes to the pantry.
You can contact Leveda at 779-441-2733 and leave a message or email morrisonfoodpantry@gmail.com, to arrange for the purchase and pickup of the shirts.
I would also like to acknowledge some of the long-time organizations that have supported us through the years. The Lions Club and St. Annes for their monthly collections of personal care items. Our longest donation supporter, Sullivans Foods, for their donations each week, which really add to the items we can distribute. The Rotary Club for being there on the first Wednesday of each month to help us unload our order from River Bend Food Bank and for their monetary donation last year. Kunes Auto Group, which donates skids of food items to various food pantries each year. That donation boosts the pantries’ food inventories and helps lower their food costs.
Thanks also to the people who donated eggs, fresh fruit and vegetables, hamburger meat, hams, and turkeys, sourdough bread, along with personal care items, all of which are greatly appreciated by our clients. You all are truly an awesome group of people. To all the community members who bought a Christmas bag for us at Sullivan’s, the total weight of food bought was 755 pounds.
When I compared our distribution statistics between the end of 2022 (our first year as a stand-alone 501(c)3 entity) and the end of 2025, it showed that we had a 43% increase in the total number of families we served, and a 46% increase in the total number of people within those families. In 2025 we served a total of 806 families and 2,353 people within those families.
People will ask us what works better, cash or food items; we answer whatever you wish to donate. Cash allows us to purchase the food items that we are low on, at a reduced price, through both River Bend Food Bank and Sauk Valley Food Bank.
Food donations cut down on the items that we need to purchase. All donations are gratefully received, and all donations stay here in Morrison. We now have a donation box next to our northeast door for non-perishable items.
We do not receive any tax money from the city, county, state or federal government. We are totally reliant on public donations to operate our pantry. As we are a 501(c)3 charitable organization, donations, generally, are tax deductible. Please check with your tax accountant, your IRAs, retirement accounts etc. about how to donate to the pantry to claim a tax deduction. We will gladly issue a receipt for your donations; please ask us for one.
Our website address is morrisonfoodpantry.org, which has information on the pantry along with our registration form, income guidelines, etc. Our email address is morrisonfoodpantry@gmail.com, and our phone number is 815-441-2733. Our Post Office box number is Box 324 for those who wish to mail donations to us.
We do not have a mailbox at the pantry building. On Wednesdays there is, generally, someone at the pantry between 9 and 10:30 a.m. if you wish to drop off items.
We are open every non-holiday Thursdays from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. for food distribution to those residing in the Morrison School District area. We will be closed if the Morrison School District cancels school for the day, and will reopen the following Thursday.
Again, thank you Morrison for your continued support. It is needed now more than ever.
President Leveda Ashlin and the Volunteers of the Morrison Charitable Food Pantry
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